January 29, 2007

Clark University Events Promote Dialogue about the State of Our Democracy

Local community is invited to participate in Difficult Dialogues

Worcester, Mass. - Clark University's Difficult Dialogues Program offers events aimed at creating a culture of dialogue on campus to help address the climate of separation and silence around differences that exists in our society. The first symposium features several events designed to promote dialogue about the "State of Our Democracy" that are free and open to the public.

Panel discussion
Beyond Partisan.org
Thursday, February 8
7:30 p.m.
Razzo Hall, Traina Center for the Arts
Frustrated with the polarized state of public discourse, Wesleyan University seniors Rob Weinstock, David Tutor, Adam Gomolin, Bill Ferrell, and Nate Byer (all Class of '06) drew on their experience as students and as politically minded young adults to create an accessible web platform from which all Americans are able to voice their opinions. Beyondpartisan.org was the result. Its focus is discovering common ground and areas of consensus through a dynamic exchange of ideas and opinions. Beyond Partisan.org offers the seeds of discussion in balanced, informative articles, then opens the forum to all users. The creators of BeyondPartisan.org will discuss the initial and ongoing development of the site, as well as their motivation to create it.

World Premiere Concert
Penderecki Quartet
Music of Protest and Contemplation
Friday, February 9
7 p.m.
Razzo Hall, Traina Center for the Arts
The Penderecki String Quartet, formed in Poland in 1986, is noted equally for their passionate support of contemporary music and artistry on standard repertoire. This program will consist of four recent compositions. "Black Angels" for amplified string quartet (1970) is the most famous quartet to have been inspired by the Vietnam War and was conceived as a parable about our troubled contemporary world. In "Different Trains" (1988), Steve Reich juxtaposes two experiences of train travel during World War Two. By combining live string quartet with the sounds of trains and voices of Holocaust survivors, Reich creates music of great intensity and feeling.

The program will also feature two new works. "Annunciation'" (2005) by Omar Daniel uses electronics and digital processing to create two ensembles from one. The world premiere of Matt Malsky's new work, "Lacan" for string quartet and electronics, was commissioned by the Penderecki. It is a dream-like deliberation on conflicting emotional states in response to the political, commemorative and quotidian sounds of the fifth anniversary of the 9-11 attacks.

A reception and a public conversation with the composers and performers will follow the concert.

Film and Celebrity Commentary
Why We Fight
Tuesday, February 13
7 p.m.
Razzo Hall, Traina Center for the Arts
Documentary filmmaker Eugene Jarecki shows his acclaimed film on the economic and
political ground for "why we fight," based on Dwight D Eisenhower's cautions regarding the
"military-industrial complex." Why We Fight won the 2005 Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. Following the screening, Jarecki will lead a dialogue on issues of democracy raised in the film. Eugene Jarecki is a dramatic and documentary filmmaker and visiting senior fellow at Brown University's Watson Institute. Co-sponsored by the Clark University Film Society (CUFS) and the Screen Studies Program.

Lecture
How to Change the World: Self and Society in American Transcendentalism
Tuesday, February 20
7:30 p.m.
Grace Conference Room, Higgins University Center, 950 Main St., Worcester
Philip F. Gura, William S. Newman Distinguished Professor of American Literature and Culture, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, speaks about the role of American transcendentalists. They were epitomized by Emerson and Thoreau, who, as America's first public intellectuals, were interested not only in literature but in a wide spectrum of reform. Although associated with an ethic of radical individualism, many transcendentalists argued instead for commitment to community rather than to self. Contentious debates within the movement about how to realize the promise of American democracy explain much about transcendentalism's development and raise again the questions of how best to effect radical social reform. Co-sponsored with the English Department.

Film and panel discussion
Hacking Democracy
Thursday, March 1
7 p.m.
Razzo Hall, Traina Center for the Arts
Electronic voting machines count about 87 percent of the votes cast in America today. But are they reliable? Are they safe from tampering? From a current congressional hearing to persistent media reports that suggest misuse of data and even outright fraud, concerns over the integrity of electronic voting are growing. Hacking Democracy is a timely, cautionary documentary from HBO that exposes the gaping holes in the security of America's electronic voting system. After the screening, election integrity activist Nancy Tobi (Chair of Democracy for New Hampshire), Zo Tobi '08, and members of the Clark faculty will engage the audience in a discussion about the issues raised in the documentary and citizen responses to those issues.

Three additional Difficult Dialogues symposia follow in Spring and Fall 2007 with a focus on "Race and Ethnicity," "Religion and Tolerance," and "Power." Each symposium consists of five or six events providing substantive information on difficult topics, as well as creating opportunities to experience dialogue around those issues. Through these Difficult Dialogues programs, the Clark and Worcester community have the opportunity to appreciate, learn and practice the skills of dialogue–the practice of conscious exchange in which different views and beliefs can be shared toward the goal of greater mutual understanding.

All of the events listed above are co-sponsored by the Higgins School of Humanities and the International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE) Department at Clark. They are funded by a major grant from the Ford Foundation and are free and open to the public. For more information, call 508-793-7479 or visit .