Past Events

Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Farah Stockman and Boston Public Library President David Leonard discuss the historical context around what is commonly known as a time of “busing in Boston” that took place in the early 1970s, as well as the wider effort to desegregate public schools across the U.S. Ms. Stockman shares her experiences reporting decades later on the busing crisis and gives a thoughtful take on the impacts of this monumental moment in Boston and United States history. Image: Public domain The four women Ms. Stockman names in the opening of this event are: • Ellen Jackson, founder of Operation Exodus, a program in the 1960 that raised private money to bus students from overcrowded black schools in Roxbury to schools with seats in other parts of the city. • Ruth Batson, an early architect of METCO, a voluntary busing program that still exists that brings black students in Boston to schools in the suburbs.. • Jean McGuire, first black woman on the Boston school committee, who fought for black teachers in Boston schools • Kim Janey, now president of the Boston City Council, who has fought for equity in schools for years.

Since its founding more than seventy years ago, the National Security Council has exerted more influence on the president’s foreign policy decisions―and on the nation’s conflicts abroad―than any other institution or individual. And yet, until the Trump presidency, few Americans could even name a member. D.C. insider John Gans traces the path that has led us to an era of American aggression abroad in his book _White House Warriors_. From debilitating fights within the government, and whispers about a deep state conspiring against the public, learn in this "Chat and Chowder" conversation how the National Security Council changed the American way of war. Image: Book Cover

Spillover, the transfer of viruses from wild animals to humans, is a by-product of hunting, wild-animal trade, and proximity of humans to wild creatures. Dr. Jonathan Runstadler explains how spillover can cause pandemics in the modern global community, and why control of these viruses requires an understanding of the relationship between humans and these animal disease reservoirs. Image: Belmont Media Center

David Litt entered the White House as a speechwriter in 2011, and left in 2016 as a senior presidential speechwriter and special assistant to the president. In addition to writing remarks for President Barack Obama on a wide range of domestic policy issues, David served as the lead joke writer for several White House Correspondents’ Dinner monologues. Since leaving government, David has written speeches, op-eds, and jokes for Fortune 100 CEOs, professional athletes, leading philanthropists, and prominent political figures. His New York Times bestselling memoir, _Thanks, Obama: My Hopey Changey White House Years,_ was published in 2017. He has a second book, _Democracy in One Book or Less_, published on June 16, 2020 and is developing a TV show based on his life in Washington. This author talk with David Litt moderated by Cecile Richards is part of the "The Arc of History: Contested Perspectives" series featuring Boston Public Library President David Leonard.

Over fifty million Americans endure environmental illnesses that render them allergic to chemicals. Innocuous staple goods from deodorant to garbage bags wreak havoc on sensitives. With over 85,000 chemicals in the environment, they perceive danger around every corner. Freelance journalist Oliver Broudy explores environmental toxicity and the community of The Sensitives — people with powerful, puzzling symptoms they believe to be resulting from exposure to chemicals, fragrances, and cell phone signals, that have no effect on “normals.” Dr. Ann McCampbell, (DrAnnMcC@gmail.com) a Santa Fe, New Mexico based environmental illness medical advocate joins the conversation, along with Stephan Bodian, a psychotherapist and spiritual teacher. Image: Book Cover

This webinar discusses some of the many cybersecurity threats and strategies emerging today. Joan Donovan, PhD talks with experts: how secure and reliable is the American cyber ecosystem? How have threats, like opportunistic cybercrime, data breaches, and cyberattacks, changed given that many of us are still working from home? Is the potential for technology to serve as a force for good being usurped by malicious parties bent on oppression and surveillance? In the face of these myriad uncertainties and cosmic shifts, are we witnessing a resurgence of socio-technological hacking? This talk is part of the [Big, If True](http://forum-network.org/series/big-if-true-series-tech-pandemic/) webinar series hosted by Joan Donovan, Ph.D., who heads up the [Technology and Social Change Research Project (TaSC)](http://shorensteincenter.org/about-us/areas-of-focus/technology-social-change/) at Harvard University’s Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy. Image by [VIN JD](https://pixabay.com/users/jaydeep_-7740155/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=3112539") for Pixabay

Protests have erupted across the U.S. sparked by the recent deaths of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, but more than a reaction to police violence, these protests address a chronic problem rooted in centuries of racism and injustice stemming from unfair laws and policies across federal, state, and local institutions. A recent report from MassINC titled [“From Transactional to Transformative: The Case for Equity in Gateway City Transit-Oriented Development,”](https://massinc.org/research/equity-report/) outlines solutions to change policies that don’t work for many Americans, including better access to safe and affordable housing, reliable transportation, and economic inclusion. But the report is just the start of a broader conversation about inequity in our society and the changes we need to make today. WGBH News Transportation Reporter Bob Seay leads a conversation about equitable policies and practices with MassINC’s Dr. Tracy Corley (lead author of the research paper), and Susan A. Wood, co-author of the [American Planning Association’s Planning for Equity Policy Guide.](https://planning.org/publications/document/9178541/#:~:text=By%20American%20Planning%20Association&text=APA's%20first%2Dever%20Planning%20for,%2C%20state%2C%20and%20federal%20levels.) Learn more about transformative transit-oriented development (TTOD) and sign up here for the [**#TTOD Challenge**](https://massinc.org/2020/06/11/ttod-challenge/).

The Boston Public Library together with the New England Historic Genealogical Society presents "The Unappreciated Role of Women in the Shaping of Puritanism." While everyone knows of the challenge that Anne Hutchinson posed to the New England puritan establishment, the roles of ordinary women in Congregationalism has been neglected. Dr. Francis J. Bremer, coordinator of [**New England Beginnings**](https://www.newenglandbeginnings.org/about-us), is joined by Donna Curtin, Executive Director of the Pilgrim Society and [**Pilgrim Hall Museum**](https://www.pilgrimhall.org/) in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Together they discuss how women helped to shape puritan ideas, form puritan churches, teach fellow believers, and vote on various ecclesiastical issues.

Join Boston Public Library President David Leonard as he engages Callie Crossley, a WGBH News commentator and host of the radio show “[Under the Radar with Callie Crossley](https://www.wgbh.org/news/under-the-radar-with-callie-crossley) ” for a virtual conversation about race, reporting, and her career. Crossley is a frequent panelist on WGBH's _Beat the Press_, and a frequent host of WGBH's _Basic Black_. This conversation is part of the esteemed **Lowell Lecture Series** at the Boston Public library.

Hear from the celebrated author Honor Moore (_The Bishop’s Daughter, The White Blackbird_) about her new biography-memoir, the story of her mother and herself, their relationship and changing lives as 20th-Century women. With the sweep of an epic novel, Moore introduces readers to Jenny McKean Moore, her charismatic and brilliant mother who was born into privilege on Boston’s North Shore, and whose life shifted dramatically as she engaged in the 1960s peace and social justice. Claire Messud, the author of _The Burning Girl_ and _The Emperor’s Children_, moderates. This virtual author event is presented by [American Ancestors and NEHGS](http://forum-network.org/partner/American-Ancestors/) together with the [Boston Public Library](http://forum-network.org/partner/boston-public-library/) and the State Library of Massachusetts.