2020-21 Panels and Participants
Fall 2020
October 7, 2020
What relation does poetry have to identity, and how does poetry help us to understand our role in the world? How do poets grapple with their own immigrant, Asian American, queer, gender or other identities? In what ways is poetry relevant to issues and concerns addressed by scientists and social scientists? Putting identity front and center in the creative practice means debunking the notion that the poet works within a vacuum, outside of specific time and place. Come explore how the poet discovers fresh connections between histories, lands and social worlds.
Participants
- Elizabeth Bradfield, Associate Professor of the Practice of English and Co-director of the Creative Writing Program, Department of English.
- Chen Chen, Jacob Ziskind Visiting Poet-in-Residence, Department of English.
Moderator
- Yuri Doolan, Chair, Asian American and Pacific Islander Studies; Assistant Professor, Department of History and Department of Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies.
October 20, 2020
Language is something that we use every day, and yet we are often not consciously aware of the structural complexity of our most basic words, phrases and utterances. What is the nature of these structures, and how is our identity affected and shaped by the particular languages we speak? How are our linguistic and cultural identities recognized and ignored by modern technology? This conversation engages theoretical and computational linguists to help us explore the complex relationships between language and identity, along with recent ethical and social justice issues that arise from language-reliant technologies including machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Participants
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Lotus Goldberg, Professor of Linguistics, Michtom School of Computer Science.
- Sophia Malamud, Associate Professor of Linguistics, Michtom School of Computer Science.
- James Pustejovsky, TJX Feldberg Professor of Computer Science; Chair of the Programs in Linguistics and Computational Linguistics, Michtom School of Computer Science.
Moderator
- Constantine Lignos, Assistant Professor of Linguistics, Michtom School of Computer Science.
Spring 2021
March 9, 2021
Relations between African Americans and Jews in the United States are at a complicated and critical juncture, which brings some members of these groups closer together, while causing significant tensions in other quarters. The stories of many Jews of Color throughout the world also signal that Jewish identity and identity with communities of color are not mutually exclusive. This conversation will compare shared themes of diaspora and assimilation, as well as ideological perspectives on social and political empowerment, before asking: What are the best strategies for advancing freedom and equality in the United States?
Participants
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Amber Spry, Assistant Professor of African and African American Studies and Politics, Departments of African and African American Studies and Politics
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Alexander Kaye, Karl, Harry, and Helen Stoll Assistant Professor of Israel Studies, Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies
Moderator
- David Sherman, Associate Professor of English, Department of English
March 25, 2021
How does art shape or challenge our understanding of identity? How do artists complicate our investments in identity as a useful frame for seeing the world, and how do they embrace and/or trouble the markers that we often rely on to construct a coherent sense of self? We will consider the ways in which photographic portraiture and live theater have been used to represent or express identity, on the one hand, and to re-evaluate our belief in the concept, on the other.
Participants
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Sheida Soleimani, Assistant Professor, Department of Fine Arts
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Isaiah Wooden, Assistant Professor, Department of Theater Arts
Moderator
- lauren woods, Assistant Professor, Department of Fine Arts