The 1619 Project: A New American Origin Story

A dramatic expansion of one of the definitive journalistic events of recent years- The 1619 Project, The New York Times Magazine-s award-winning reframing of the American founding and its contemporary echoes, placing slavery and resistance at the centre of the American story.

In late August 1619, a ship arrived in the British colony of Virginia bearing a cargo of twenty to thirty enslaved people from Africa. Their arrival led to the barbaric and unprecedented system of American chattel slavery that would last for the next 250 years. This is sometimes referred to as the country-s original sin, but it is more than that- It is the source of so much that still defines the United States.

The New York Times Magazine-s award-winning "1619 Project" issue reframed our understanding of American history by placing slavery and its continuing legacy at the center of our national narrative. This new book substantially expands on that work, weaving together eighteen essays that explore the legacy of slavery in present-day America with thirty-six poems and works of fiction that illuminate key moments of oppression, struggle, and resistance. The essays show how the inheritance of 1619 reaches into every part of contemporary American society, from politics, music, diet, traffic, and citizenship to capitalism, religion, and our democracy itself.

This is a book that speaks directly to our current moment, contextualizing the systems of race and caste within which we operate today. It reveals long-glossed-over truths around our nation-s founding and construction-and the way that the legacy of slavery did not end with emancipation, but continues to shape contemporary American life.

Featuring contributions from- 
Leslie Alexander
Michelle Alexander
Carol Anderson
Joshua Bennett
Reginald Dwayne Betts
Jamelle Bouie
Anthea Butler
Matthew Desmond
Rita Dove
Camille Dungy
Cornelius Eady
Eve L. Ewing
Nikky Finney
Vievee Francis
Yaa Gyasi
Forrest Hamer
Terrance Hayes
Kimberly Annece Henderson
Jeneen Interlandi
Honoree Fanonne Jeffers
Barry Jenkins
Tyehimba Jess
Martha S. Jones
Robert Jones, Jr.
A. Van Jordan
Ibram X.
Kendi Eddie Kendricks
Yusef Komunyakaa
Kevin Kruse
Kiese Laymon
Trymaine Lee
Jasmine Mans
Terry McMillan
Tiya Miles
Wesley Morris
Khalil Gibran Muhammad
Lynn Nottage
ZZ Packer
Gregory Pardlo
Darryl Pinckney
Claudia Rankine
Jason Reynolds
Dorothy Roberts
Sonia Sanchez
Tim Seibles
Evie Shockley
Clint Smith
Danez Smith
Patricia Smith
Tracy K. Smith
Bryan Stevenson
Nafissa Thompson-Spires
Natasha Trethewey
Linda Villarosa
Jesmyn Ward