Bridges & Pathways Book Group Zoom Discussion Of Solomon Northup’s Twelve Years A Slave On March 31
VINELAND, NJ—What does an 1853 first hand narrative by an enslaved person have to tell us about American life in 2021? What biases and assumptions do we bring when looking at another human being? What are some enduring legacies of separation of families?
These issues and others will be discussed in the next Bridges & Pathways Book Group discussion, presented by the South Jersey Holocaust Coalition. It will take place via Zoom on Wednesday, March 31, from 6 to 7:15 p.m. and is free and open to he public. The book discussed will be Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup.
This 1853 memoir and slave narrative was by American Solomon Northup, as told to and edited by David Wilson. Northup, a black man who was born free in New York state, details his being tricked to go to Washington, D.C., where he was kidnapped and sold into slavery in the Deep South. He was in bondage for 12 years in Louisiana before being able to secretly get information to friends and family in New York who secured his release. Originally published before the Civil War, the book subsequent fell into obscurity for nearly a century before being rediscovered by two Louisiana historians who co-edited a historically annotated version.
The book talk is presented by South Jersey Holocaust Coalition and New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education, with funding from One Jewish Community—Jewish Federation of Cumberland, Gloucester & Salem Counties.
Coalition member Shoshana Osofsky will facilitate each of the discussions in this series, for which people should come with an open mind and heart, and be prepared to engage in spirited and civil discussion in which everyone has a right to feel safe in what they say.
Reading of the book under discussion is recommended.
The tentative schedule for future book discussions will be: Years of Infamy by Michi Weglyn, on April 28; Perpetrators, Victims, Bystanders by Raul Hilberg, on May 26; Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor by Yossi Klein Halevi, on June 23; and How to be an Antiracist by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, on July 28.
Osofsky brings to these discussions a deep and passionate sensitivity and involvement in causes relating to social justice, as well as the fight against anti-Semitism, racism, discrimination, and cultural biases.
The chairperson of Holocaust Coalition is Harry Furman, a former Social Studies teacher who pioneered the first New Jersey high school semester course on the Holocaust and genocide, The Conscience of Man.
Educators, students, and the public are invited to take part. Registration (password protected) is required for each session and will be limited to allow participants to dig deeper. Please register by visiting the Coalition website—www.holocaustcoalition.com
For more information on this and all South Jersey Holocaust Coalition events and activities, please visit the Coalition’s website at www.holocaustcoalition.com Please see their Facebook page at “South Jersey Holocaust Coalition” for interesting articles and information about the Holocaust and related subjects. You may also email holocaustcoalition@gmail.com
