BNRF Inaugural President's Virtual Book Club Kick-Off

Description

Inaugural President’s Book Club Kick-Off

Featuring: The Black Angels by Maria Smilios
📅 Tuesday, May 28 | 🕖 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM ET
📍 Virtual Event (registration required)

Join the Black Nurses Rock Foundation for the exciting launch of our President’s Book Club—a new initiative to engage, educate, and empower through storytelling. We're honored to kick things off with a powerful story of courage and care: The Black Angels: The Untold Story of the Nurses Who Helped Cure Tuberculosis by award-winning author Maria Smilios.

💬 About the Book:

In The Black Angels, Maria Smilios brings to light the incredible true story of a group of Black nurses who, beginning in 1929, left the Jim Crow South in search of freedom and professional opportunity. They found it at Sea View, a tuberculosis sanatorium in New York City infamously known as the “pest house.” There, they worked in harsh conditions, facing racism, sexism, and systemic neglect—all while caring for patients society had forgotten. Their tireless work helped usher in the first cure for tuberculosis, forever changing the course of global medicine. Though history tried to erase their names, The Black Angels restores their legacy.

🔗 Book link: Buy the Book Here
🚫 Please note: Do not purchase the blue paperback version sold on Amazon. Use the link above for the correct edition.

🎤 Special Guest: Author Maria Smilios

We’re thrilled to welcome Maria for an intimate conversation about the writing of The Black Angels, the historical significance of the nurses’ work, and the relevance of their story today. Maria is an acclaimed writer, keynote speaker, and adjunct lecturer at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. Her work has appeared in The Guardian, Newsweek, and The Emancipator, and The Black Angels has received numerous honors, including the 2024 Christopher Award and finalist placement for the Gotham Book Prize and NASW Science in Society Journalism Award.

🩺 Meet Your Host:

Dr. Melody Taylor, DNP, MSN, RN
President, Black Nurses Rock Foundation

👉 Register now to save your spot and receive the Zoom link.