vermont reads 2011

VPR News

Vermont Reads: Bellows Falls Deals With Race Issues

By Susan Keese | May 2, 2011

Vermonters pride themselves on being tolerant of differences, more interested in a person’s character than in status, race, or personal beliefs. But every so often something in the news puts that claim of tolerance in doubt. Is Vermont more prejudiced than we think? VPR’s Susan Keese begins her search for answers in a Bellows Falls barber shop.

Commentary Series

Slayton: Irasburg Affair Remembered

By Tom Slayton | May 2, 2011

As Vermonters read To Kill A Mockingbird, commentator Tom Slayton, reflects on one event in the 1960s that put Vermont’s racial tensions in the national spotlight.

VPR News

Vermont Reads: Race Issues Still Make Headlines In Vermont

By Mitch Wertlieb | May 2, 2011

Each year VPR collaborates with the Vermont Humanities Council’s statewide reading program, Vermont Reads. This year the Humanities Council has chosen a classic, "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. The book deals frankly with the issue of race, and we’ll take the opportunity this week to explore the state of race relations in Vermont.