Harriet Beecher Stowe Center
77 Forest Street
Hartford, CT 06105
860-522-9258
info@stowecenter.org
With great excitement, the Stowe Center announces Dr. Bettina L. Love as our 2024 Stowe Prize for Literary Activism winner, author of Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal (St. Martin’s Press, 2023), which offers a road map for repair, arguing for reparations with transformation for all children at its core.
In the tradition of Michelle Alexander, an unflinching reckoning with the impact of 40 years of racist public school policy on generations of Black lives.
“I am an eighties baby who grew to hate school. I never fully understood why. Until now. Until Bettina Love unapologetically and painstakingly chronicled the last forty years of education ‘reform’ in this landmark book. I hated school because it warred on me. I hated school because I loved to dream.”
—Ibram X. Kendi, New York Times bestselling author of How to be an Antiracist
Check out Dr. Love’s book page here!
About the Author
Dr. Bettina L. Love holds the prestigious William F. Russell Professorship at Teachers College, Columbia University, and is the acclaimed author of the New York Times bestseller Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal. In 2022, the Kennedy Center recognized Dr. Love as one of the Next 50 Leaders dedicated to making the world more inspired, inclusive, and compassionate. Dr. Love is also the celebrated author of the bestseller We Want To Do More Than Survive, solidifying her position as a leading voice in the field of education and social justice.
Stowe Prize for Literary Activism 2024 Events
Major celebrations are planned by the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center on Wednesday, September 18th & Thursday, September 19th. Follow us on social media or our newsletter to learn first!
About the Prize
The Stowe Prize for Literary Activism recognizes the author of a distinguished book of general adult fiction or nonfiction whose written work illuminates a critical social justice issue in the tradition of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The winning book applies informed inquiry, is accessible and engaging to a wide audience, and promotes empathy and understanding. In creating this award, the Stowe Center recognizes the power of literary activism.
Stowe Prize for Literary Activism Selection Committee
Dr. Michael Mallery, Chair, Director of Social Emotional Learning, Windsor Schools
Stephen Bayer, Retired Senior VP, Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford
Antoinette Brim-Bell, Connecticut State Poet Laureate
Dr. Diane B. Cloud, Retired School Administrator
Prof. Joan Hedrick, Charles A. Dana Professor of History, Emerita, Trinity College
Terry Schmitt, Executive Director, CT Council for Interreligious Understanding
Prof. Brian Waddell, Political Science, Urban and Community Studies, University of Connecticut
The Honorable Dawne G. Westbrook, Connecticut Superior Court