The LWV-WW Area Book Club is beginning the new year with a new study emphasis. We will be delving into the history of Central America and how it relates to current immigration policies in the United States. Published in 2022, our study book will be Central America’s Forgotten History: Revolution, Violence, and the Roots of Migration by Aviva Chomsky, professor of History and coordinator of Latin American Studies at Salem State University. In the pursuit of answering the question, “How did we get here?” Chomsky focuses on the struggles for social and economic justice in Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Honduras by tracing the roots of displacement and migration from the Spanish conquest to the present-day influx of refugees seeking asylum today.

The League will launch the study with a February program, open to the public, to share information to enhance our community’s cultural competence and acceptance of Whitewater’s newest Nicaraguan immigrants.

The Book Club sessions will be held on Thursdays from 6:30 – 8:30 pm, February 23 (Part I – A Crisis with Deep Roots), March 30 (Part II – Revolution in the 1970s and ‘80s), and April 27 (Part III – Killing Hope). The first session, led by Dr. Dwight Watson and Deb Gamble, will be held on Zoom. Books will be available at Irvin L. Young Memorial Library or can be ordered through The Book Teller, Amazon, or Kindle.

Please contact Deb Gamble at 262-458-0077 or shebagam [at] gmail.com with questions or to sign up for the Zoom meeting. Please join us. We have a lot to learn.