Lois Evans will read a selection from
Notes of a Native Son, written by James Baldwin during the 1940s and early 1950s, when he was only in his twenties. The essays capture a view of black life and black thought at the dawn of the civil rights movement and as the movement slowly gained strength. During his teenage years, Baldwin began to realize that he was gay. Baldwin’s second novel, Giovanni’s Room, was written in 1956 well before the Gay Liberation Movement. Giovanni’s Room Bookstore an LGBTQ bookstore located in Philadelphia is named after James Baldwin’s gay novel Giovanni’s Room. Notes is the book that established Baldwin’s voice as a social critic, and it remains one of his most admired works. The essays collected here create a cohesive sketch of black America and reveal an intimate portrait of Baldwin’s own search for identity as an artist, as a black man, and as an American.
This will be an online event hosted via
Zoom Conferencing. You do not need a Zoom account but you will need to download and install the Zoom app on your computer or mobile device to join the event. Please email us at
info@pennsvillage.org in advance or check out our new
Zoom Instructions if you need assistance installing the Zoom app. If you cannot join the event using your computer or mobile device and the Zoom app, you can join the event via teleconference and hear the audio portion. You will receive an email a day or so before the event with a link to the meeting, the Meeting ID, call-in telephone numbers and instructions for joining the meeting.
Please register through our website by clicking the Register Now on the right. Directions for Self Registration can be found
here. You can also register by emailing
Info@pennsvillage.org or calling 215-925-7333.
This program is free of charge to our members, volunteers and donors. Guests are welcome to attend up to three programs before being required to join and/or volunteer with Penn’s Village.
During the coronavirus crisis, we are waiving the three-program limit and $10 fee for non-member guests to help our neighbors stay connected and engaged while social distancing.
Penn’s Village supports and actively encourages a diverse and inclusive community of members, staff, Board of Directors, and volunteers. Diversity and inclusiveness means excluding no one because of age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, physical abilities, religious beliefs or political beliefs.