Compassionate Quilting

A history of quilting’s visual, social, and political role in America’s quest for social justice, interspersed with projects for beginners.

Part manual, part history, Compassionate Quilting explains why vulnerable populations have been quilting one-of-a-kind heirlooms for centuries while offering tips and patterns for beginners to do so themselves.

From acclaimed author Susan Gubar, Compassionate Quilting addresses quilting’s role in America’s quest for social justice, exploring the quilt’s literary, political and visual centrality in the struggle for diversity, equity, and inclusion. Interspersed projects assist beginners who want to start experimenting with an infinitely variable artform. Projects include:
A Whole-Cloth QuiltStacked Coins/Four- and Nine-PatchesLog Cabin/Housetop BlocksAttic WindowsBindingGubar also explores topics like stitchery in literature, the political history of patchwork, the role quilt-making plays in grief, gender equality, and more. Like many other artisans and artists, quilters have illuminated the noblest aspiration of our cherished country—its commitment to liberty and justice for all—and they do so today in traditions created primarily by women.