Featured Speakers: Bruce R. Hare - Lawrence Davidson - Janet Amighi - Joanne Sheehan

 

Bruce R. Hare
Toward Cultural Pluralism and Economic Justice

With the election of President Obama and "the elevation of an African American/"black" man to the highest office in the land," "America took a giant step toward becoming a post racial "deracialized" society." Many factors contributed to this historic occasion. In his presentation Bruce R. Hare, Ph.D.  will discuss two historic parallel movements, the quest for cultural pluralism as through the anti slavery, civil rights, women's rights and other inclusion movements  and the quest for economic justice through the labor and  poor peoples' movement. Dr. Hare will argue that neither goal can be fully achieved without the other, discuss where the movements (cultural pluralism and economic justice) currently are and the new challenges these important movements currently face.

Bruce R. Hare is an  Emeritus Professor and former department chair of the Department of African American Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences, and professor of sociology in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracue University, Syracuse, New York. He has written numerous articles and publications in refereed journals such as Sociological Forum, American Journal of Psychiatry, Journal of Negro Education, and Journal of Black Psychology. Professor Hare's renowned "Hare General amd Area-Specific (School, Peer and Home) Self Esteem Scale," published in Measures for Clinical Practice (Vol. 1) is sought after by educators and researchers of children throughout the country. Professor Hare is an author in and edited 2001 Race: Odyssey, Syracuse University Press, 2002. He was the founding chair of the Black Studies Department at the University of Massachusetts at Boston in 1976. He is currently an adjunct professor of  Social Sciences at Onondaga Community College in Syracuse, New York.

Lawrence Davidson and Janet Amighi
Assessment of Present US Foreign Policy in the Middle East

Lawrence Davidson and Janet Amighi will focus on  Israel-Palestine and Iran along with various views they encountered in meetings with leaders and every day people in Palestine, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iran. Consideration will be given to the Obama administration's new efforts and their effectiveness.

Lawrence Davidson is Professor of Middle East history at West Chester University. he is the co-author of A Concise History of the Middle East(Westview Press), author of America's Palestine (U. Press of Florida), Islamic Fundamentalism (Greenwood Press), and US Foreign Policy Inc.: Privatizing American National Interests (U. of Kentucky Press).

Janet Kestenberg Amighi teaches anthropology at Montgomery County Community College. She lived in Iran for seven years and is the author of The Zoroastrians of Iran.

Both Davidson and Amighi travel widely in the Middle East and speak about their experiences in the hope of opening American eyes to realities on the ground in the Middle East.

Joanne Sheehan
Nonviolent Social Change

Joanne Sheehan will use Gandhi's 3 elements of social change - political action (nonviolent campaigns), constructive program (building a just, peaceful, sustainable society), and personal nonviolence (nonviolent lifestyle choices) - to show how people around the world are using nonviolence to create social change.

Joanne Sheehan has been an activist, organizer and nonviolence trainer educator for nearly 40 years.  She is on the staff of War Resisters League's New England Office in Norwich, CT. and has been involved in many nonviolent campaigns – against war and war profiteers, war toys, and nuclear power to name a few. Joanne supports YouthPeace and counter-recruitment and is the founder of the  Community Coalition for Economic Conversion. As War Resisters' International Chair she has worked with nonviolent activists around the world. She coordinated the publication of WRI's Handbook for Nonviolent Campaigns ( http://wri-irg.org/node/3855 )  and recently began teaching Nonviolent Social Change at the University of Connecticut.

Our Musicians

Gary Van Slyke is best known for his delightful blend of music and human-service. He travels the Capital District, lightening many lives along the way. He's been doing one version of this or another for the past 45 years.

Terri Roben released 3rd recording in 2008, adult cd of mostly originals, "The Path We Make" available on http://www.cdbaby.com

Terri is a member of:

  • The Children's Music Network
  • The People's Music Network
  • Pickin', Singin' and Gatherin'
  • The Clearwater Organization
  • Caffe Lena and
  • The Eighth Step Coffeehous.

For more information on Terri please go to:  http://www.terriroben.com

Conference Year
2009