Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues: Public Lectures

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Film Screening of What Happens to a Dream Deferred? and Q&A with Filmmaker Esery Mondésir

Esery Mondesir

This short documentary film is part of Mondésir’s “Haitian Trilogy” exploring the lives of Haitian and Haitian-descended communities in Cuba and Mexico. The film showing will be followed by a question and answer session with the filmmaker.

Synopsis of Documentary:

It’s New Year’s Eve in Tijuana, Mexico. Wood and Colonel are busy making Soup Joumou to celebrate Haitian Independence Day with their friends at the “Trap House.” As their cooking progresses, memories of the perilous journey that brought them to the US/Mexico border two years ago resurface. From Haiti to Brazil and through nine other South and Central-American countries, here they are, sandwiched between their dream of a musical career in the US and an American president who calls Haiti a “shithole” and believes all Haitians have AIDS.

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the departments of Spanish & Portuguese and Latin American, Latinx & Caribbean studies.
Community, Connections and Commentary: Perspectives on the US Elections from Bremen, Málaga, Moscow and Toulouse

Francoise Coste, Konstantin Sonin, Manuel Arias Maldonado, and Neil van Siclen

Given the interdependence of the world today, hearing global voices, views and perspectives is more important than ever. Dickinson College collaborators from Bremen, Toulouse, Málaga and Moscow will give an in-depth analysis of the election results, bringing their insight and highlighting the impact of the elections both near and far.
Pandemic Preparedness and Environmental Awareness

Frederic Keck

The current Covid-19 pandemic has connected public health concerns in the West (the fabric of vaccines, the use of masks and other distancing measures) with questions on what happens with bats in China, since Covid-19 is a zoonosis emerging from animal reservoirs. While preparedness asks us to prepare for future pandemics, and question how much we are prepared in the organization of public health, it also includes attentiveness to environmental changes as early warning signals of pandemics. Focusing on the perception of sentinels for influenza pandemics in Hong Kong, this talk will question how we can read viral mutations as signs of environmental changes.

The event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the departments of anthropology and East Asian studies.
Overdoing Democracy: The Problem of Polarization

Robert Talisse

Democracy is such an important social good that it is natural to think that more is always better. However, current findings regarding polarization suggest that it is nonetheless possible for citizens to overdo democracy. In overdoing democracy, we erode the capacities we need to perform well as democratic citizens.

The program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the departments of philosophy and religion. It is part of the Clarke Forum’s semester theme, Civic Engagement and the Liberal Arts.
Re-Engaging Research through Citizen and Community Science

Jennifer Shirk

Citizen science gives us strategies to think not only about what we can learn from science, but how we can all learn more together. This talk will explore cases where scientists, resource managers, and community members take the opportunity to engage – to listen and build connections – in order to develop shared understandings through research-based partnerships.

The program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the departments of religion and international business & management and the Alliance for Aquatic Resource Monitoring (ALLARM). It is part of the Clarke Forum’s semester theme, Civic Engagement and the Liberal Arts.
Open Forum with Auditor General Eugene DePasquale

Eugene DePasquale

Dickinson College (Carlisle, PA) is hosting an open forum with Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, the democratic candidate for Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District. This event is an open forum where questions by the general public can be posed via YouTube chat during the livestream. (Congressman Scott Perry was also invited to participate in an open forum but declined the offer).

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues.
The State of Environmental Justice in Pennsylvania

Saleem Chapman, Veronica Coptis, Adam Cutler, and Horace Strand

Environmental justice aspires for all people- regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, or socioeconomic background – to have equal access to a healthy environment, including avenues to participate meaningfully in decisions regarding their environment. Environmental injustice examines which communities and places are disproportionately exposed to environmental health risks from industrial, municipal, commercial operations, or government policies. Research in the field of environmental justice has shown that people living in poverty, as well as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and their communities, are disproportionately impacted by environmental degradation and pollution. This panel will focus on environmental justice work occurring in Pennsylvania, bringing together community representatives and members of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Environmental Justice Advisory Board to discuss progress and challenges to achieve environmental justice in the Keystone state. Panelists will reflect on the diversity of activism and legal actions taken to achieve environmental justice. Presenters will highlight contemporary and future efforts to ensure that all Pennsylvanians enjoy a healthy and safe environment.

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues, co-sponsored by the department of environmental studies and the Popel Shaw Center for Race & Ethnicity and organized in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
Hedgehogs and Foxes: Toward Climate Pragmatism

Armond Cohen

As a recipient of the The Sam Rose ’58 and Julie Walters Prize at Dickinson College for Global Environmental Activism, Armond Cohen will present a variety of lectures and discussions with Dickinson students and community members during a virtual residency this fall. His public lecture, “Hedgehogs and Foxes: Toward Climate Pragmatism,” will be presented via livestream on Monday, Oct. 12, at 7 p.m. Cohen will address how climate pragmatism embraces multiple strategies and technologies, and a variety of market and policy approaches, to find what works.

