The group was founded in 2021 by Blake and Grace Bertuccelli-Booth. They were feeling particularly starved for intellectual conversation in New Orleans, and Blake had just read Bertrand Russell’s History of Western Philosophy. Here is how the founding conversation went:
Blake: “I wish I could talk about ideas with folks in New Orleans.”
Grace: “Why not talk with me?”
Blake: “Bertrand Russell says we need to care about a larger social unit outside of our family.”
Grace: “Why not start a group?”
Blake: “Good - I’ll write a manifesto.” (He goes to typing a manifesto.)
Grace: “Just email some friends.”
Blake: “Brilliant.” (He stops writing a manifesto, then goes to writing an email.
Grace: “What time should we have it?”
Blake: “It needs to be on Sundays - like a religious community. After Catholic Mass, but while we can still drink cappuccinos.”
Grace: “11:11?”
Blake: “Brilliant!”
.. and so 11:11 was born.
Artist Robert Tannen holds up a sign from our first meeting on October 21, 2021.
The first meeting was attended by a radical artist (Robert Tannen), an AI developer from IBM (Luke), a purple-haired tech millionaire who lives his life like a video game, Blake, Grace, and a few stragglers from a cafe. Chess was played. Philosophy was discussed. And our meetings continued each Sunday at 11:11, hopefully for many years to come.