Piper Kerman, author of Orange is the New Black, and Martha Nussbaum, one of the world’s leading political philosophers, will speak at Eckerd College as part of this spring’s Presidential Events Series. All events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted.
Kerman, whose best-selling memoir was turned into the award-winning Neftlix series of the same name, will discuss her work as a prison reform activist during her talk on Thursday, March 5 at 7 p.m. at Fox Hall. Kerman serves on the board of the Women’s Prison Association and has testified before the U.S. Senate on solitary confinement of women prisoners.
Nussbaum, the Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics at The University of Chicago Law School, has been called “one of the most remarkable and luminous minds of our time.” She will discuss “Anger and Revolutionary Justice” on Monday, April 20 at 7:30 p.m. at Fox Hall. Nussbaum argues in support of the revolutionary movements of Mohandas Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela that were based on a commitment to justice through peace not anger.
The Presidential Events Series is designed to enhance the intellectual, religious and cultural life of the College community by bringing well-known scholars, artists, scientists and distinguished individuals to the campus. This year’s series, titled “Between Worlds: Immigration, Identity and Globalization,” is intended to focus attention on the evolving immigrant experience in the U.S.
Events planned around that theme include “Haitian Immigration to the U.S.” on Monday, Feb. 16 at 6 p.m. in the Triton Room, featuring a talk by Lesley Curtis, Ph.D. the Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow in Comparative Literature at Wellesley College; “The Crossroads: Immigration and Human Trafficking,” on Monday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. at Fox Hall, featuring a panel discussion exploring the ways in which human trafficking is and is not an immigration issue; and Who Is Dayani Cristal?, on Thursday, April 9 at 7 p.m. at Miller Auditorium, a documentary film highlighting the dangers immigrants from Latin America face on their journey to the United States.
Other events in this spring’s series include:
– Making Peace with the Earth, on Monday, March 9 at 7 p.m. in Fox Hall, featuring a talk by Vandana Shiva, Ph.D. a physicist and prolific author best known for her environmental and antiglobalization activism.
– Food Safety and Security in Our Community Friday and Saturday, April 24 and 25, 9:30 a.m. and 9 a.m., respectively, at Wireman Chapel. A two-day conference linking scientifically credible information to the formulation and implementation of sound, effective domestic and international policies about food security.
– Taking It Personally: Why Gender Violence Is an Issue for Men Wednesday, April 29 7 p.m., Fox Hall. Jackson Katz, Ph.D. educator, filmmaker, author and first man to minor in women’s studies at University of Massachusetts–Amherst, advocates for the bystander approach to gender violence and bullying prevention.
For more information about the Presidential Events Series, go to eckerd.edu/pes.