This Is Not for You: An Activist’s Journey of Resistance and Resiliance, by Richard Brown, with Brian Benson

This Is Not For You, published by Oregon State University Press, tells the story of activist and photographer Richard Brown, a Black Portlander who has spent decades working to bridge the divide between police and the Black community. We are excited to welcome Richard Brown to our virtual stage on Wednesday, June 16th, at 6 pm, to discuss his book, which he wrote with Portland author Brian Benson. The two authors will be in conversation with our very own Eloise Doubleday.

As Mr. Brown approaches his eightieth birthday, he recalls his childhood in 1940s Harlem, his radicalization in the newly desegregated Air Force, and his decades of activism in one of America’s whitest cities. He questions how much longer he’ll do this work, and he wonders who, if anyone, will take his place. This book serves as an encouragement to people of Portland to pick up the baton and carry on with his work. It is a book about how and why to become an engaged, activist citizen, and how activists can stay grounded, no matter how deeply they immerse themselves in the work. This is Not For You speaks on every page about being Black in America: about Black pride; Black history, art, and culture; and the experience of resisting white supremacy.

Portland author Rene Denfeld says “Richard Brown tells a story that punctures the myths of Portland, Oregon, as a progressive utopia….Put this book on your must-read list.”

Brian Benson is the author of the memoir Going Somewhere and teaches at the Attic Institute. Eloise Doubleday is a Portland native who recently graduated from Hamilton College in New York. She’s an avid reader who dabbles in writing and is passionate about this book and about the need for young people to step up and continue this work.

This event is free but does require preregistration at this link:

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_jBFKTEBHTrOja1jJ6SJujw