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Past Events
Thursday, 30 Jan 2020
White Immunity: Working Through the Pedagogical Pitfalls of Privilege – Dr. Nolan Cabrera
7:00 PM – Great Hall, Memorial Union - Dr. Nolan Cabrera is a nationally-recognized expert in the areas of racism/anti-racism on college campuses, whiteness, and ethnic studies. This presentation is Dr. Cabrera’s development over “White Privilege.†In it, he explores the historical development of whiteness, and shows how white advantage developed through systemic racism to which white people were socially inoculated. This lecture links the history of racial Oppression to contemporary times, and helps work through some of the pitfalls of privilege such as, “How can white kids from Appalachia be ‘privileged’?†Dr. Cabrera is currently an Associate Professor in the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Arizona, and was the only academic featured in the MTV documentary White People. 2019-2020 Helen LeBaron Hilton Chair Series
Monday, 27 Jan 2020
Through the Banks of the Red Cedar - Maya and Gene Washington
7:00 PM – Great Hall, Memorial Union - Through the Banks of the Red Cedar, a play on the Michigan State University fight song, follows the 50 year legacy of the filmmaker’s father, legendary Vikings wide-receiver Gene Washington (College Football Hall of Fame, Big Ten Ford-Kinnick Leadership Award, Michigan State Athletics Hall of Fame, 50 Greatest Vikings Honoree) from the segregated South to MSU alongside highly decorated teammates Bubba Smith (Defensive Lineman), George Webster (Rover Back) and Clinton Jones (Running Back) as they become members of the first fully integrated football team in America, later making history as first round picks in the 1967 Draft.
The film unfolds through the eyes of the filmmaker, Maya Washington, Gene's youngest daughter, as she uncovers her father's journey and the impact of this legacy on the present generation. Maya traces her father's footsteps from the segregated south to the north, over the course of a modern football season. As she uncovers both the triumphs and defeats of her father's team, she develops a newly formed appreciation for the game and a deeper connection to her father, just in time to witness MSU Spartan Football team ascend to national prominence 50 years later.
Q&A after with filmmaker Maya Washington and father Gene Washington
National Security and the Presidential Race - Dave Harden
5:30 PM – Sun Room, Memorial Union - Dave Harden is a foreign policy expert currently serving as the Managing Director for the Georgetown Strategy Group which works within the realm of international development. He recently served as the Assistant Administrator for the US Agency for International Development’s Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance in the Obama Administration, and spearheaded all USAID efforts to respond to crises and stabilization efforts – including responses in Haiti, Iraq, and Libya, to name a few. Harden is a recent endorser of Joe Biden, and presents this lecture at Iowa State as a campaign surrogate for the presidential hopeful. Part of the Campaign Series in 2020.
Friday, 24 Jan 2020
C-SPAN Bus on Campus
12:30 PM – West Loop, MU (across from Lake LaVerne) - The C-SPAN Bus is an interactive, multimedia mobile classroom that travels the country to engage with community members and elected officials, showcasing C-SPAN's public affairs programming and resources. This state-of-the-art customized motor coach gives students an inside look at C-SPAN's comprehensive educational and political resources.
Thursday, 23 Jan 2020
How to Be an Antiracist - Ibram X. Kendi
7:00 PM – Great Hall, Memorial Union - Martin Luther King Jr Legacy Convocation
Join us for our celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the Legacy Convocation. This year the 2020 Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Series Keynote will feature Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, the author of the best-selling books: How to Be an Antiracist and Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America. Dr. Kendi's concept of antiracism reenergizes and reshapes the conversation about racial justice in America--but even more fundamentally, points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. Instead of working with the policies and system we have in place, Kendi asks us to think about what an antiracist society might look like, and how we can play an active role in building it. Dr. Kendi is the Founding Director of The Antiracist Research & Policy Center at American University in Washington, D.C. He is one of America's foremost historians and leading antiracist voices.Â
The Advancing One Community Awards will be awarded prior to the keynote address.
Wednesday, 22 Jan 2020
Now You See Me, Now You Don't: Defense Coloration Triggers in Feather Lice - Dr. Dale Clayton
7:00 PM – Troxel Hall - Dr. Dale Clayton, a professor of biology from the University of Utah, will be speaking about the coloration defense triggers of feather lice. This talk will include discussion of host and parasite coevolution and adaptation. Dr. Clayton has a master's degree in entomology from the University of Minnesota and a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Chicago. Most of his research involves the coevolutionary interactions between birds and feather lice from around the world. Since 2008, he has lead a team conducting research on the impact of an invasive species of parasitic fly on Darwin's Finches and other birds in the Galapagos Islands. Charles E. Bessey Lecture
Rights for ALL at the Caucuses - ACLU
7:00 PM – Sun Room, Memorial Union - Ari Fleisig is a National Organizing Specialist for the state of Iowa with the ACLU. She is currently working on the Rights for All campaign, to shape the national conversation of the 2020 presidential race around voting rights, ending mass incarceration, immigrants’ rights, and reproductive rights. Prior to joining the ACLU, Ari served as a Regional Field Director for Nevadans for a Clean Energy Future, as Campaign manager on a Virginia state legislative race, and as a communications and organizing consultant for Stand Up to ALEC. Ari first became inspired to organize as a college student, where she experienced and contributed to building power through collective action.
Tuesday, 21 Jan 2020
The Nobel Laureates' Campaign to Support GMOs - Dr. Rich Roberts
7:00 PM – Great Hall, Memorial Union - Dr. Richard Roberts is an English biochemist and molecular biologist. He, along with Dr. Phillip Allen Sharp, won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1993 for the discovery of gene splicing. Today he is one of 129 Nobel Laureates contributing to a campaign to convince governments and the public to support the use of GMOs in order to increase food production, reduce dependency on insecticides, and end hunger in developing countries.
Wednesday, 15 Jan 2020
Carillon Concert: Let Freedom Ring
11:50 AM – Central Campus - A carillon concert in honor of Dr. King. Tin-Shi Tam, carillonneur. Part of the Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Series.
Tuesday, 10 Dec 2019
Agricultural Phosphorus and Food-Energy-Water Security - Dr. Andrew Sharpley
4:10 PM – 2050 Agronomy Hall - Dr. Andrew Sharpley is an international authority on assessing, managing, and remediating the impacts of agricultural management on soil and water resources. His research investigates the cycling of phosphorus in soil-plant-water systems in relation to soil productivity and water quality and includes the management of animal manures, fertilizers, and crop residues. Dr. Sharpley is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Arkansas, and was the 2017 President of the Soil Science Society of America.