Online Book Club

We've created a virtual book club for Penn alumni that will allow us to explore the world together through works of fiction and nonfiction. The book club connects asynchronously through a private forum where you can discuss the current book with others in the Penn Alumni community and our book club facilitators from PBC Guru. Joining the book club is completely free for alumni, you just have to get a copy of the book to enjoy. The group reads a new book every two-three months so you'll have plenty of time for each book. Books will relate to upcoming Penn Alumni Travel trips, but participation in the travel book club is open to all!

Click here to join the Online Book Club

Current Book Discussion

The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America

Author: Richard Rothstein

In this groundbreaking history of the modern American metropolis, Richard Rothstein, a leading authority on housing policy, explodes the myth that America’s cities came to be racially divided through de facto segregation—that is, through individual prejudices, income differences, or the actions of private institutions like banks and real estate agencies. Rather, The Color of Law incontrovertibly makes clear that it was de jure segregation—the laws and policy decisions passed by local, state, and federal governments—that actually promoted the discriminatory patterns that continue to this day.

Through extraordinary revelations and extensive research that Ta-Nehisi Coates has lauded as "brilliant" (The Atlantic), Rothstein comes to chronicle nothing less than an untold story that begins in the 1920s, showing how this process of de jure segregation began with explicit racial zoning, as millions of African Americans moved in a great historical migration from the south to the north.

As Jane Jacobs established in her classic The Death and Life of Great American Cities, it was the deeply flawed urban planning of the 1950s that created many of the impoverished neighborhoods we know. Now, Rothstein expands our understanding of this history, showing how government policies led to the creation of officially segregated public housing and the demolition of previously integrated neighborhoods. While urban areas rapidly deteriorated, the great American suburbanization of the post–World War II years was spurred on by federal subsidies for builders on the condition that no homes be sold to African Americans. Finally, Rothstein shows how police and prosecutors brutally upheld these standards by supporting violent resistance to black families in white neighborhoods.

The Fair Housing Act of 1968 prohibited future discrimination but did nothing to reverse residential patterns that had become deeply embedded. Yet recent outbursts of violence in cities like Baltimore, Ferguson, and Minneapolis show us precisely how the legacy of these earlier eras contributes to persistent racial unrest. “The American landscape will never look the same to readers of this important book” (Sherrilyn Ifill, president of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund), as Rothstein’s invaluable examination shows that only by relearning this history can we finally pave the way for the nation to remedy its unconstitutional past.

Keep scrolling to view past books.

FAQ

How often will books be read, what is the time commitment and what are the expectations?

We read a book every two-three months. The texts selected will be fiction and nonfiction works that explore different parts of the world. They take an average of six hours to read cover to cover, making them accessible to anyone who has between 15 and 30 minutes a week to read. There are no strict expectations on members for this virtual community; if you are particularly busy with work, family, or other obligations and can't read one of the books that's okay. If you can only read part of a book and contribute a little to the online discussion, then that's okay too. The goal of this program is to connect Penn alumni together through reading, so participate as much as makes sense for you.

Will there be any in-person meetings of the book club?

No, the book club will be entirely online and asynchronous. You can participate anywhere you have internet access and on days and times that are convenient to you.

Is there any cost to participate?

Participation is free for Penn alumni and friends! You are responsible only for obtaining a copy of the book.

How do I get the books?

Participants can get books for free at their local library or purchase them at the bookseller of their choosing.

How do book club discussions work?

The book club will have a moderator from PBC Guru who manages the forum where discussions occur online. The moderator will pose questions to the book club, share relevant articles, and facilitate conversation about topics in the book. Members will be encouraged to post and share as well. This format allows for ongoing conversation and makes it easy for readers to connect with each other through the forum.

How do I make a forum profile?

We're using a private forum to host the virtual book club so it's easy to connect with fellow alumni. During our sign-up process, you will enter the information to auto-generate your free profile. After you complete the sign-up, we'll send you a link to the forum and you can begin to post right away!

What exactly is PBC Guru and what do they have to do with the book club?

Professional Book Club (PBC) Guru is a book club management company that works with businesses, alumni associations, and professional societies. We are teaming up with PBC Guru to create and facilitate this program. You can check out their website at www.pbc.guru if you want to see more of what they do.

I've already signed up. How do I log in?

If you are already a member, you can click here to log in.

What if my question isn't answered?

Feel free to send an email to info@pbc.guru and we will be happy to help.

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