Boek Anton de Kom One Book One Campus

Does We slaves of Suriname spark ideas you would like to do something with? What would you write to Anton de Kom if he were alive today? Put your thoughts and ideas on paper by submitting a creative response to the book, in the form of a 'Letter to Anton de Kom', and you might win up to €150,-. Submit your creative response anonymously to onebookonecampus@uu.nl by Friday March 16, 23.59. Look below for the guidelines.

One Book One Campus is a reading event at Utrecht University which aims to broaden our understanding of the world, our communities, and ourselves through sharing a good book. It offers opportunities to meet and connect with others. This year’s selected book is Anton de Kom's We Slaves of Suriname (1934).

During March, there will be Meet & Read sessions where you can discuss the book, look down below on this page for an overview of the dates.

On February 29, there will be a workshop for teachers on decolonial knowledge making (with CAT and Anton de Kom University of Suriname).

On March 18, there will be a Studium Generale Cover to Cover event with prof.dr. Guno Jones (Free University Amsterdam, in Dutch).

On March 27, there will be a public event with the Dutch 
Poet Laureate Babs Gons and writer Karin Amatmoekrim in the Neude Library (in Dutch). 

The guidelines for the creative contest

The jury will announce a shortlist with the top 3 submissions in the week before the public event with Babs Gons and Karin Amatmoekrim on Wednesday March 27. The winner will be invited to read their letter to Anton de Kom at this public event.

  • 1st prize: €150,-
  • 2nd prize: €100,-
  • 3rd prize: €50,-

The jury members are Dr. Mia You (UU), Nina Köll MA (UU), Rinske Bos (Savannah Bay) and Marjanne Roodenburg (member One Book One Campus Team).

Submission guidelines:

  • Your creative response is clearly related to Anton de Kom's We Slaves of Suriname.
  • Your response is a 'Letter to Anton de Kom', which may take the form of a letter, short story, poem, or essay (max. 1200 words)
  • The creative response is written in English or Dutch.
  • Only non-professional writers are allowed to participate.
  • Submissions must be original and unpublished works.
  • There is a maximum of 1 submission per participant.
  • The creative response must be written the font Times New Roman, size 12 and submitted as PDF-file.
  • The creative response must be submitted with a separate title page with your full name, your email address and a pseudonym. Write the same pseudonym on your submission itself (and NOT your real name).