The first book club meeting is the time to set guidelines and expectations for the group. Talk through the following questions:

• How often will the club meet?
• How many chapters will participants read prior to each meeting?
• Will group members work through each question, or will discussions be more informal?
• What are general expectations for the conversations? How will participants stay safe?
• How will the group collaboratively uphold these expectations?

These are suggested participation agreements, which you can modify to fit the needs of your group. These were modified from the anti-oppressive guidelines written by McKensie Mack, Anti-Oppression Consultant.

We agree to...

• We agree to struggle against intersecting prejudices and biases, including against racism, sizeism, transphobia, classism, and ableism
• We agree to examine our (mis)conceptions of our own identities and the identities of others
• We know that no space can be completely safe, and we agree to work together toward harm reduction. We know we can't agree to safety but we can agree to harm reduction.
• If you are generally quiet, step up and practice speaking more. If you are generally a talker, practice stepping back and listening more
• We agree to sit with discomfort that comes with having conversations about race, gender, identity, the nonprofit industrial complex etc… we agree to try our best to not shame ourselves for the vulnerability that these kinds of growth conversations require. 
• We are open to value the viewpoints of other people that do not challenge or conflict with our right to exist
• We agree that it's okay to have feelings. It's okay to feel uncomfortable when we are discussing complex topics about accountability, equity, relationships, justice and care.