Color and Belonging: Announcing a Silicon Valley Reads / IBPW Book Discussion

It isn’t often that the stars align to find three books that are beautifully written, fit the theme of a panel discussion I am planning, and whose authors are available on the date I am planning the event! Before I introduce the event, here is the context.

Silicon Valley Reads chose as its 2026 theme Bridges to Belonging.

The kickoff event was held on January 15, 2026, with three featured authors in conversation with Sal Pizarro of the San Jose Mercury News:

• john a. powell (The Power of Bridging), a softspoken, brilliant UC Berkely professor and former National Director of the ACLU.

• Keeonna Harris (Mainline Mama), prison abolitionist

• Annie Hartnett (Unlikely Animals), fiction writer

A recording is available HERE.

As one of the many book events on this theme, on Sunday, February 22, 2026, I will moderate a virtual discussion presented by Indian Business and Professional Women (IBPW) and SVR with the authors of three wonderful books, on Color and Belonging, a topic of particular importance in today's America, and the world.

Color and Belonging

Presented by Silicon Valley Reads and Indian Business and Professional Women

Feb 22, 2026, 3:00 PM – 4.15 PM

Register here

What are the barriers of race and prejudice that keep us from building lasting bridges of inclusion and community? How can we dismantle them?

In our online book discussion Color and Belonging, part of our Bridges to Belonging series, we will explore how skin color and heritage shape our journeys toward finding a true sense of home. From a mother defending her multiracial family in suburban America and an immigrant bridging the cultural divide between India and the U.S., to a first-generation scholar redefining Black excellence through pop culture and academia, these authors examine the "otherization" and "imposter syndrome" that often accompany being different.

Panelists:

• Elizabeth Eastwood (I'm with Them: Lessons from My Children)

• Neerja Raman (The Chemistry of Belonging: Stories of Inheritance and Upbringing)

• La’Tonya Rease Miles (Smart Girl: A First-Gen Origin Story)

• Moderator Raji Pillai, scientist, book lover, writer and literary critic

Please register here and see you on Sunday Feb 22, at 3PM! Feel free to share with others.

How did Color and Belonging come about?

In October, I went to a book launch for a book written by a neighbor about raising her adopted children from Peru in a mostly white suburban neighborhood on the peninsula in the bay area. It was an inspiring and moving event. In addition to the joys of raising the children, the challenges of the mostly white neighborhood and school district resonated with me, a parent of color who raised my brown daughter in the same district. The accounts of various racial microaggressions as well as overt racism instantly struck a nerve.

Also in October, right around the time of Elizabeth Eastwood’s book launch, Silicon Valley Reads announced its theme for 2026: Bridges to Belonging. As I read “I’m With Them”, I recognized how apt it was for this theme.

Through Deepka Lalwani, I learned of Neerja Raman’s memoir The Chemistry of Belonging about her years as a child in India, and then as an adult in America. Her reflections on identity hit upon themes such as culture, tradition, child-rearing, immigration, and the sense of belonging.

As I sought another book to discuss, La’Tonya Rease Miles’ book Smart Girl was recommended to me. A book by a Black woman about her journey through the academic system as a first-gen college student, the hardships and challenges she overcame to gain a PhD in English Literature from UCLA.

It was a pleasure to read these books over the winter holidays. I think you will enjoy them too. Please come to the panel discussion and find out why!