Community Read Challenge 2

1. Get your copy of How the Word is Passed and read the “Angola Prison” and “Blandford Cemetery” chapters (pages 85–172).
2. Register for the Book Discussion Group and attend the second discussion on April 2 from noon–1 p.m. in the Arts and Humanities Building, Room 227.
3. Look at discussion questions and additional resources for the “Angola Prison” and “Blandford Cemetery” chapters:
   • For “Angola Prison,” consider what happens when a place of memory becomes "real" and when "time bends in on itself" (pages 115–17). See additional discussion questions about “Angola Prison” chapter.
   • For “Blandford Cemetery,” consider how Smith explains Confederate monuments and the myth of the Lost Cause (pages 143–47). See additional discussion questions about “Blandford Cemetery” chapter.
4. Get your ticket for the Book in Common conversation with Clint Smith, April 11, 7:30 p.m. at Laxson Auditorium (tickets $25, free for Butte College and Chico State students)
5. Add to your calendar a talk by Nandi Sojourner Crosby, professor of sociology, titled “Chains to Bars: The Echo of Angola in Modern Mass Incarceration” on April 3 at 6:30 p.m. in the Arts and Humanities Building, Room 150 (Recital Hall).

Known as “Dr. Nandi” by her students, she combines her roles as an educator, public speaker, author, and entrepreneur with a fervent commitment to social change. Since 1999 she has been at the forefront of addressing critical issues like mass incarceration through her teaching and activism, including her impactful work with the Incarcerated Students Program at Feather River College. She recently published the memoir Prisoners I Once Loved, which chronicles her 30+ years of working with, supporting, and caring for inmates throughout the United States. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Crosby’s journey from a correctional officer in a maximum-security prison for men to an acclaimed professor and advocate for the incarcerated has been transformative. Her dedication to bridging the gap between theory and practice is evident in her engaging teaching style and in her efforts to illuminate the challenges of gangs, racial inequality, gender issues, and mass incarceration.

Crosby’s talk “Chains to Bars: The Echo of Angola in Modern Mass Incarceration” will dive deep into Clint Smith's “Angola Prison” chapter to explore the haunting legacy of slavery as it morphs into the disproportionate mass incarceration of African Americans today and how we each can play a role in dismantling the prison industrial complex. Co-sponsored by the Office of Faculty Development.