Engaged Reading Series event planned Feb. 17 at Spencer Research Library

LAWRENCE — Engaged Reading, a collaborative series at the University of Kansas that addresses topics of societal relevance through conversation inspired by books, will resume for a second semester. 

The first event is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Feb. 17 and will feature the book “Rooted: The American Legacy of Land Theft and the Modern Movement for Black Land Ownership,” by Brea Baker, who will give the Kenneth Spencer Lecture on Feb. 20 at Liberty Hall.

Deborah Dandridge and Phil Cunningham, librarians at the Spencer Research Library, will share a selection of collection materials and documents related to Black farm families in Kansas. Following collection viewing, a discussion led by Dandridge and Imani Wadud, American studies, will engage attendees in discussion about topics related to Baker’s book and ways in which its messages apply on a regional and local level.

KU Libraries will supply 20 copies of the book for the first registrants. To claim your spot at the event, email thecommons@ku.edu. 

Engaged Reading fosters an exchange of ideas across experiences and knowledge. Each session includes discussion leaders, whose research and work spans academic disciplines and broader systems of knowledge, to promote learning and inquiry across populations at the University of Kansas. Inspired by the expansive reach of the KU Reads program, and curated with goals of generous and generative conversation, this series features excerpts and texts that offer expanded perspectives on contemporary society in the United States. 

Engaged Reading events are supported by The Commons, KU Libraries, the Hall Center for the Humanities, the Spencer Museum of Art and the Institute for Policy & Social Research.