The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - NAACP IMAGE AWARD WINNER - A dramatic expansion of a groundbreaking work of journalism, The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story offers a profoundly revealing vision of the American past and present. FINALIST FOR THE KIRKUS PRIZE - ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Washington Post, NPR, Esquire, Marie Claire, Electric Lit, Ms. magazine, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist In late August 1619, a ship arrived in the British colony of Virginia bearing a cargo of twenty to thirty enslaved people from Africa. Their arrival led to the barbaric and unprecedented system of American chattel slavery that would last for the next 250 years. This is sometimes referred to as the country's original sin, but it is more than that: It is the source of so much that still defines the United States. The New York Times Magazine's award-winning 1619 Project issue reframed our understanding of American history by placing slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. This book substantially expands on that work, weaving together eighteen essays that explore the legacy of slavery in present-day America with thirty-six poems and works of fiction that illuminate key moments of oppression, struggle, and resistance. The essays show how the inheritance of 1619 reaches into every part of contemporary American society, from politics, music, diet, traffic, and citizenship to capitalism, religion, and our democracy itself. This book that speaks directly to our current moment, contextualizing the systems of race and caste within which we operate today. It reveals long-glossed-over truths around our nation's founding and construction--and the way that the legacy of slavery did not end with emancipation, but continues to shape contemporary American life. Featuring contributions from: Leslie Alexander - Michelle Alexander - Carol Anderson - Joshua Bennett - Reginald Dwayne Betts - Jamelle Bouie - Anthea Butler - Matthew Desmond - Rita Dove - Camille T. Dungy - Cornelius Eady - Eve L. Ewing - Nikky Finney - Vievee Francis - Yaa Gyasi - Forrest Hamer - Terrance Hayes - Kimberly Annece Henderson - Jeneen Interlandi - Honorée Fanonne Jeffers - Barry Jenkins - Tyehimba Jess - Martha S. Jones - Robert Jones, Jr. - A. Van Jordan - Ibram X. Kendi - Eddie Kendricks - Yusef Komunyakaa - Kevin M. Kruse - Kiese Laymon - Trymaine Lee - Jasmine Mans - Terry McMillan - Tiya Miles - Wesley Morris - Khalil Gibran Muhammad - Lynn Nottage - ZZ Packer - Gregory Pardlo - Darryl Pinckney - Claudia Rankine - Jason Reynolds - Dorothy Roberts - Sonia Sanchez - Tim Seibles - Evie Shockley - Clint Smith - Danez Smith - Patricia Smith - Tracy K. Smith - Bryan Stevenson - Nafissa Thompson-Spires - Natasha Trethewey - Linda Villarosa - Jesmyn Ward
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
So much dust has been kicked up about the 1619 Project and Critical Race Theory. After reading the book version, you can see why conservatives are running scared. The collection of essays in this book will at first anger you, then break your spirit, and after rebuild it with resolve. Then like all truth, in the end, it will set you free. Free to see all the fuckery of the history they teach you in school. Informed with the knowledge to counter all of the tactics and lies of bigotry.
The most important thing we learn from facing our sordid history is that “Black struggles for equality resulted in greater rights for all Americans.” Conversely, many of our nations biggest problems persist because the agents that stand in the way of change know that to truly fix long standing issues in our country means to embrace truly equitable outcomes for all Americans. A state of equality they just can’t live with. A demand, in the form of reparations, is clearly spelled out and justified in the closing.
From 1619 to now, the worst of us have found a way to block progress and cover up the historical truths in order to maintain a status quo that leaves them at the top of the racial hierarchy. Knowing all this, there is no wonder why this book, among others, is on the list of banned books in various states. It is a lot too stomach and took me three times as long to read it as a book I this length would otherwise. But the strongest medicine is hard to swallow and heals the body in due course.
See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.