[act-ma] New Cambridge Forum Programs for Spring 2015

[director at cambridgeforum.org]

Cambridge Forum has added programs to its schedule for Spring 2015. We will
be talking about non-violent resistance in Palestine, citizen journalism in
Ferguson (MO), and the growing polarization of the American people. The
complete schedule is attached.  A summary of the new forums is appended
below.

**Thursday, March 19 @ 6:30p Citizen Journalism: A People’s History of
Ferguson

PEN-New England recognizes Ferguson activistis and bloggers Johnetta Elzie
and DeRay McKesson with its 2015 Howard Zinn Freedom to Write award for
their work as activists, organizers, and citizen journalists in the
Ferguson protest movement.  Their reporting and This Is the Movement
newsletter engaged and unified disparate voicesa in the wake of the August
9, 2014, shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson Missouri. Jabari Asim,
editor-in-chief of The Crisis, leads this discussion of the role of citizen
journalism and activism in our changing media landscape.  What role did
these citizen journalists expect to play in Ferguson?  How did their
expectations change as their actual role evolved?  What lessons does their
experience carry for other citizen journalists?

This program is organized and co-sponsored by PEN-New England.

April 1 IYAD BURNAT: Non-Violent Resistance in Palestine

Iyad  Burnat, born in 1973 in Bil`in, Palestine, heads the Bil`in Popular
Committee.  Since 2005, citizens of Bil`in, joined by Israeli and
international peace  activists, have held weekly non-violent
demonstrations against the Israeli separation wall and the encroachment of
illegal settlements. The protesters  have maintained a commitment to
non-violent resistance in the face of armed  military opposition. The 
demonstrations are the subject of the 2012 Oscar-nominated documentary film
5  Broken Cameras, which was made by Iyad¹s brother, Emad Burnat. 
Burnat discusses strategies for non-violent popular resistance with social
justice activist Trina Jackson.  How has he brought potential adversaries
to share his goal of  peace and prosperity for all people?
   
April 22 The Health of Democracy: Polarization and Ideologies

Can a polarized public maintain a healthy democracy?  It’s not just the
Congress that is ideologically divided.  The Pew Research Center recently
documented how the American people have become polarized over the past 50
years.  Michael Dimock, President of the Pew Research Center, discusses
this ground-breaking study and its implications for the health of our
democracy.  What can citizens do to create and support effective community
dialogues aimed at strengthening social bonds?

This program is funded in part by a grant from MassHumanities.
-- 
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