The Center’s Antiracism Group Book Club is the brainchild of Terri Mork Speirs, former Director of Community Relations at the Center. Sparked by the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor in 2020, Speirs issued an antiracism statement of solidarity with the Black community on the Center’s website home page. 

Through a series of synchronicities, she and Billie Wade partnered to create the group. Speirs’s courageous action and the Center’s commitment to supporting the Black community are significant beacons for other individuals and organizations. 

Facilitator: Billie Wade 

Mondays, 6:00-7:30 p.m. Virtual via Zoom 

Weekly August 24 – September 21, 2026

Cost: FREE, however, each participant is responsible for getting a copy of the book on their own, whether audiobook, purchase, or public library.

Registration is required for security purposes.

Contact Billie Wade at [email protected]. Include your name, email address, and telephone number. In the Subject line, enter Antiracism Group Registration. You will then be added to the email list to receive the Zoom link and other information. Your name and contact information will not be shared with anyone. Announcements and information are emailed using blind carbon. Note: Do not share the Zoom link with anyone.

Persons whose names are not on the email list will not be granted admittance. People who have registered in the past and are already on the email list do not need to re-register.

Discussion:

Book: “small great things” by Jodi Picoult

Ruth Jefferson is a labor and delivery nurse at a Connecticut hospital with more than twenty years’ experience. During her shift, Ruth begins a routine checkup on a newborn, only to be told a few minutes later that she’s been reassigned to another patient. The parents are white supremacists and don’t want Ruth, who is Black, to touch their child. The hospital complies with their request, but the next day, the baby goes into cardiac distress while Ruth is alone in the nursery. Does she obey orders or does she intervene?

Where can you find the book?

Available at Beaverdale Books in Urbandale, Iowa. You will receive a 10% discount if you tell them you are a part of Billie Wade’s antiracism group. If they are out of copies, they can order it for you and have it within a few days.

Also available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Thriftbooks and Better World Books.

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We discuss books in five to six-week segments. Our discussions are popcorn style. There is a 2-3 week interval between books. We also discuss relevant articles, podcasts, videos, movies, and documentaries; some directly related to the book we are reading. Participants are encouraged to suggest books or other reading materials and topics.

There is no homework or other expectations at the Center’s Antiracism Group. All are welcome.

For more information, see Billie’s Blog post, The Antiracism Group Explained, dated
March 17, 2025.