Mayor Karen Bass; Dr. Lura Daniels-Ball, President, Our Authors Study Club, Inc.; Cynthia Exum, President, Leimert Village Park Book Festival; Los Angeles City Council President, Marqueece Harris-Dawson Councilmember, Eighth District; Bob Blumenfield, Councilmember, Third District; Curren D. Price, Jr., Councilmember, Ninth District; Heather Hutt, Councilmember, Tenth District; the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA); Yvonne Wheeler, President Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, General Chair, Our Authors Study Club 2025 African American Heritage Month; and, the Our Authors Study Club 2025 African American Heritage Month Committee invite you to attend an Afternoon with African American Authors.
Our Authors Study Club, Inc. (OASC) and the Leimert Park Village Book Fair hosts the opportunity to hear firsthand from award-winning actor, director and #1 best-selling author Courtney Bernard Vance as he discusses his book The Invisible Ache: Black Men Identifying Their Pain and Reclaiming Their Power. Along with professional expertise from famed psychologist Dr. Robin L. Smith (popularly known as “Dr. Robin”), Courtney B. Vance explores issues of grief, relationships, identity, and race through the telling of his own most formative experiences. A unique combination of moving memoir and practical tools that offers guidance for Black men seeking to reclaim their mental well-being–and, ultimately, to live wholeheartedly.
The presentation will be moderated by William Allen Young, actor, director and philanthropist who has starred in over 100 television, stage, and film projects, including two Academy Award-nominated films, A Soldier’s Story and District 9. 2025 OASC Living Legend Awards will be presented to both Mr. Vance and Mr. Young in honor of their body of work, leadership and personal philanthropy.
Los Angeles Public Library – Mark Taper Auditorium
Parking is $1.00 with a Los Angeles Public Library card in the garage beneath the library, the entrance is on 5th Street. Come early and sign up for your library card if you do not already have one.