This past summer, when the news from the Mexican-US border was reaching the height of its intolerability, one of the booksellers at A Room of One's Own came to co-owner Gretchen Treu with an idea: a tip jar. More specifically: a tip jar to raise money for RAICES. But what started as a tip jar turned into a NATIONAL fundraising effort...almost overnight. On this episode of Open Books, Charlotte chats with Gretchen Treu, the co-owner who said yes to that tip jar, and is now extending their activist reach from HQ: their bookstore.

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In this episode, we mention a few outreach and education groups that YOU can get involved with! Here they are, in the order they appear in the show:

1)RAICES - "We defend the rights of immigrants and refugees, empower individuals, families, and communities, and advocate for liberty and justice."https://www.raicestexas.org

2)FROM BOOKS TO BALLOTS - A Room of One's Own's forthcoming voter education campaign! Go sign up for Room's newsletter on their homepage https://roomofonesown.com to be the first to know when the campaign goes live!

3)LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS - "Empowering voters. Defending Democracy."https://lwv.org

4) MADISON READING PROJECT - "...dedicated to collecting and selecting books that are exciting, engaging, and diverse for age levels from birth to teenagers."https://madisonreadingproject.com

5)LGBTQ BOOKS TO PRISONERS - "We are a donation-funded, volunteer-run organization based in Madison, WI that sends books and other educational materials, free of charge, to incarcerated LGBTQ people across the United States."https://lgbtbookstoprisoners.org

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You can find A Room of One's Own online at:TW: @RoomOfOnesOwnIG: @roomofonesownbooksFB: @roomofonesownbookstoreroomofonesown.com

Find Mystery to Me online at:mysterytomebooks.comIG: @mysterytomebooksFB: @mysterytomebooks

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Thanks for shopping local!