We talked live with our April Book Club author Ibram X. Kendi about his provocative and timely latest New York Times bestseller, Chain of Ideas: The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age. In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision earlier this week significantly narrowing the scope of the Voting Rights Act, Kendi’s work is more urgent than ever. That ruling is a real-time reminder that adherents of Great Replacement Theory are in control of many of our government’s levers — and those of many other countries around the world. Professor Kendi talked to us about:
How deeply Elon Musk has interfered with elections here and elsewhere, on the basis of the false notion that “whites are a rapidly dying minority”
The Justice Department’s case against the Southern Poverty Law Center and what it portends for other organizations;
The tactics used by propagandists to persuade voters to fight for privileges provided by dictators instead of the power provided by democracy
How to resist hopelessness and despair in the face of these anti-democratic measures
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How to participate in the Book Club
Each week, we’ll post questions, and on alternate Wednesdays we’ll meet for a discussion with the Club or a visit from an author or other special guest (occasionally we’ll schedule special events on alternate days or times, but we will let you know). Look out for posts with further details.
In between meetings, we invite you to chat or comment on our posts with your insights and questions. The Book Club will meet next on Wednesday, May 6 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern.
To participate in our meetings and author talks on Substack Live, join from your phone or tablet with the Substack app. You can also watch from your computer at The Ink, and comment and ask questions in our chat, but you won’t be able to join the live video discussion. Make sure you enable notifications, and when our meetings begin, you should receive an email alert; if you can’t find the message, just check the notifications tab (the small bell-shaped icon to the upper right of the website or lower right of the app at the time of the event to find a link.
Book Club meetings are open to paid subscribers to The Ink, so if you haven’t become part of our community, join us today!
