Young People's History Event Highlights Vermont Youth Who Spoke out for Marriage Equality

Voices of People's History
May 11, 2009
The event is an evening of readings and songs from Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove's book Voices of a People's History of the United States. The readings feature the words of rebels, dissenters and visionaries from our past--and present.

May 13, 2009
New York, NY
8:00 pm
92nd Street Y (Link)

In the past several years, there have been more than 60 of these readings around the country, involving well-known actors from Viggo Mortensen, Rosario Dawson, and Matt Damon to James Earl Jones and Wallace Shawn, as well as teachers, students, activists, and artists.

This upcoming reading at the 92Y in NYC celebrates the launch of a new book by Howard Zinn about the role of young people in our nation's history and so we are highlighting those voices--from the teenagers who took part and led the civil rights movement to the "mill girls"
who protested working conditions in Lowell, Massachusetts in the 19th century.

We will also be featuring the March 18, 2009, testimony of 12-year-old Evann Orleck-Jetter, who spoke before the Vermont Legislature in support of equality and civil rights and in favor of her mothers'
freedom to marry. Several legislators later mentioned that Evann's moving testimony helped sway their vote. Evann will actually be reading her own testimony on May 13 and more than 20 of her friends and family will be with us in the audience.

Tim Robbins will also read a moving and funny excerpt from Martin Duberman's piece on Stonewall. Staceyann Chin is also in the cast and she will be signing copies of her new memoir, The Other Side of Paradise, which deals in part with her coming out as a lesbian in Jamaica.