City College celebrates speech, debate and a people’s history

For its inaugural Free Speech Week, Sacramento City College presents A Night with Zinn, a night of social-justice readings to benefit the Los Rios speech and debate team. Community activists and community professors will showcase readings from Howard Zinn&Rsquo;s Voices of a People’s History of the United States. Other readings will highlight voices in U.S. history who’ve spoken out against oppression and exploitation, including Assata Shakur in Women in Prison: How It Is With Us, Frederick Douglass’ in The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro and Leonard Peltier in on the Trail of Broken Treaties protest. The event will feature Chicano novelist and City College professor Danny Romero, African-American literature professor Adrienne King, City College philosophy professor Beth Forrester, Japanese-American professor Syreeta Harada, community activist and SN&R contributor Rachel Gregg and Santa Cruz Assemblyman John Laird among other notable speakers. A Night with Zinn takes place Wednesday, April 9, 7 p.m. at SCC’s Student Center. Tickets are $8 for students and advanced sales, $10 general.