The Johns Hopkins Gazette: September 5, 2000
September 5, 2000
VOL. 30, NO. 1

  

Spike Lee, 'Hurricane' Carter Set for MSE Symposium

By Leslie Rice
Homewood
Johns Hopkins Gazette Online Edition

The 2000 Milton S. Eisenhower Symposium, titled "Unfinished Business: Addressing Race, Class and Gender at the Turn of the Millennium," will bring filmmaker Spike Lee, former boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, AFL-CIO president John J. Sweeney and other provocative speakers to the Homewood campus this fall.

The 2000 MSE Symposium hopes to provide an opportunity to address, debate and define the roles of race, class and gender in the new millennium. This year's speakers all have in some fashion personally participated in the ongoing debates surrounding those issues. They will be asked to critique past accomplishments, analyze future goals and objectives, and discuss how their work and thoughts apply to a vision for the new century.

"We chose this theme because we feel that there is unfinished business in regard to confronting modern-day dilemmas surrounding race, class and gender," says junior Eric Leslie, who co-chairs this year's symposium with junior Dorit Radzin. "The 2000 MSE Symposium will tackle these issues and the potential impact they have on us all in the years ahead. Our belief is that only by examining and articulating the issues surrounding racial dilemmas, class divides and gender rights can we move forward with insight and vision."

Juniors Eric Leslie and Dorit Radzin are chairing the MSE Symposium 2000, which will address the roles of race, class and gender in the new millennium. It is expected to draw 20,000 people.

The symposium is expected to draw 20,000 audience members, as it has in the past. The two student chairs, selected by the undergraduate Student Council, are responsible for selecting the topics, securing all speakers, raising necessary funds and publicizing the series. The chairs receive some funding from Student Council but are responsible for raising the balance from corporations and foundations.

Covering topics like the nuclear arms race, human sexuality, freedom of the press, and foreign policy and race, the MSE Symposium, established in 1968 to honor the university's eighth president, has drawn such speakers as James Carville, Jesse Jackson, Ralph Reed, Jerry Springer, Kurt Vonnegut, Carl Bernstein, Eugene McCarthy and Isaac Asimov. Here is what has been scheduled so far; additional speakers are expected. All events are free and open to the public.

2000 MSE Symposium: 'Unfinished Business:
Addressing Race, Class and Gender
at the Turn of the Millennium'

More speakers are expected to be added. For updates and possible changes in dates, times or locations, watch The Gazette calendar, visit the 2000 MSE Symposium Web site at www.jhu.edu/mse/ or call 410-516-7683. All events are free and open to the public.

Coming in September

Lee Mun Wah, maker of the film Color of Fear
"Fostering Dialogue: Confronting Racism in America Today"
Thursday, Sept. 7, 8 p.m., Shriver Hall
    Lee Mun Wah, a Chinese-American, was a San Francisco junior high school teacher when his mother was murdered by an African American man. As he worked through his feelings about her death and about race, Lee changed careers and became a community therapist, specializing in diversity issues. His work led to his film The Color of Fear, which won an award from the National Education Media Network. The Color of Fear is a full-length documentary in which Wah brings men of various races and cultures together to discuss their differences and their feelings.

Bill Lann Lee, assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights
"A Modern Dilemma--Enforcing and Ensuring Civil Rights for All"
Wednesday, Sept. 27, 8 p.m., Shriver Hall
    Bill Lann Lee is the assistant attorney general for civil rights in the U.S. Department of Justice. The Civil Rights Division enforces laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability and other factors. Lee was born and raised in New York City, where his parents owned a small Laundromat. He credits his late father, who experienced bigotry despite his distinguished military service, with providing the inspiration for a career in civil rights law. After graduating from the Bronx High School of Science, Lee won a scholarship to Yale, which had a strong affirmative action program.

October through December

Martin O'Malley, mayor of Baltimore
"Looking at Baltimore: Beyond the Inner Harbor"
Tuesday, Oct. 3, 7 p.m. (time may change), Shriver Hall

Rock the Vote
"Are We Going to Vote? Why We Should"
Speakers, live music, voter registration
Thursday, Oct. 19, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., location TBA

Eleanor Smeal, president of the Feminist Majority Foundation, and Phyllis Schlafly, president of Eagle Forum
Feminist debate: "The Role and Struggle of American Women Today"
Tuesday, Oct. 24, 8 p.m., Garrett Room, MSE Library

Carmen Russo, superintendent of Baltimore City public schools, and others TBA
Round table discussion: "Teaching What to Whom?"
Monday, Oct. 30, 8 p.m., Garrett Room, MSE Library

Spike Lee, film director
"Expressing Inequality: Conveying Messages through Art and Literature"
Thursday, Nov. 2, 8 p.m., Shriver Hall
(Free screenings of Spike Lee's film He Got Game, Oct. 27 and 28, 8 p.m., Shriver Hall)

Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, former boxer falsely convicted of murder
"Justice for Few: Inequalities of the Criminal Justice System"
Wednesday, Nov. 15, 8 p.m., Shriver Hall
(Free screenings of the biographical film The Hurricane, Nov. 10 and 11, 8 p.m., Shriver Hall)

David Satcher, U.S. surgeon general and assistant secretary of health
"Health Care for All: A Right or a Privilege?"
Monday, Nov. 20, 8 p.m., Garrett Room, MSE Library

John J. Sweeney, president of the AFL-CIO
"The Growing Gap: American 'Prosperity' under the Microscope"
Thursday, Nov. 30, 8 p.m., Bunting-Meyerhoff Interfaith Center

Dolores Huerta, co-founder of United Farm Workers
"Looking Ahead: What Roles Will Race, Class and Gender Play in the New Millennium?"
Wednesday, Dec. 6, 8 p.m., Shriver Hall
 

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