Social Movements Archives - Page 3 of 18

Democracy

On Media Mess and Its Alternatives

Islands of Totalitarianism and Democracy continued

February 1, 2019 • by Jeffrey C. Goldfarb

When people meet in their differences, as equals, develop a capacity to meet and talk in the presence of each other, and develop a capacity to act together in concert, they constitute political power, an island of democracy. For Hannah Arendt, in fact, this is political power in contrast to ...

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Sex, Race and Religion Flood the Streets of Washington, DC

Hundreds of protestors coincide over the Martin Luther King Jr. weekend

January 24, 2019 • by Jo Freeman

Multiple marches filled the streets of Washington, D.C. over the cold, winter weekend celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Sex, race and religion were major themes. The first was the Indigenous People’s March, which met at the Dept. of Interior at 8:00 a.m. on Friday, January 18. After a greeting with prayers ...

Sex, Race and Religion Flood the Streets of Washington, DC

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Crusader Without Violence 60 Years Later

The first biography of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is reissued

January 21, 2019 • by Jo Freeman

Lawrence D. Reddick was a history professor at Alabama State College — the state school for blacks — when the Montgomery Bus Boycott brought Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to national prominence in 1955-56. They had known each other casually in Atlanta; both had moved to Montgomery to accept jobs only recently. On ...

Crusader Without Violence 60 Years Later

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Remembering the Civil Rights Movement

An interview with poet Cheryl Clarke about the 1963 March on Washington

December 29, 2018 • by Claire Potter

In August 2013, the fiftieth anniversary of the March on Washington, I had the opportunity to interview African-American feminist and lesbian Cheryl Clarke about her participation in the March on Washington. A poet, essayist and literary critic, Cheryl has been an activist, a teacher and an artist for her entire ...

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Why Nationalists Insist on the Gender Binary

The attack on transgender people is part of a bigger plan to reverse gender justice

November 6, 2018 • by Maria Bucur

Since 2012 religious groups of many stripes have started to use the term “gender ideology” as a means to polarize the conversation about gender justice, especially in relation to non-binary individuals. What Catholics like the German sociologist Gabriele Kuby want to see is a return to what is “normal” and ...

Why Nationalists Insist on the Gender Binary

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The Radical Dissent of Helen Keller

Keller is well known for being blind, but deserves to be heralded for her progressive social vision

September 22, 2018 • by Peter Dreier

The Texas Board of Education recently voted to remove Helen Keller from the state’s required social studies curriculum. This is a good excuse to remind people about Keller, who is one of the most iconic public figures of the past century but whose life and legacy is misunderstood. Most people think ...

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Heroes but Not Saints

How should we judge reformers and radicals who were also racists?

September 13, 2018 • by Peter Dreier

In 2020, America will be commemorating the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. Feminists and others are starting to plan the celebrations, which will include conferences, books, postage stamps, and new monuments honoring the women who fought and won that major battle. In anticipation, New York ...

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“Enjoy without Restraint!”

Fifty Years Ago in Paris

May 15, 2018 • by Sergio Benvenuto

This is an introduction to an in-depth narrative recollection on one of the most significant episodes of the 20th Century, May 1968 in Paris, from one of its participants, famed psychoanalyst Sergio Benvenuto. The full essay can be found here. This is the first time this essay has been published ...

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The Demonization of Ethel Rosenberg

An excerpt from Trans-generational Trauma and the Other

April 24, 2018 • by Adrienne Harris

The Demonization of Ethel Rosenberg, by Adrienne Harris, appears in Trans-generational Trauma and the Other, a volume of essays published in 2017 psychoanalytically meditating on the question of the transgenerational transmission of trauma, metastasizing and alienated historical ghosts, and the inter-subjectivity of Big History. Public Seminar spoke with Dr Harris – who is, among many ...

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How to Learn from Conservatives

Stop talking and listen

April 18, 2018 • by Claire Potter

In February, I was able to attend the 2018 Conservative Political Action Conference, held annually in a conference center outside Washington, D.C. I live blogged two days of general sessions, interviewed people, heard numerous speakers, and was present at a Trump rally. I had the opportunity to talk to a ...

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Seeing Is Believing

The Marchers of #MarchForOurLives

April 8, 2018 • by Yvonne M. Vissing

The national and international march for gun safety catalyzed by the Parkland students would be a feat for anyone of any age. But these are teenagers who have triggered a social movement. Although only time will tell what becomes of it, that the young are in charge gives me hope that this movement will stand ...