Why talk about books?
Monica (left) and Page (middle) recording a conversation with a guest in someone's home.
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Knowing that books and political study are not always accessible for a variety of reasons –financial limitations, academic jargon, time barriers– Monica and Page launched this podcast to serve as an extra tool for community to utilize on the long road towards abolition and liberation.
In each episode, Monica and Page talk with community organizers, activists, and cultural workers –mostly based in Chicago– about one influential book that has helped them develop their political analysis and theory of change. Together, they break down key concepts, terms, strategies, and tactics, while also holding space for complexity, contradictions, and dreaming up a more just world. |
How the podcast got started
Monica (left) and Page (right) talking outside jail support in 2017.
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Sparked in a moment of urgency in November of 2016, the Lit Review podcast launched as part of a mass organizing strategy in building a stronger resistance in Chicago to the incoming Trump administration.
Through the leadership of Black cis, trans, femme, and queer organizers in Chicago, one of the many tactics considered at meetings was a podcast that made space for political education, an essential element that often gets left behind in the midst of rapid response activism and organizing. |
Special Thanks:
We are forever grateful to the people and early sponsors that helped us get this podcast started in 2017, including but not limited to: Bettina Johnson, Debbie Southorn, Dominique Barron, Mariame Kaba, Mia Henry, Sarah Lu, Ariel Mejia, and Shawna Lipton at the Critical Studies Graduate Program at Pacific Northwest College of Art.