Join us in Concord for a discussion series on the stunningly illustrated graphic-novel Stamped from the Beginning: A Graphic History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi, adapted and illustrated by Joel Christian Gill.
Racism has persisted throughout history—but so have antiracist efforts to dismantle it. Through deep research and a gripping narrative that illuminates the lives of five key American figures, preeminent historian Ibram X. Kendi—in collaboration with award-winning historian and comic artist Joel Christian Gill—reveals how understanding and improving the world cannot happen without identifying and facing the racist forces that shape it. The graphic-novel adaptation of Dr. Kendi’s groundbreaking Stamped from the Beginning explores, with vivid clarity and dimensionality, the living history of America, and how we can learn from the past to work toward a more equitable, antiracist future.
Participants will be provided with a free copy of the graphic novel. After registering, pick up your free copy of Stamped from the Beginning at The Robbins House. Copies also available at the Concord Free Public Library.
Saturday, October 4, 2025 | 1 PM
Discussion of “Cotton Mather”
At the Robbins House, 320 Monument St
Sat
urday, October 18, 2025 | 1 PM
Discussion of “William Lloyd Garrison”
At the Concord Museum, 53 Cambridge Tpke
Saturday, November 22, 2025 | 1 PM
Discussion of “Angela Davis”
At the Wright Tavern, 2 Lexington Road
About the Author
DR. IBRAM X. KENDI is a National Book Award-winning author of sixteen books for adults and children, including ten New York Times bestsellers—five of which were #1 New York Times bestsellers. Dr. Kendi is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities at Boston University, and the director of the BU Center for Antiracist Research. He is a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a CBS News racial justice contributor. In the summer of 2025, he joined Howard University as Professor of History and Director of its newly established Howard Institute for Advanced Study.
Dr. Kendi is the author of Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, which won the National Book Award for Nonfiction, making him the youngest author to win that award. He also authored the international bestseller, How to Be an Antiracist, which was described in the New York Times as “the most courageous book to date on the problem of race in the Western mind.” Dr. Kendi’s other bestsellers include How to Raise an Antiracist and Antiracist Baby, illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky.
In 2020, Time magazine named Dr. Kendi one of the 100 Most Influential People in the world. He was awarded a 2021 MacArthur Fellowship, popularly known as the Genius Grant.
His next book is Malcolm Lives! It is the first major biography of Malcolm for young readers in more than thirty years, appearing in May 2025 on the centennial of Malcolm’s birth.
About the Illustrator
JOEL CHRISTIAN GILL is a cartoonist and historian who speaks nationally on the importance of sharing stories. He is the author of the acclaimed memoir Fights: One Boy’s Triumph Over Violence cited as one of the best graphic novels of 2020 by The New York Times and for which he was awarded the 2021 Cartoonist Studio Prize. He wrote the words and drew the pictures for Fast Enough: Bessie Stringfield’s First Ride and the award-winning graphic novel series Strange Fruit: Uncelebrated Narratives from Black History, as well as 3 volumes of Tales of The Talented Tenth, which tell the stories of Bass Reeves, Bessie Stringfield, and Robert Smalls.
Gill has dedicated his life to creating stories to build connections with readers through empathy, compassion, and, ultimately, humanity. He received his MFA from Boston University and his BA from Roanoke College.