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Jun 10, 2025
Join acclaimed poet and MacArthur “Genius” Fellow Reginald Dwayne Betts for a conversation about his path-breaking advocacy work to expand access to books in prison, and a reading from his new collection, Doggerel, with National Book Award-winning Black Studies scholar Imani Perry.
With his transcendent collection of poetry, Felon, Reginald Dwayne Betts chronicled the ways prison shapes and transforms American masculinity. Twenty years after his own incarceration, Betts is a celebrated poet, lawyer, and the founder and director of Freedom Reads — a first-of-its-kind organization that is transforming how we understand the role of literature in prisons. Amidst this important work, Betts returns to poetry with Doggerel, a brilliant meditation on dogs and the ostensibly trivial joys that transform us. Channeling dogs literally and metaphorically, Doggerel is marked by the ways in which we are dogged by our deepest desires for connection, love, and repair.
Don’t miss two of America’s most insightful thinkers on Black life as Betts and Perry discuss the role of poetry in our lives — and how equitable access to books can transform the lives of the incarcerated.
“[Doggerel] offers satisfyingly rich meditations on companionship, loss, and more.” — New York Times Book Review
“Doggerel is a triumph of surprising moments and passionate reflections.” — Michael Ruzicka, Booklist
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