The Sam Rose ’58 and Julie Walters Prize at Dickinson College for Global Environmental Activism will be presented this year to Cohen, founder and executive director of the Clean Air Task Force (CATF).
Devising Civic Practice: Listening is the New Revolution

Michael Rohd

Rohd, lead artist for Civic Imagination at Center for Performance and Civic Practice and Founding Artistic Director at Sojourn Theatre, will speak about the work of arts and culture in this moment of Global Pandemic, Social Justice Uprising and Black Lives Matter. In his work with arts councils, artists, non-profits and local governments around the country, he is an advocate and bridge-builder for the contributions artists can make in moments of change, re-imagining and transformation.

The program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the department of theatre & dance. It is part of the Clarke Forum’s semester theme, Civic Engagement and the Liberal Arts.
Migrating to Prison: America’s Obsession with Locking Up Immigrants

César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández

Every year, the United States imprisons almost half a million people because of immigration law violations. In Migrating to Prison: America’s Obsession with Locking Up Immigrants, García Hernández explains that we haven’t always done things this way and argues that we shouldn’t.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the departments of Latin America, Latino and Caribbean Studies; Spanish & Portuguese; sociology; and the Program in Policy Studies.
Race and Policing

Raff Donelson, Matthew Guariglia, and Stephanie Jirard

The murder of George Floyd catalyzed great social upheaval in the U.S. and prompted protests across the world. In addition to Floyd, numerous high profile cases of unarmed Black Americans killed by police, including Breonna Taylor and Elijah McClain, have garnered national and international attention already this year. The names of victims of police violence and brutality have become a rallying cry to “defund the police.” However, detractors of the protests insist that law enforcement officers serve as the “thin blue line,” preventing society from unhinging and degrading into criminality and chaos. This panel will explore the relationships between race and policing in the United States, including discussion of the history of the police and their response (at local, state, and federal levels) to protests since Memorial Day weekend.

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the Program in Policy Studies, the Women’s & Gender Resource Center, and the department of Latin American, Latinx and Caribbean Studies.
Lethal Flows: The U.S. Role in Arms Transfers and Trafficking to Latin America and the Caribbean

Adam Isacson

Latin America has eight percent of the world’s population, but accounts for 33 percent of its homicides. Yet the U.S. government maintains robust military aid and arms sales programs, while U.S. territory is a hub for small arms traffickers. Adam Isacson of the Washington Office on Latin America walks through some of the main ways that U.S.-made weapons flow into the wrong hands throughout the Western Hemisphere, and what we can do about it.

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the departments of Spanish & Portuguese and Sociology and the Security Studies Program. This event was initiated by one of the Clarke Forum’s student project managers.

For more information on this topic, student program manager, Amanda Sowah '22, researched and wrote this overview: http://clarke.dickinson.edu/wp-content/uploads/Topical-Background-Isacson-Fall.pdf
Unraveled Myths: The Green Revolution and the Gene Revolution

Glenn Stone

An expert in diverse types of agricultural systems around the world, Stone finds that two of the most cherished narratives of technological success in development aimed at improving agriculture in these communities fall apart under scrutiny.

The program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the departments of anthropology, archaeology, history, and environmental studies and the Food Studies Program.
Reimagining Citizenship: Thoughts on Relational Violence & The Construct of Whiteness

Courtney Ariel

Ariel will explore how dismantling constructs of superiority can present a broader perspective on relational healing and citizenship within and around us.

Members of the public are invited to watch the discussion and submit questions in the comments section of the YouTube live stream. It is free and open to the public.
How Mentors Can Shape Your Future: A Conversation with a Global Leader

Margee Ensign, David McCormock, and John Jones III

Dickinson College President Margee Ensign and U.S. District Judge John E. Jones will converse with Bridgewater Associates CEO David McCormick (Bridgewater Associates manages approximately $160 billion in global investments). They will discuss the importance of mentorship and the role mentors can play in developing leadership skills.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and the Office of the President. It is part of the Clarke Forum’s Leadership in an Age of Uncertainty Series.
The Science of COVID-19: Aspects of Infection, Immunity, Treatment and Testing

