Topics: American Old West, Anti-racism, Environment, History, Native American

Community: Vermillion

Program Types: Pre-recorded Program Video, Speakers Bureau, Virtual Program(s)

jerrywilson.us
wilson57069@gmail.com | (605) 670-1893

Across the Rio Grande
Wilson’s novel Eden to Orizaba addresses the urgent need in our nation to rethink our response to immigrants and refugees. It is a love story set amidst the conflicts that love and commitment inevitably face, but especially amidst cultural upheaval driven by economic forces beyond individual control.
This presentation begins with a reading from the novel, followed by discussion of the issues it raises, and how our nation’s citizens might respond.

Making Peace with the Natural World
Are we at war with nature, or only suffering from “nature deficit disorder?” Wilson’s environmental memoir, Seasons of the Coyote, addresses the need to open our eyes, ears and hearts to the natural world, and to accept our responsibility to preserve and restore. The presentation includes a reading and discussion of how we might more fully engage with, and protect, the ecosystems of which we are part.

Great Plains History: Fictional and Real
Few things are more important to any culture than honest appraisal of its history and a commitment to learn from history and to preserve its lessons without distortion or bias. Wilson’s six Great Plains books all involve personal experience, but he focuses on his historical novel about homesteading Native land, Across the Cimarron. He encourages others to explore, interpret and preserve their own histories, both personal and cultural.