Great stuff, I'll get the ebook ASAP!

About a quarter of the way in at this point. Really impressed by the comprehensiveness of the vision being put forward, and enjoying learning more about the political economy dynamics of the US Deep South. I visited Jackson the week after Lumumba died as part of a trip doing African American credit union elder oral history interviews, and had hoped to connect with the movement then, but things were in such disarray in that moment that my connections were limited, so it's very interesting to get an update as to the progress made since!.

Well, my mic check drew six replies. Maybe not the right use of the Check tool? I assume people are on board and getting the book, starting to read. In a week or two I will post a time poll to see when we can meet online for our chat. In the meantime, please feel free to post thoughts, reflections, questions etc on social.coop with the hashtags #readinggroup and #jacksonrising

Hi everyone! I will be traveling to the US next week and busy with the Labor Notes conference and related activity so I will set up the time poll for our first chat about Jackson Rising in mid April. Any objections?

I think it would be better to get the time poll rolling sooner rather than later to allow folks time to get it on our calendars, so would prefer to launch it now. About half-way into the book at this point.

@mattnoyes can you get the schedule poll live soon? Would nearing the end of the book and would like to discuss while it's still somewhat fresh

Unfortunately, I have so many books to read all of a sudden. I will like to attend the meeting to get an understanding of the book, though. I'll take notes if I can make it!

Also, if anyone wants to write a summary in the wiki, I can guide you through how to set up an account (I don't think 0auth is set up yet).

I haven't read a word yet! I also have several books that I am in the middle of reading, and I'm feeling the pinch. I suggest that we prioritize selections from the book. There are 23 chapters, some denser than others. Are there 3-5 chapters that we can focus on? I may suggest some, based on my interests. I know I can read 3-5 chapters by mid-April. Or, maybe we want to divide the book? I would be willing to meet twice, focusing on different portions of the book, first, parts 1-3, and, second, parts 4-6. I think the material is worthwhile.

I'm also involved in organizing an in-person discussion of the book in Burlington one evening in May, if that'd be of interest?

In an interview with Kali Akuno, he recommends I think 2 chapters he says you should read if you can only read 2. One of them was chapter 1, the other I can't remember. I'd definitely recommend ch.1, it gives a very comprehensive overview of CJs plan. I think it was this interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHGcessn3pI&list=PLPJpiw1WYdTPGjIaNWPbOoOQnmaR5IQdc&index=7&t=0s

I finally managed to download the book. Will start reading today. However, not sure how much time will I be able to dedicate to it, as I have to get back to work tomorrow. Will do my best!

I think the book merits a full reading -- the effect of the various essays is cumulative; it is a multi-dimensional and very ambitious project that is well represented by the range of essays. That said, I will suggest chapters that can be skipped or skimmed because they are repetitive or not specific to Coop Jackson.

Agree; I'm about half way in, and it's pretty fast reading that leans more journalistic/polemic than heavy theoretical.

I got the book yesterday and would agree that it is a fast read.

No joke, i am getting an irl reading group going on this book in my town with the local DSA chapter and communalist group. Glad lots of people are paying attention to this Praxis. Kali Akuno is a genius

This lengthy interview of Kali Akuno about the project is excellent. https://cooperationjackson.org/blog/2018/3/8/on-contact-with-chris-hedges-the-radical-transformation-of-jackson-mississippi

I am currently reading this book.

When''s the deadline for the book? Thanks! :)

I am in transit to my new home in Colorado. I will post a poll before the end of the week about setting up an online meeting for our reading group.

90 minutes is fine with me, but let's see which dates work first, then decide on length (although I know you only have 1hr15mins on the 22nd).

I posted a pre-meeting suggestion on social.coop, to get the ball rolling...

@mattnoyes good work! A useful follow up would be to post a check poll for people to RSVP to, with the link to the voice call embedded in the poll description.

Agenda for our reading group meeting. April 22, 2018

Social.Coop Reading Group Live Call on Jackson Rising

Agenda – 90 minutes, start on time (allowing for tech glitches).

Goal is everyone’s participation, free and open discussion of issues of interest to us.

Review plan and roles: Facilitator? Notes? Timekeeper?

Quick introductions – name, place, work, why social.coop?

Go-round for everyone to give quick summary of their overall thoughts, likes/dislikes, and to raise one key point they'd be interested to discuss further.

Discussion.

Fist to Five Evaluation of meeting and of book.

Proposal: organize an online social.coop discussion with Kali Akuno and others at CJ. People who are interested in organizing that can form a temporary working group.

I'll unfortunately be just about to board a plane at the time of the call, so I'll miss this one. I've not finished the book yet, at about page 50, though I expect to make some progress on my flight.

So far, as others have said, incredible breadth of vision. With such scope, I'm always a little worried about the disconnect between vision and what's achievable under the conditions on the ground -- and the social conflicts that may result from that disconnect. But I look forward to reading more about the practical experiences in Jackson so far.

Hope y'all have a great discussion :).

If there is any problem with Jitsi, I will set up a Zoom call as a backup.

Here's an HTML export of the notes from the call.
I'll add them to the wiki, just need to get an account first.

Thanks, Neil!