On the heels of an election that revealed deep divisions in our society, one thing that most can agree on is the urgent need for respectful, open discussion on the issues that divide us. In a special series of programs this winter and spring, Penn Arts and Sciences will work to promote the necessary conversations. This site highlights events and other opportunities to engage as a community to consider issues in our democratic society, along with contributions from our faculty and videos and other content to help spread the dialogue across campus and beyond.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED
Contact us at [email protected] to notify us about additional programs that are open to the campus community or to the general public.
Proposals from Penn Arts and Sciences faculty, students, or staff members for additional events are welcome and can be submitted to [email protected].
The Office of the Dean invites additional proposals to support pedagogical innovation and other programs directed at facilitating conversation in the classroom. Please submit suggestions to [email protected].
RELEVANT CONTENT
It's Time to Get Russia's Strategy Straight
Kevin M. F. Platt of the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures blogs about Russia, election hacking, and conspiracy theory for The Huffington Post.
#DATAREFUGE
Penn Program in Environmental Humanities Launches Project to Protect Vulnerable Climate Change Research
Making Multicultural Democracy Work in the Trump Years
A panel discussion with a Q&A session.
Faculty Opinion: Stephen Bannon and the Old/New Anti-Semitism
Amy Kaplan, Edward G. Kane Professor of English, authors an op-ed.
Daniel Hopkins on the Rise of Anti-Immigration Politics
Political scientist Daniel Hopkins talks about how immigration played out in the election in this podcast.
Knowledge by the Slice: Election 2016: What Just Happened?
A panel of political scientists discuss election night.
Faculty Q&A: Confronting Islamophobia
A conversation with Jamal J. Elias, Walter H. Annenberg Professor in the Humanities and scholar of Islamic thought, culture, and history.
The True Cost of Vote Buying and Selling
Mary Frances Berry, Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and professor of history and Africana studies, discusses her book, Five Dollars and a Pork Chop Sandwich: Vote Buying and the Corruption of Democracy.
Knowledge by the Slice: New Realities of Latin American Migration to the United States: Implications for Policy Discussions
Faculty Opinion: No, Trump Voters Were Not Irrational
Robert Kurzban, professor of psychology, addresses voter rationality.
Quechua Penn
A thriving Native-American language program makes Penn a Quechua hub.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Screening of James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket
Part of the English Department’s Winter Reading Project on Ta-Nahisi Coates’s Between the World and Me.
A screening of James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket, a documentary about the remarkable life and works of this important African American author. Baldwin’s work inspired Coates and is much discussed in Between the World and Me.
Monday, January 16, 2017
5:00 p.m.
Harrison House Sky Lounge
Discussion of Between the World and Me
English Department’s annual Winter Reading Project
A Discussion of Ta-Nehisi Coates’ acclaimed Between the World and Me in an informal, “book club”-style discussion including brief comments from three faculty members in English and Africana Studies: Professors Herman Beavers, Nancy Bentley, and Salamishah Tillet. After that, everyone is welcome to share their thoughts and reactions to the book. Refreshments will be provided!
Tuesday, January 17, 2017
6:00 p.m.
Harrison House Sky Lounge
The 16th Annual Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Lecture in Social Justice
Joy-Ann Reid, National Correspondent for MSNBC
Charles Blow, Op-Ed Columnist at The New York Times.
Camille Z. Charles, Professor of Sociology, Africana Studies & Education, and Director of the Center for Africana Studies, University of Pennsylvania
Monday, January 30, 2017
5:30 p.m.
Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, Zellerbach Theatre
Trump, Philosophy, and American Politics
Philosophical Implications of the 45th Presidency
Speakers include: Quayshawn Spencer, Elisabeth Camp, Eugene Kiely, David Livingstone Smith, Ken Taylor, Claire Finkelstein, Alex Guerrero, Lisa Miracchi, and Jason Stanley.
Friday, February 3, 2017
12:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Claudia Cohen Hall, G17
Fear Inc.: Confronting Islamaphobia in America
Levin Family Dean’s Forum
Reza Aslan, Religion Scholar and Author
In a world where Muslim people are so often colored by one sweeping prejudicial brush, Reza Aslan’s principled and logical defense is a direly needed corrective. In a talk rich in historical and factual detail, he will deliver a wake-up call for North Americans to confront and abolish hatred and discrimination against Muslim people—otherwise known as Islamophobia. As the American Muslim population is predicted to more than double over the next two decades (from 2.6 million in 2010 to 6.2 million in 2030), eradicating Islamophobia for good should be first and foremost in the minds of everyone who dreams of a more peaceful, equitable world.
Thursday, February 23, 2017
4:30 p.m.
Penn Museum, Harrison Auditorium
