Protest Book Club: Great reads for change with Seattle's hip-hop professor

Dr. Daudi Abe along with KUOW's Ross Reynolds and public radio listeners explore recommendations for revolutionary reads.

Does the news feel suffocating? Have you turned your phone off because your ally friends keep checking in on you? Have you duct taped a bottle of hand sanitizer to your backpack to share with fellow marchers? Or perhaps you're confused about what all the #BLM fuss is about.

In this hour, KUOW explores titles for inspiration and education for anyone who is curious about, invigorated by, or overwhelmed with this current moment of protest and uprising.

Our guides include educator and hip-hop scholar Dr. Daudi Abe, our own Ross Reynolds, and you, our loyal public radio listeners.

Dr. Daudi Abe is a professor, writer, and historian who has taught and written about race, gender, education, hip-hop, and sports for the past four decades. Dr. Abe’s has appeared on national media such as MSNBC and NPR. His forthcoming book, Emerald Street: A History of Hip-Hop in Seattle, will be published in the fall of 2020 by the University of Washington Press. Dr. Abe holds an MA in human development, and a PhD in education from the University of Washington. He teaches at Seattle Central College.

Reading recommendations from listeners:

"Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You" by Ibram X. Kendi. Recommended by Jerome Hunter on the Education Episode of KUOW's web series Are We Going to Be OK?

"Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America's Police Forces" by Radley Balko. Recommended by Mellina White.

"The Trayvon Generation" an essay by Elizabeth Alexander. Recommended by Victor Tam.

"American Sonnets for my Past and Future Assassin" poetry by Terrance Hayes. Recommended by Marrene Franich.

"Decolonizing Wealth: Indigenous Wisdom to Heal Divides and Restore Balance" by Edgar Villanueva. Recommended by Kimberly Mitchell.

"We Want to do More than Survive; Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom” by Bettina L. Love. Recommended by Doug Ferguson.

"Racism and a Global Pandemic Has Given Math Education a New Telescope. Where is the Microscope?" an essay by Sunil Singh. Recommended by Debbie Aldous.

"Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America" by Michael Eric Dyson. Recommended by Ryan Werenka.

"Black Panther: A Nation Under Our Feet Book 1" a graphic novel written by Ta-Nehisi Coates and illustrated by Brian Stelfreeze. Recommended by Keri Zierler.

"Why are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria" by Beverly Daniel Tatum. Recommended by Kristin Leong.

"Confessions of a Former Bastard Cop" an essay by a writer using the pseudonym Officer A. Cab. Also recommended by Kristin Leong.

"How to Be an Antiracist" by Ibram X. Kendi. Recommended by Ross Reynolds.

Reading recommendations from Dr. Abe:

"A Pound of Flesh: Monetary Sanctions as Punishment for the Poor" by Alexes Harris.

"The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness" by Michelle Alexander.

"Culturally Responsive Teaching: Theory, Research, & Practice" by Geneva Gay.

"Emerald Street: A History of Hip-Hop in Seattle" by Daudi Abe with a forward by Sir Mix-a-Lot (forthcoming, fall 2020).

Looking to to pick up one of these titles?

We recommend checking out this list of Black-owned independent booksellers from our friends at Literary Hub.

Looking for more reading recommendations?

Check out our Pandemic Book Club list from NPR's Nancy Pearl and KUOW listeners.

This show was produced by John O’Brien and hosted by Ross Reynolds. This web story was produced by Kristin Leong.