BOOKS

The lists that follow are far from comprehensive, but offer some possible starting points for further explanation.

CIVIL RIGHTS/SOCIAL JUSTICE

The Movement: The African American Movement for Civil Rights by Thomas C. Holt, 2021

Holt provides an informed and nuanced understanding of the origins, character, and objectives of the mid-twentieth-century freedom struggle--highlighting the aspirations and initiatives of the ordinary, grassroots people who made it. 

How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi, 2019

Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science with his own personal story of awakening to antiracism. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to go beyond the awareness of racism to the next step: contributing to the formation of a just and equitable society.

The Origin of Others by Toni Morrison, 2017 

America’s foremost novelist reflects on the themes that preoccupy her work and increasingly dominate national and world politics: race, fear, borders, the mass movement of peoples, the desire for belonging. What is race and why does it matter? What motivates the human tendency to construct Others? Why does the presence of Others make us so afraid?

VOTING RIGHTS

We’ve Got to Try: How the Fight for Voting Rights Makes Everything Else Possible by Beto O’Rourke, 2022 

Activist and political leader Beto O’Rourke blends history, sociology, and travelogue for a thrilling, inspiring case for how voting rights is essential to a productive and healthy democracy.

I've Got the Light of Freedom: The Organizing Tradition and the Mississippi Freedom Struggle by Charles M. Payne, 2007

Payne brings to life the tradition of grassroots African American activism, long practiced yet poorly understood.

Vote for Us: How to Take Back Our Elections and Change the Future of Voting by Joshua Douglas, 2019

Mandatory reading for anyone who wants to stop spinning their wheels and actually fix the dystopia that grips American politics. 

GUN CONTROL/SAFETY

Enough is Enough: How Students Can Join the Fight for Gun Safety by Michelle Roehm McCann, 2019

A handbook explaining why and how readers can do their parts to end gun violence.This is a substantive look at the causes of the serious epidemic of gun violence in America and a how-to manual for making positive changes to create safer schools and communities. Using well-researched facts, this book dispels the myth that nothing can be done.

Glimmer of Hope: How Tragedy Sparked a Movement by The March for Our Lives Founders, 2018

Glimmer of Hope provides a blueprint for launching social change...There are moments reading Glimmer when you may forget that the leaders of March For Our Lives are kids. This book will help you remember in their short lives, they have not only survived a mass shooting, they have also channeled their emotions into coherent writing. 

The Way of the Gun: A Bloody Journey Into the World of Firearms by Iain Overton, 2017

In this gripping tour de force of investigative reporting, an award-winning journalist travels through America and beyond to understand the brutal reality—and consequences—of a world in which twelve billion bullets are produced every year for almost a billion guns.

LGBTQ

50 Years Legal: Five Decades of Fighting for Equal Rights by Simon Napier-Bell 2018

This is both the story of the 50-year battle for equal rights and deeply personal accounts from high profile politicians, comedians, actors and others in the public arena.

No Place Like Home: Lessons in Activism from LGBT Kansas by C.J. Janovy 2018

A compelling, complex narrative of the interlocking lives and efforts of a small group of activists working for the seemingly impossible goal of a queer-friendly Kansas. The narrative is one of bravery and resilience in the face of very long odds, and eventually, one of triumph. 

Never Silent: ACT UP and My Life in Activism by Peter Staley, 2021

A reminder of the power of organizing to create change, a testament to fighting for what you know to be true even when you might stand alone, and a story that will inspire future activists to keep bending that moral arc toward justice.

ENVIRONMENT/CLIMATE CHANGE

The Climate Book: The Facts and Solutions by Greta Thunberg, 2023

A sweeping compendium of essays contributed by more than 100 academicians, authors, environmentalists, and journalists whose specific professional expertise or profound humanitarian concern amplifies the existing science surrounding this crisis of sustainability and ecology. Yet among this esteemed roster of recognized voices, it is Thunberg’s own eloquence that elevates the collection with introductory essays for each section that convey a sense of urgency that is genuine, grounded, and unimpeachable.

The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming by David Wallace-Wells, 2020

This is both a travelogue of the near future and a meditation on how that future will look to those living through it—the ways that warming promises to transform global politics, the meaning of technology and nature in the modern world, the sustainability of capitalism and the trajectory of human progress.

Tales of Two Planets: Stories of Climate Change and Inequality in a Divided World by John Freeman

Galvanized by his conversations with writers and activists around the world, Freeman engaged with some of today's most eloquent storytellers, many of whom hail from the places under the most acute stress--from the capital of Burundi to Bangkok. Margaret Atwood conjures with a dystopian future in a remarkable poem. Lauren Groff whisks us to Florida; Edwidge Danticat to Haiti; Tahmima Anam to Bangladesh; while Anuradha Roy brings us to the Himalayas in the wake of floods, dam building, and drought. This is a literary all-points bulletin of fiction, essays, poems, and reportage about the most important crisis of our times.

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

Choice Words: Writers on Abortion edited by Annie Finch 2022

The Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade has generated a critical urgency for this landmark literary anthology of poems, stories, and essays. Choice Words collects essential voices that renew our courage in the struggle to defend reproductive rights. 

The Movement for Reproductive Justice: Empowering Women of Color through Social Activism by Patricia Zavella 2020

This study of the practical uses of an intersectional approach to organizing for social change goes far beyond the usual invocations of the term, actually illuminating its strengths and challenges ... Exhaustively researched, beautifully detailed, and theoretically powerful.

New Handbook for a Post-Roe America by Robin Marty, 2021

This valuable book includes an extensive, detailed resource guide for all pregnant people (whether cis, trans, or non-binary) of clinics, action groups, abortion funds, and practical support groups in each state, so wherever you live, you can get involved.

DISABILITY RIGHTS

The Fight for Disability Rights by Lisa A. Crayton, 2019 

This valuable resource depicts how the fight has enhanced the lives of people with disabilities, and how readers can continue the efforts. Highlights of renowned activists with historical context, current events, and teen-friendly examples will help teens channel their interests, frustrations, and curiosity into effective activism. A timeline of events with safe, easy-to-implement ideas will inspire future changemakers to team up with others and change the world.

Demystifying Disability: What to Know, What to Say, and How to Be an Ally   by Emily Ladau , 2021

This is a great primer for anyone who wants to learn more about the largest minority in the world, and how to lead with accessibility at the forefront.

Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist by Judith Heumann, 2021

A marvelous memoir by a disability hero who has paved the way for many of us. Full of fascinating stories from the disability rights movement, this book will guide future leaders as we work toward a barrier-free world.