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Celebrating Collective Courage

10 Years of Inspiring Cooperators Worldwide

January 27, 2025

 

In 2014, the seminal book, Collective Courage: A History of African-American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice debuted, and with it a flame sparked in the cooperative movement. Slowly and then exponentially the book went viral by word of mouth throughout black and brown communities across the U.S. and beyond. It was a “how-to” for self-determination and making an impact in the world that was tangible. Jessica Gordon-Nembhard’s book gave us both the answer to a viable alternative outside of petitions and protests and provided a blueprint for how our ancestors, names both widely known and unknown, paved a path toward cooperative economics. Ten years later and the book is out with a second edition and after talking with movement leaders and young activists throughout the U.S. it’s clear we all are ready and geared up to learn more. Over the last decade, Jessica has delivered more than sixty presentations inspired by the research in Collective Courage, garnered multiple awards, and the book has been featured in thirty book clubs (and counting). Collective Courage has truly become a sacred text for both black and brown cooperators and cooperators worldwide. 

Collective Courage is a book unlike many of its kind because it so beautifully bridges the gap between research and activism. This note was a theme across many of the interviews I conducted and was a signifying factor in it garnering so much attention. Often books written by professors in the ivory tower may contain meaningful information but do not reach the people who are dealing with the issues every day. Collective Courage defies this trope both because the information is saliently relevant to activists but also because the author is deeply entrenched in movement work herself. Out of the 20 cooperators that I talked to from Georgia to California, each and every one had a personal anecdote of how Jessica responded to a request of theirs to produce a project inspired by the book. Jessica has joined study groups as big as the series facilitated by the Kheprw Institute in Indianapolis, IN. A series of talks posted online to discuss each chapter of the book. On the other end of the scale, Julian Hill, a lawyer and cooperator in Georgia, talked about how she joined a call with him and his friends who were informally reading the book amongst themselves. Mavery Davis, Director at New Economy Works West Virginia pulled out a worn and marked up copy of Collective Courage and affectionately referred to it as his bible during our conversation. He also credits it as a significant reason he is currently involved with Seed Commons and how grateful he is to get the opportunity to work so closely with Jessica as a result. Each interview exemplified Jessica’s willingness to lend her expertise and time to any cooperator eager to, at the minimum, understand the book and ,at the most ,make sure the unsung heroes are recognized on larger platforms. Margaret Bau, a cooperator in Wisconsin, explained, “ The Hall of Fame Unsung Heroes wouldn't have happened without Jessicas' book and it’s now part of the Cooperative Hall of Fame infrastructure.” The impact of Collective Courage will be known by generations to come because of Jessica’s generosity of time and space to pour into both institutions and individuals insistent on learning what the book has to offer.

A mural depicting Dr. Jessica Gordon-Nembhard and some of the historical figures depicted in her book.
A mural at the Detroit People’s Food Cooperative. Photo provided by the Diverse Solidarity Economies Collective.

Collective Courage was groundbreaking not just in the cooperative movement but in Black history. The book shed a new light on historical figures we were familiar with in a social context but never an economic one. It encouraged readers to look beyond traditional narratives and recognize the multifaceted approaches used to combat systemic oppression. Julian Hill, a lawyer and adjunct professor at Georgia State who uses the book in his classes, spoke about this saying, “All of these people I read about [W.E.B.]Dubois, [Ella] Baker… there is this history of freedom fighters not just offering a critique but an alternative. It gave me a historical context for the feelings I was having.” The book has served as such vital memory work for both scholars and activists.So often we hear about freedom fighters in the social and political context but almost never that they organized to have an economic impact in their communities. The history inspired cooperators to spread the word and be more creative in showcasing this information to others. Pink Flowers, Director of Education and Training at the Inter Cooperative Council at Ann Arbor, even wrote a play titled, “Black Conference” with the Falconworks Theatre Company after reading and being inspired by leaders featured in the book. She featured people in the play like Helena Wilson, A. Phillip Randolph, and Bayard Rustin. The company went on to win the Otto Rene Castillo Award for Political Theatre in 2019 after the play was produced.

Building economic power is a long standing tradition within Black communities and Collective Courage reclaimed that memory for us to link to. Book clubs and study circles have sprouted across the country not just to learn how to build cooperatives but to understand our history in all its nuance and dynamism. The book stands as a testament to the resilience and ingenuity of Black communities throughout history. Present cooperators are keen on both maintaining the tradition of cooperative economics and also uplifting the truth of the history Collective Courage shows us is so vibrant and deep within our culture.

