From author Chris Crass: ” When I first imagined a poster promoting my new book, Towards Collective Liberation: anti-racist organizing, feminist praxis,and movement building strategy, the images that came to mind were the people in Melanie Cervantes’ “We are the 99%” posters, coming together to build the multiracial, feminist, working class-based movement for collective liberation that we need. My book is for activists engaging with dynamic questions of how to create and support effective movements for visionary systemic change. It offers lessons for transformative organizing through a firsthand look at the challenges and the opportunities of anti-racist work in white communities, feminist work with men, and bringing women of color feminism into the heart of social movements. In addition to stories and reflections from my own personal activist experience, there are also case studies of anti-racist social justice organizations working in white communities around the country. The primary focus of the book is on how we can transform divisions of race, class, and gender into catalysts for powerful vision, strategy, and movement building.
Melanie Cervantes’ art helps us visualize our movement’s visions, values and victories, and it is a blessing to have her illustrate this vision of my book. Three of the people in the poster are key leaders in the book: Ella Baker of the Black Freedom Struggle and someone who’s organizing I look to for guidance; Elizabeth ‘Betita’ Martinez of the Chicano Power Movement and my mentor; and Carla Wallace who is a leading contemporary white queer anti-racist organizer based in Louisville, Kentucky. The other three people are from Melanie’s imagined movement of the 99%.”
Printed copies of the poster are available. The primary goal of the printed posters is to get them up in as many bookstores, activist spaces, schools, places of worship, and any other place you can imagine people seeing the poster who would be interested in the book. If you would like copies of the poster to put up in your community, contact me at chris4liberation at gmail.com.
To order or learn more about the book: https://secure.pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=518.