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Laws and Legislation

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Lectures & Panel Discussions

Restorative Justice & Returning Citizens

Monday September 25, 2017: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Malletts Creek Branch: Program Room

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Blog Post

Participate in this year's Washtenaw Reads!

by eapearce

$2.00 a Day: Living on Almost Nothing in America is this year’s Washtenaw Reads book selection. Researched and written by Kathryn J. Edin and H. Luke Shaefer, the book details the lives of six different families who barely survive on less than $2.00 a day in various parts of the country. Eye-opening and alarming, the book also explains the laws behind the reasons that some people are forced to live on so little. The authors will speak at Rackham Auditorium on Tuesday, February 7 at 7:00p.m. The event includes time for questions and book signing.

The AADL is also hosting several more intimate discussions of the book. The first of these takes place on Wednesday, January 25 at 7:00 p.m. in the Downtown Library multipurpose room. The second will occur on Sunday, February 12 at 3:00 p.m. at Westgate Branch in the Westside Room. All are welcome to attend these guided discussions, with no registration required. Participants may want to bring a copy of the book—available at all AADL locations—to reference during the discussion.

For more events surrounding this year’s Washtenaw Reads selection, follow the link here.

Looking for resources about $2.00 a Day, including interviews with the authors and related reading? Visit the link here.

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Lectures & Panel Discussions

Proving Innocence: Freeing the Wrongfully Convicted

Thursday July 28, 2016: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room

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Blog Post

Evicted offers an intimate view of poverty and inequality in America

by eapearce

Harvard sociologist Matthew Desmond’s new book Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City changes the way we look at poverty in our country. Desmond tells the stories of eight different families living in the poorest neighborhoods of Milwaukee, all of whom have spent everything they have to try and keep roofs over their heads… and now they’ve fallen behind. These families are at the mercy of two landlords, one of whom owns inner city apartments, while the other runs one of Milwaukee’s worst trailer parks. Desmond paints a fascinating, complex picture of these two people in particular, and of the circumstances that lead them to evict their tenants. It’s amazing to hear the different situations that lead the families in Evicted to be kicked out of their homes. One man was a nurse who loved his job before he fell prey to a heroin addiction. Another man with no legs tries to work his way out of debt, but can’t physically do many jobs. A single mom has only $20 left a month with which to raise her two sons after she pays the rent on their decrepit apartment.

Evictions have historically been fairly rare in American cities, but they have been on the rise in the past decade, as poor families spend more than half of their already meager incomes on housing. Little is left for other necessities, especially when families are large. Desmond’s intimate, behind-the-scenes view into this issue (he spent months amongst the poor families of Milwaukee) presents readers head-on with the inequality that exists in America today.

You can read Desmond’s recent article from The New Yorker, which discusses the same issue as Evicted, here. Desmond is also the author of On the Fireline, an in depth exploration into the lives of wildfire firefighters.

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Lectures & Panel Discussions

Building Matters: Rainwater "Borrowing"

Wednesday May 4, 2016: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: Secret Lab

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Lectures & Panel Discussions

Building Matters: Net Metering

Wednesday April 6, 2016: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: 4th Floor Meeting Room

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Lectures & Panel Discussions

Redistricting in Michigan: Should Politicians Choose Their Voters?

Thursday October 29, 2015: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room

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Public Event

Award-Winning Mystery Author Allison Leotta Discusses Her Detroit-Based New Novel "A Good Killing"

Friday May 15, 2015: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room

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Lectures & Panel Discussions

The May 5 State Ballot Proposal: What Is It? What Would It Do?

Tuesday April 7, 2015: 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room