Past Events

Writer, poet and teacher Clint Smith talks with Jude Nixon, Professor of English at Salem State University. Both men are educators and fathers and their discussion explores what it means to raise children during this challenging period of the covid-19 pandemic and heightened racial tensions across the country. Image: Pexels.com

Writer, poet and teacher Clint Smith talks with Jude Nixon, Professor of English at Salem State University talk about some of the poems in "Counting Descent," and previews Smith’s forthcoming non-fiction book, "How The Word Is Passed," which explores how different sites across the country reckon with, or fail to reckon with, their relationship to the history of slavery. Image: Book Cover

Author Larry Tye will discuss his new, definitive biography of U.S. Senator Joe McCarthy. From 1950 to 1954, McCarthy destroyed many careers and even entire lives, whipping the nation into a frenzy of paranoia. Based on the first-ever review of his personal and professional papers, medical and military records, and recently unsealed transcripts of his closed-door congressional hearings, in _Demagogue_ Tye reveals a human being whose chaotic, meteoric rise is a lesson for us all.

How are artists pivoting in a world where performances and exhibits are happening online? The Curiosity Desk’s Edgar B. Herwick III speaks with visual artist Chanel Thervil and comedian Bethany Van Delft about the challenges and creative solutions they face in the current virtual-only environment. Image credit: [Pexels](http://https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-woman-writing-on-tablet-computer-while-using-laptop-4348401/)

Propublica immigration reporter Dara Lind hosts a discussion with Douglas S. Massey, an expert on international migration at Princeton University, Suffolk Dean and global engagement expert Maria Toyada, clinical professor of law at Suffolk Ragini Shah, and Adriana Lafaille, a staff attorney with the ACLU of Massachusetts dealing with immigration detention and immigrants’ rights issues. Together they look at how the pandemic will fuel greater conflict around the world, as prices rise and incomes fall, and how it may create a call to action to increase health and social protections.

To address the exclusion of people of color in urban planning that perpetuates and institutionalizes patterns of harm, MassINC has proposed a new practice called Joint Local Planning — community-centric and coordinated district, municipal, and regional planning — as a remedy for historically exclusive processes and inequitable outcomes. But what is community-centric planning, why do we need it and how is it done? Monica Tibbits-Nutt of the 128 Business Council and Leah Bamberger of the City of Providence's Office of Sustainability share with MassINC’s Dr. Tracy Corley and WGBH News Transportation Reporter Bob Seay how they have helped transform community engagement in urban planning across North America. They share examples of the way past planning efforts have created systems that marginalize Black, Indigenous, and people of color in cities large and small while describing their successes with bottom-up planning processes and outcomes. The group also discusses how COVID-19 has impacted planning efforts — especially in smaller, Gateway Cities — and why urban residents cannot wait for the end of the pandemic to take ownership of planning their neighborhoods, municipalities and communities. This event is one of a series of TTOD Talks co-produced by the WGBH Network Forum and is based on the MassINC report, From Transactional to Transformative: The Case for Equity in Gateway City Transit-Oriented Development. To access the report, visit www.massinc.org/research/equity-report. Image Credit: Pexels.com

Many argue that the Trump Doctrine in foreign policy has been characterized by a retreat from global leadership in multilateral institutions, abandonment of traditional diplomacy, strained relationships with allies, and an enhanced projection of military strength. The response to the coronavirus pandemic has been similar; an insistence on going solo. What have been the costs and consequences of an over-reliance on the militarization of U.S. policy abroad and at home? What role should the military play in U.S. democracy and how has the pandemic impacted our ability to respond to national security threats, both traditional and new, such as COVID-19 and climate change? "Politics in the Time of Global Pandemic" is a Suffolk University lecture series presented with the Ford Hall Forum and WGBH Forum Network. It is designed as a broad examination of the themes of interest to political scientists and public policy experts. The series is part of a novel online course offered to incoming Suffolk students and made available to the public. This week, Andrew Bacevich, president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, joins Michal Ben-Joseph Hirsch, an assistant professor in the Political Science & Legal Studies Department at Suffolk University. **Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection** Engage in at least one civic / political event of your choice during the course and document this with a short reflection essay. Try a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection should draw on readings from assignments and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag [@GBHForumNetwork ](https://twitter.com/GBHForumNetwork) and [@supolscilegal](https://twitter.com/supolscilegal).

Professor Maria Ivanova and doctoral student Candace Famiglietti detail the very serious consequences of the international wildlife trade. While there has been much media attention on the health consequences of wildlife food markets, these authors provide a much broader picture in a recent article exploring wildlife for exotic pets to wildlife in high fashion. They discuss the abuse inherent in wildlife trade, and the impact on ecosystems and environment, economies and human health. Image: [Belmont Media Center](http://scienceforthepublic.org/life/a-spotlight-on-the-impact-of-the-wildlife-trade)

This episode of [BIG, If True,](http://shorensteincenter.org/programs/technology-social-change/big-if-true-webinar-series/) reflects on the hybrid battles being waged by journalists, activists, and dissidents against censorship and disinformation in Southeast Asia. The discussion traces the genesis of the recent attacks on the freedom to expression, from the rise and fall of the Anti-Fake News Act in Malaysia to the conviction of Rappler CEO and Editor Maria Ressa and former Rappler researcher-writer Reynaldo Santos over cyber libel charges — a conviction that has been widely reported as a strike against press freedom and democracy in the Philippines. In light of these extraordinary censorship measures, this conversation charts the broader efforts being made by civil society to counter the repression of free speech. Image: Pixabay.com

Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA) joins Suffolk University's Ford Hall Forum to discuss the changing landscape of governing, serving constituents, and running for office in a time of global pandemic. How has Congress adapted to manage its business during the major crises facing the nation: COVID-19, its economic impact, and the growing movement for social justice? To what extent have new rules impacted this vital work? What challenges does Congress face in responding to unprecedented times and what will be the most likely next steps? How do Members keep in touch with their constituents, whose needs are now greater than ever? What does a virtual campaign look like and how will all of this impact voting in remaining primaries and November's General Election? **Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection** Engage in at least one civic / political event of your choice during the course and document this with a short reflection essay. Try a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection should draw on readings from assignments and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag [@GBHForumNetwork ](https://twitter.com/GBHForumNetwork) and [@supolscilegal](https://twitter.com/supolscilegal).