Legacy Fund sponsoring trip to poverty conference

Michael Harrington

Members of the Brandeis community are invited to join a “field trip” to Central Massachusetts later this month to participate in a two-day conference about poverty in the United States.

The Louis D. Brandeis Legacy Fund for Social Justice will pay for interested Brandeis students, faculty and staff to attend “The Other America Then and Now,” a conference marking the 50th anniversary of the ground-breaking analysis of U.S. poverty authored by Michael Harrington.

Speakers at the conference, which is being held March 22-23 at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, include Harrington biographer Maurice Isserman; Michael Kazin, a Georgetown professor and co-editor of “Dissent;” and William Julius Wilson, a Harvard professor and author of “When Work Disappears: The World of the New Urban Poor.”

“This is a wonderful opportunity for members of the Brandeis community to attend this important conference and learn more about the inequities in our society from prominent thought leaders and activists,” Brandeis sociology professor David Cunningham said. “We thank the Louis D. Brandeis Legacy Fund for Social Justice for making this possible.”

The first day will explore the impact of Harrington's seminal book, "The Other America: Poverty in the United States," during the 1960s and '70s and its role in the development of Great Society programs. The second day’s events will focus on the “Other America” of today, including policies to address poverty, mass incarceration, farm workers and youth and education.

The Legacy Fund will pay conference registration fees and provide transportation. The conference runs from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. March 22 and 8:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. March 23.

The Legacy Fund supports Brandeis students through scholarships and internships, enhances campus life, and promotes the issues of social justice that the former U.S. Supreme Court justice championed throughout his life. Since its establishment in 2006, the Legacy Fund has sponsored a series of initiatives designed to help students, enrich the University community, and address social justice concerns on and off campus. The Legacy Fund was created by Jules Bernstein ’57, and is funded in part by Bernstein and his wife, Linda Lipsett.

Contact Legacy Fund Director David E. Nathan (dnathan1@brandeis.edu or 781-736-4103) if you are interested in attending all or part of the conference. Depending on demand, half-day buses may be available.

Categories: Humanities and Social Sciences, Student Life

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