Adrienne Maree Brown facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Adrienne Maree Brown
|
|
|---|---|
Brown in 2015
|
|
| Born | September 6, 1978 El Paso, Texas, US |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Alma mater | Columbia University |
| Genre | Afrofuturism, science fiction, non-fiction; creative non-fiction |
| Subject | Activism; Community Organizing; Afrofuturism; Black Feminism; Facilitation; Social Justice; Climate Justice |
Adrienne Maree Brown, often called adrienne maree brown (born September 6, 1978), is a writer, activist, and facilitator. A facilitator helps groups work together and reach goals. From 2006 to 2010, she was a leader at the Ruckus Society. She also helped start and lead the United States League of Young Voters.
Brown's ideas are often described as Black feminism, which focuses on the experiences of Black women. She supports movements like Black Lives Matter. She also supports the prison abolition movement, which aims to change the justice system.
Much of her writing is inspired by the science fiction author Octavia E. Butler. Her first book, Emergent Strategy, came out in 2017. Other books include Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good (2019) and We Will Not Cancel Us (2020).
Brown also hosts podcasts and has released music. She also works as a doula, a person who supports others during big life changes.
Contents
Life and Activism
Early Years and Learning
Adrienne Maree Brown was born on September 6, 1978, in El Paso, Texas. Her parents met at Clemson University. She is the oldest of three children. Her father was in the military, so she moved a lot as a child. She lived in different places, including Germany and several U.S. states.
Brown and her sisters sometimes faced racism at school. This was because they were from a mixed-race family.
Brown went to Columbia University. There, she studied African American Studies and political science. A big event happened while she was at college. In 1999, Amadou Diallo was killed by police officers. This event greatly shaped her views on policing and race.
After college, Brown worked with groups focused on social justice. She helped lead discussions at the World Social Forum. In 2009, she moved to Detroit. She had been invited to work with a group called Detroit Summer.
Making a Difference in Detroit
Starting in 2006, Brown worked with many social justice groups in Detroit. She became close with Grace Lee Boggs, who was a mentor to her. Brown was also a key person at the Allied Media Conference. She often hosted and led discussions there.
From 2006 to 2010, Brown was the executive director of the Ruckus Society. She also helped create and lead the League of Young Voters.
Brown believes that our actions should build the world we want to see. She has said that people should be "guerilla gardening" and helping others get heat and water. She sees this as being "guerillas putting up solar panels in the hood." She learned these ideas from her work in Detroit.
Brown describes her way of thinking as postnationalism. This means thinking beyond national borders. Others call her ideas Black feminism or womanism. She strongly supports the Black Lives Matter movement. In her book We Will Not Cancel Us, she also supports the prison abolition movement. This movement seeks to change how society deals with crime and punishment.
Creative Works
Writing and Books
Brown writes for YES! magazine, which focuses on solutions to problems. She used to write for The Michigan Citizen newspaper.
Brown has written a lot about healing, self-care, and science fiction. Much of her writing is inspired by the science fiction author Octavia E. Butler. Brown's own writing style is often called Afrofuturism. This is a cultural movement that combines African culture with technology and science fiction.
In 2010, she published the Octavia Butler Strategic Reader. In 2013, she won an award to hold writing workshops based on Octavia Butler's science fiction. In 2015, she helped edit Octavia's Brood: Science Fiction Stories from Social Justice Movements. This book is a collection of short stories and essays. They are all about social justice and inspired by Butler.
Her first book, Emergent Strategy, came out in 2017. It talks about how to make lasting social change. Brown explains that "emergence" is how complex systems grow from many simple actions. She sees emergent strategy as a "life-code" for organizing and personal life.
Emergent Strategy led to other books about lasting transformative justice. These include We Will Not Cancel Us And Other Dreams of Transformative Justice (2020). Another book is Holding Change: The Way of Emergent Strategy Facilitation and Mediation (2021). The 2020 book We Will Not Cancel Us discusses harm, accountability, and transformative justice. It is mainly for activists working on changing the prison system.
Brown has also contributed to many anthologies. These are collections of writings by different authors. They focus on justice, transformation, and feminism. Some titles include How to Get Stupid White Men Out of Office (2004) and Dreaming in Public (2012). Others are Dear Sister (2014), Feminisms in Motion (2018), How We Fight White Supremacy (2019), and Beyond Survival (2020).
In Beyond Survival (2020), Brown wrote about "What Is/Isn't Transformative Justice." She argues for transformative justice instead of public shaming. She believes that when people make mistakes, even small ones, public shaming can cause fear. Instead, she says we need transformative justice. This means finding the root of a problem and creating solutions that lead to healing.
Brown suggests three ways to achieve transformative justice. First, she says we should listen to people who have caused harm and ask "why?" This helps us understand their actions. It reminds us that everyone is human. Second, she suggests asking "what can we learn from this?" when we have been harmed. This helps us improve society. Third, Brown asks us to think, "how can my actions help solve this situation?" She notes that social media can make problems worse quickly. She suggests talking directly, seeking mediation, and thinking about the community.
Brown believes we should work together for positive change. She says we are responsible for helping each other grow. This means helping people and communities heal and become whole.
Brown's book Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good came out in 2019. It shows how activists can use positive feelings to fight against unfairness. In April 2019, the book appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list.
In September 2021, Brown published Grievers. This was her first longer work of fiction.
Music Projects
On March 25, 2021, Brown released an EP called The Sabbatical Suite. It has five songs she wrote in 2020. She has called it a "small odd intimate music project." She also sang background vocals on the 2023 album Javelin by Sufjan Stevens.
Podcasts
Brown hosts the podcast How to Survive the End of the World with her sister Autumn Brown. The podcast explores how to learn from big changes with "grace, rigor and curiosity."
In June 2020, Brown and Toshi Reagon started the podcast Octavia's Parables. This podcast explores Octavia E. Butler's novels Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents in depth.
On June 23, 2022, Brown was a guest on the podcast On Being with Krista Tippett. The episode was called "We are in a time of new suns."
Work as a Doula
Adrienne Maree Brown also works as a doula. She calls herself a "radical doula." This is because she sees her doula work as part of her activism. She helps people through important life transitions.
Awards and Recognition
- Kresge Literary Arts Fellow (2013)
- Knights Arts Challenge winner (2013, 2015)