John Henson

The SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 has been called the “perfect pathogen” due to it being both highly infectious and virulent. This presentation will provide an overview of our current understanding of how the virus damages the lungs, the good – and bad – of the resulting immune response, the potential for treatments/vaccines, and the mechanisms underlying the various testing strategies.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues.
Global Pandemic: What it Reveals About Prospects for a Sustainable World

Heather Bedi, Michael Beevers, and Neil Leary

The effects and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic are making visible stark differences in who and what are vulnerable and resilient to its widespread disruptions and dislocations. In this panel discussion, we will explore what the pandemic is revealing about existing inequities and vulnerabilities and implications for pursuing sustainable development goals.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and the Center for Sustainability Education and is part of Dickinson’s Earth Day Teach-in.
Carlisle Artists and Arts Organizations Respond to COVID-19

Becky Richeson, Erika Juran, Sarah Skaggs, and Zach King

The Coronavirus Pandemic and resulting closure of non-essential businesses, the practice of social distancing and shelter-in-place orders have had serious impacts the lives of artists and arts organizations all across the country. In this discussion we will hear from a local musician and several arts organizations and find out how they are adjusting to this new reality. Panelists include Erika Juran, Carlisle Regional Performing Arts Center; Zach King, Singer/Songwriter; Becky Richeson, Carlisle Arts Learning Center; and Sarah Skaggs, Dickinson College.

The virtual panel will take place via Zoom and will be available for live streaming on the Clarke Forum’s YouTube page or by visiting Clarke.dickinson.edu for the live stream link. Members of the public are invited to watch the discussion and submit questions for panelists in the comments section of the YouTube live stream.
Adapting to Challenging Times: Local Small Businesses Navigate the Coronavirus Response

Kirk Ream, Stephanie Gilbert, and Tanis Monroy

The Coronavirus Pandemic and resulting closure of non-essential businesses and shelter-in-place orders have had serious impacts on small businesses across the nation. In this discussion, small business owners in Carlisle will share the new realities local businesses are adjusting to and how businesses in the Carlisle area are responding to the challenges presented by the pandemic.

Members of the public are invited to watch the discussion and submit questions for panelists in the comments section of the YouTube live stream.

The event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues.
Food in a Time of Crisis

Andrea Karns, Jenn Halpin, and Robert Weed

Access to quality food was already an issue for many families in Central Pennsylvania prior to the arrival of the coronavirus. Today, the question of access is more urgent for many more people. Supply chains are also threatened, as our efforts to respond to the health crisis creates all kinds of unforeseen challenges. A panel of experts will discuss food, food supply chains and food access during a time of crisis.

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues.
Why Are We Optimistically Biased About Our Risks_ Applications to the Coronavirus Pandemic

Marie Helweg-Larsen

The optimistic bias (thinking you are less at risk than other people) is well documented. This talk will explain why it is so pervasive and how it can help us understand complacency in following coronavirus precautionary behaviors.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues.
Providing Safe Shelter when Home is Not a Haven from Crisis

Jason Brode, Sonya Browne, Colleen Kinney, and Scott Shewell

Around the world people are being told to stay home to help flatten the curve against the spread of Covid-19. But what happens if your home is not safe to shelter-in-place? According to the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 123 victims lost their lives to domestic violence last year in Pennsylvania. How is COVID-19 and government recommendations to stay at home, impacting members of our community who are at risk? Representatives from Domestic Violence Services for Cumberland and Perry County, Safe Harbour, YWCA and the AMEND Program will talk about what their organizations and programs are doing to support survivors in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and what resources are available for individuals and families who are not safe (or at risk) at home.

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues at Dickinson College.
Carlisle Mayor Tim Scott & His Team Explain How They're Responding to Covid-19

Tim Scott, Sean Shultz, Susan Armstrong, and Jeffrey Snyder

Participants:

Tim Scott, Mayor
Sean Shultz, Deputy Mayor
Susan Armstrong, Borough Manager
Jeffrey Snyder, Carlisle Fire Chief

Please join us for our first live-streamed event with our local officials concerning Carlisle’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.
From Community Engagement to the Good Society

Randy Stoecker

How do we go from “keeping things the same” through charity forms of service to “making things better” through social change forms of community engagement? This talk will argue for why we should make the switch and how we can do it.

The program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by The Center for Civic Learning & Action grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the Department of Middle East studies. It is part of the Clarke Forum’s semester theme, Civic Engagement and the Liberal Arts.
While Reason Slept: Recapturing the Founders’ Vision of a Rational Republic

Tom Brier

How did we get to our current state of political acrimony? Brier, the author of While Reason Slept, will walk us through the beginning of our national politics to the present day before offering a solution for recapturing our Founding Fathers’ path to a rational Republic.

This program is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues.