I have spent 10 years building Scopio, which stands for “Scope It Out” to build an accessible platform for anyone, anywhere to tell their story and share their images. I have used technology to change stereotypes and archive historical moments to our everyday imagery. I like to consume information easily and actionably and these are my recommendations! We did that in writing The Year Time Stopped so people can enjoy and get value out of 200 images and stories for the next century.
The first global image book in 2020. This book will change our view of humanity during the pandemic. We published it for people to look back on. This historic piece belongs on everyone’s bookshelf for the next century. Opening this book every time will remind you how brave, creative, and beautiful you can be.
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I had someone in my language class in my master's program whose whole life changed by being one of the stories from the book Humans of New York. I was so inspired and realized the power of one single image. I also like this book because every time you open it you learn something new. Not many photo books can do that.
Artists (but this book is for everyone) are often talented but need to overcome mental hurdles that are imposed on us by society, family, and our surroundings that are telling us only to dream so big or achieve so much. The Big Leap teaches you how to go beyond your limitations to make your dreams come true and see things differently.
I am a huge fan of Pete Souza, Obama’s resident photographer. Not only does he show you the day in and day out of the most historically positive president of our time, he continues to this day to educate his audience and show us how a president can be. He also sheds light on some extremely difficult topics like school shootings, and Obama’s historic singing of “amazing grace” while consoling families. This book shows me that anyone can be president and that it's a human’s job because you see his humanity through these photos, not the “superhero” president that historically is how presidents are portrayed that makes us feel somehow separate from them, and unreachable.
This 1978 published book drove immense controversy. Orientalism pushed heated debates surrounding the nature of Western attitudes towards the Middle East. It pushed millions of people to rethink their prejudices. Said argued that throughout Western history, writers on the Middle East, regardless of the somewhat varying attitudes of their day, reinforced an image of Arabs as uniform, incompetent, and unreflective. But to Said, “the Orient” was a creation of the Western imagination. This work spurred the removal of insensitive words at the beginning of Aladdin. I value this book because it allows us to see how the media is formed and how we can change it. It teaches you agency and power.
Why We Can't Wait is an easy way to get into the psychology of MLK. It is a 1964 book by Martin Luther King Jr. about the nonviolent movement against racial segregation in the United States, and specifically the 1963 Birmingham campaign. The way it is written makes it understandable from a 1:1 perspective. I am connected to this because it helps a person be actionable in their own way about causes they care about. No frills, just action!
5,309 authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about New York State, success in life, and New York City.
We think you will like Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement, Until Justice Be Done, and Parting the Waters if you like this list.
From Alison's list on the best biographies of Black women.
Barbara Ransby uncovers the life of the civil rights activist, Ella Baker, a supreme grassroots organizer who believed strongly in a more inclusive model of change-making. Although a leading participant in the NAACP and the Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC), she redefined the meaning of the civil rights movement, focusing on ordinary people as the key agents of social change. Baker hoped to help others lead, as she did when she helped young people create their own organization, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), but then stepped back to let them lead. Her anti-elitism and radical democratic vision had led to Ella Baker being overlooked by historians who focused on male ministers, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. Barbara Ransby’s biography challenges us to rethink what leadership looks like.
From Gerard's list on the best books on constitutional history.
This is a groundbreaking analysis of how free Blacks and women fought for racial equality before the Civil War and how that fight shaped the Fourteenth Amendment. Professor Masur focuses on states such as Ohio and Illinois where laws discriminating against blacks were commonplace. The political effort to repeal these laws brought together an unprecedented coalition that included many future leaders of Reconstruction, but the critical point is that the people who were the objects of the discrimination found ways to make their voices heard even though they could not vote.
From Ron's list on the best books to inspire the activist in you.
Though I was only nine years old, I still remember when Martin Luther King Jr. was shot. Years later, I found inspiration for my own activism in the great Eyes on the Prize documentary. So, as I became more involved with ACT UP, it was only natural that I looked to the stories of the civil rights movement to help ground and navigate my activism. Parting the Waters blew my mind. It went beyond the well-known stories of Dr. King to give me a fuller understanding of the breadth of the civil rights movement—the failures and compromises, as well as the famous successes. And while I found new heroes like Bayard Rustin, I gained an even greater appreciation for the bravery of the movement’s many foot soldiers.