Map of Collective Courage events.
Map of talks, book clubs, and awards given to Dr. Gordon-Nembhard based on research in Collective Courage

As I interviewed cooperators around the U.S., the agreement that Collective Courage is both a key organizing tool and a methodology for those learning was clear. Kate Khatib, a worker owner at Red Emma's Co-op Bookstore in Baltimore, and co-director of Seed Commons explained, “Cooperators have very few “how-to” guides. [Collective Courage] is a historical analysis and a set of guide posts that comes up all across the cooperative ecosystem.” But even more than providing a methodology, Collective Courage provided hope for cooperators. Jamila Medley, a cooperative consultant and previously executive director of Philadelphia Area Cooperative Alliance (PACA) discussed the impact Collective Courage had on the organization. PACA launched an 18-month study group titled “20 study groups to 20 businesses” gathering 200 people from around the city to participate in a project set out to create cooperative businesses in Philadelphia They were able to get funding to seed the work and bought copies of Collective Courage for every participant. “The book did heart repair. We can do it and we have done it. That was my lived reality facilitating four of those study circles.” said Medley.

The power of Collective Courage lay not only in its historical insights but also in its ability to galvanize individuals and communities towards action. The book serves as a beacon of possibility, illustrating that cooperative ventures were not just theoretical constructs but achievable realities, grounded in a rich tradition of collective effort. Study groups like this one and others all over the U.S. fostered a sense of community and mutual support among cooperators. They followed in their tradition and became spaces where ideas could be shared, challenges could be discussed, and solutions could be collaboratively developed. This fruitful environment, as we learned about in Collective Courage, is crucial for building the trust and solidarity needed to embark on cooperative ventures.

Collective Courage has inspired an extraordinary amount of projects throughout the U.S. The book is even going as far as to help fund budding cooperatives. Amaha Sellassie, Director of Center for Applied Social Issues at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio, excitedly told me about the Collective Courage Fund- a project he is a member of. The Partnership Fund along with the National Black Food and Justice Alliance and Piece by Piece Strategies have all teamed up with local Black-led cooperatives nationwide to develop the Collective Courage Fund. This fund is dedicated to supporting Black cooperatives in both rural and urban areas.

Other work the book has inspired is Jessica’s own work with formerly incarcerated people helping them to use cooperatives as a way to self-determine their own lives. Tim Huet, cooperative developer at Arizmendi Cooperatives, shared that when talking to men in San Quentin Rehabilitation Center in California about cooperatives they named Collective Courage as a resource. He went on to say, “When you ask someone 'how did they learn about cooperatives?' in the larger cooperative ecosystem the number one answer is Jessica’s book.” Mike Strode, founder of the Kola Nut Collaborative in Chicago, was so eager to spread the work that he bought 50 copies himself to put in the Chicago Public Library. The ripple effects of this book truly span the nation. The amount of work Collective Courage has inspired could fill its own book. After interviewing so many people I was hard pressed not to leave a call learning about another project someone thought of after reading Collective Courage. 

The last theme I want to highlight after speaking to over 20 cooperators around the U.S. is to speak directly to Jessica. We all want to say thank you for believing in yourself and this work enough to have it come to fruition. You exemplify the principles of cooperation not just in your work but in your personal relationships with people. Chris Preciado, GEO member and cooperator said, “Jessica is not afraid to disagree and is honest- it’s so nice and compassionate and you have to pay attention to realize there is a disagreement going on and I hope that as I evolve I’m able to be as graceful and compassionate.” This admiration and awe was present in each and every interview. I personally remember being given your book by Alhaji Conteh in the Moorland Spingarn Research Manuscript Room at Howard University. I had just discovered cooperatives and was talking with him about it when he remembered the book and handed it to me. I remember reading it all over Washington, DC — on the metro, at work, and in the cafeteria. Friends kept asking me what I was reading because I couldn’t put it down. I remember going to every talk I saw you have in the D.C. area and was introduced to organizations like OneDC and GEO by following the work you were doing. Your work illuminates the generous history and potential of cooperatives and birthed a new generation of cooperators who were re-connected to a shared memory. In my interviews, I found a consistent commitment to learning and understanding how we can better support each other. I realized that’s what makes the cooperative movement so powerful. It's not just about economic collaboration; it’s about a culture of care that transcends the bounds of institutions like government and capitalism. Your contribution to this movement has helped us honor the Sankofa principle “go back and fetch it” and has reconnected us to a memory that we are all so grateful to be in conversation with. Collective Courage is more than a book, it further ignites a movement that continues to grow and evolve, driven by the collective dreams of those who dare to imagine a better future — just like their ancestors.

The upcoming edition of Collective Courage is expected to cement its place as a must-have resource for all cooperators, with more stories and history that will motivate even more people to tap into the power of cooperation.

 

Citations

Malikia Johnson (2025).  Celebrating Collective Courage:  10 Years of Inspiring Cooperators Worldwide.  Grassroots Economic Organizing (GEO).  https://geo.coop/articles/celebrating-collective-courage

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