What is a One Read?
The One Read for Racial Justice is an annual, collaborative, campus-wide initiative that seeks to raise awareness about racial justice issues, create opportunities for dialogues across difference and discipline, and to promote community. It’s like a giant book club where we all get together to read a common text and then discuss it as a community and plan other events that help deepen our understanding of the book and its themes. The One Read is an initiative led by the library in collaboration with a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, and alumni across departments and disciplines.
What book are we reading?
The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Written as a letter to his students, Coates ruminates on the global intersection of justice issues through his trip to Senegal, South Carolina, and Palestine. Providing no easy answers, he explores how stories are connected to both oppression and liberation - how they shape our humanity, how they can distort reality, how they are connected to power, and how they hold the potential for us to imagine a more just world.
Where can I get the book?
- Borrow a print copy from St Kate’s or a partner library
- Access the eBook or audiobook for free via the St. Kate’s Library
- Purchase a copy from the St. Kate’s Bookstore
- Purchase a copy from your local, independent bookstore
- Enter to win a copy at one of the events below!
How do I participate?
- Read the book
- Attend an event
- Learn more by exploring our resource guide
- Organize an event or host a discussion
- Integrate the book into your course/work
- Join the planning group
Fall 2025 Event Series
The themes of Coates’ book are far reaching, just like the events on St. Kate’s campus. Watch this page for official One Read events, or partner events that correspond with Coates’ work.
September 6-November 16
Night and Day: Murals, Memory and Movement
Presented by Memorialize The Movement
Curated by Leesa Kelly and Amira McLendon, St. Catherine University 2025-2026
Amy Marie Sears Memorial Visiting Curators in Residence
Hosted by Catherine G. Murphy Gallery at St. Catherine University
- Opening Events: Saturday, September 6, 5–8pm
Curatorial Talk: 5–6pm in the Catherine G. Murphy Gallery lecture hall
Leesa Kelly, MTM Executive Director, and Amira McLendon, MTM Collections Manager, discuss the ideas, themes and questions behind Night and Day: Murals, Memory and Movement.
Reception with Interactive Mural Painting: 6–8pm
All Opening Events are free and open to the public. For ASL interpretation or other accommodations, please contact nmwatson@stkate.edu. For more information, please visit the Catherine G. Murphy Gallery.
Wednesday, October 1
6:00 PM
The Double Tax: An Evening with Anna Gifty & Hope Walz
The O'Shaughnessy at St. Catherine University
Presented by Katie Leadership Impact, St. Catherine University School of Business, and The O’Shaughnessy.
October 5-11
Banned Books Week - stay tuned for more details!
Hosted by the Library
Tuesday, October 14
6:30 PM
Night and Day: Murals, Memory, and Movement Panel Discussion with Mural Artists
St. Kate's Recital Hall
Hosted by The Catherine G. Murphy Gallery. Free and open to the public. For ASL interpretation or other accommodations, please contact nmwatson@stkate.edu.
Thursday, October 23
A Conversation with Ta-Nehisi Coates
The O'Shaughnessy at St. Catherine University
Moderated by Angela Davis of MPR News
- Submit a question for Ta-Nehisi Coates! (Please note that submitting a question does not guarantee that it will be asked.)
Saturday, November 1
12–4pm
St. Kate’s One Read for Racial Justice Book Discussion and Paint to Express Workshop
Catherine G. Murphy Gallery at St. Catherine University
RSVP here
Join MTM and the St. Kate’s Library for a discussion about Ta-Nehisi Coates’s 2024 book, The Message, while painting miniature murals.
Free and open to the public. For ASL interpretation or other accommodations, please contact nmwatson@stkate.edu.
Friday, November 14
6:30 PM
The O’Shaughnessy presents Aftermath
Purchase tickets here
Join us for a performance and conversation. What happens in communities after an incident of police violence? How do we heal and move forward?
Led by nationally recognized director and choreographer Dominic Moore-Dunson, Aftermath brings together voices of St. Catherine’s student body and local Twin Cities artists to explore healing, resilience, and collective action through movement and storytelling.
This project is informed by Night and Day: Murals, Memory and Movement on view in the Catherine G. Murphy Gallery and The Frey Theater at St. Catherine University, September 6–November 16.
This event features a dynamic discussion panel, in partnership with Katie Leadership Impact, that brings together artists, activists, and cultural leaders who are using their voices and their work to challenge injustice, amplify marginalized stories, and imagine a more equitable world.
More events forthcoming
Follow us here and on social media to keep up with new events as they are added!
Want to be more involved in the planning of this and future One Reads, including helping choose the next One Read text? Consider joining the planning group. Email Lizzy Tegeler, Librarian, (ejtegeler865@stkate.edu) and Lydia Fasteland, Equity and Belonging Coordinator (lbfasteland@stkate.edu) for more information.