In this program, Emily Lin, with the UC Merced Library, explains the process of digging into archives, including a look at how archives are created, where to look and what to expect to find, and strategies and possibilities for research. Series: "Critically Human" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38279]

The Kumeyaay are native inhabitants of San Diego and Imperial counties and Baja California, Mexico. For thousands of years, the Kumeyaay people farmed the land and ocean, managed forest fires, manufactured pottery and basketry and engaged in commerce and trade. Stan Rodriguez, Ed.D., executive director of the Kumeyaay Community College, talks about the deep physical and spiritual connection the Kumeyaay people have to the Earth. Despite brutal religious, economic, political and social hardships under European rule, Kumeyaay culture and traditions continue in the region to this day. Series: "Triton Talks" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38071]

This lecture takes on the question of why we have only two political parties in the United States and how the two party system shapes our politics. Most significantly, this lecture looks at the ways in which the politics of race - Black civil rights in particular - during the Civil War, Reconstruction, the modern Civil Rights Movement and the election of Barack Obama served to shift the two political parties into new realignments. This lecture traces the transformation of the two parties over 150 years, marking the shift of the Democrats from the party of the Confederacy to the party of the New Deal and Civil Rights, and the transformation of the Republicans from the party of Lincoln and Radical Reconstruction to the White Mans Party of Trump. Series: "Public Policy and Society" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 36281]

“We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.” As look at the history of American democracy, we begin with the nation’s founding contradiction: the dispossession of Natives, the enslavement of Africans and the exclusion of women in a new nation dedicated to the radical concept of universal human equality. Through a reading of the founding documents of the United States, ranging from the Declaration of Independence to the speeches of Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass and Barack Obama, we consider how race, colonialism and slavery shaped the nation's founding, and how this legacy, this “original sin” of the American founding, continues to shape and distort our democracy. Series: "Public Policy and Society" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 36276]

UCLA history professor Brenda Stevenson studies slavery and the Antebellum South, some of our country’s most painful moments and eras. Because there is not much in the way of documentary evidence of the lives of women of color, enslaved women and women from the South, Stevenson must work as an investigator to discover their inner lives and experiences. This is often done through stories told through the age, some of which she shares in this UCLA Faculty Lecture. Series: "UCLA Faculty Research Lectures" [Humanities] [Show ID: 35126]

Should your art send you to prison? Rap lyrics are increasingly turning up as evidence in courtrooms across the country. The fictional characters portrayed in violent gansta rap songs are often a far cry from the true personalities of the artists behind them, yet uninitiated audiences easily conflate artist with character and fiction with fact. On a broader scale, using rap lyrics as evidence in criminal cases also raises questions about artistic freedom, freedom of speech and the rights of all citizens to receive a fair trial. UC Irvines Charis E. Kubrin, Ph.D and Adam Dunbar explore these issues. Series: "Zot Talks" [Humanities] [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 31368]

Ron Goode, Tribal Chairman of the North Fork Mono Tribe, led UC Davis professor, Beth Rose Middleton Manning's, students through a cultural burn. Students participated in preparing the land and igniting the fire, and contributed to a historic indigenous tradition. Cultural burning practices empower Native American communities, and could possibly be used as a tool to help alleviate devastating wildfires. Series: "UCTV Prime" [Humanities] [Agriculture] [Show ID: 34098]

Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes Harvard Professor Annette Gordon-Reed for a discussion of her work as a lawyer/historian focusing on the contradictions in the life of Thomas Jefferson. Topics covered in the conversation include how her training as a lawyer empowered her to overturn the conventional historical view of the relationship between Jefferson and Sally Hemings. Professor Gordon-Reed highlights the racism embedded in Jeffersonian historiography; ignoring, for example, factual evidence, which confirmed that Jefferson was the father of Sally Heming’s children. In examining the evolution of Jefferson’s ideas on slavery, Professor Gordon-Reed emphasizes how Jefferson’s theory of slavery evolved as he adapted to the reality of American social and political life. She concludes with an the implications of her work for understanding the present turmoil over black/ white relations in the U.S. today. Series: "Conversations with History" [Humanities] [Show ID: 31519]

As the contentious 2016 election season heads into its final weeks, California Live speakers from the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley delve into the impact of race, gender and income inequality on the campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Panelists are: Dean Henry E. Brady,  political science professor Sarah Anzia, social psychology professor Jack Glaser and civil rights attorney and Goldman School alum Jonathan Stein.  Moderated by Maria Echaveste, Policy and Program Director at Berkeley Law's Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Law and Social Policy Series: "Public Policy and Society" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 31452]

From the moment Myrlie Evers-Williams faced the murder of her husband, civil rights activist Medgar Evers, she became a pivotal figure in the civil rights movement. For more than five decades, she has fought to carry on his legacy, never relenting in her determination to change the face of race relations in this country. She reflects here on the impact of the 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, and calls on today’s Americans to continue her quest to quash racism and bring equality for all. This heartfelt talk was presented by Thurgood Marshall College, the Helen Edison Lecture Series and the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at UC San Diego. Series: "Helen Edison Lecture Series" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 29259]

Former California Supreme Court Justice and UC Davis School of Law Professor Emeritus Cruz Reynoso recalls his days working alongside Cesar Chavez in the Community Service Organization and speaks to the influence of Latinos today on immigration, voting rights, police conduct and other contentious public issues. Justice Reynoso is presented by the Helen Edison Lecture Series at UC San Diego. Series: "Helen Edison Lecture Series" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 29210]

Former UCSB professor Gerald Horne, the award-winning author of more than thirty books, discusses his book “The Counter-Revolution of 1776” which argues that for the country's forefathers, "freedom" meant the right to keep others enslaved—and that the consequences of this definition continue into the present in the form of a racialized conservatism and a persistent racism targeting the descendants of the enslaved. Series: "Voices" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 28602]

A distinguished panel of community leaders and activists share anecdotes and answer questions about Chicana/o involvement in the Vietnam-era protest movement, including the 1970 National Chicano Moratorium. [Humanities] [Show ID: 29127]

Rabbi Laura Geller looks at the role Jewish women played in some of the struggles that have shaped our country. She also explore the different ways men and women have been agents of social change both in the Jewish community and the larger world. Rabbi Laura Geller is a Senior Rabbi of Temple Emanuel in Beverly Hills, California. She was among the first women to be selected to lead a major metropolitan synagogue. Series: "Taubman Symposia in Jewish Studies" [Humanities] [Show ID: 28480]

Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes Charles McCurdy, Professor of History and Law, University of Virginia, for a discussion of the interactions of law and politics in the United States. Case studies discussed include: Justice Stephen Field; The Anti- Rent Era in New York Law (1830-1865); Herbert Wechsler’s article on “The Political Safeguards of Federalism;” and the Sedition Acts of the 1790’s. Series: "Conversations with History" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 28136]

Benjamin Franklin and the American dream are often associated with the uninhibited pursuit of money. Nothing could be further from the truth, argues UC San Diego political scientist Alan Houston. To Franklin, the good life – a life of improvement – was spent pursuing knowledge, cultivating friendship, advancing freedom, and addressing human needs. Series: "The Good Life" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 25949]

“The Brick People” chronicles the story and legacy of Mexican immigrants who came to work at Simons Brickyard #3 in Los Angeles during the early part of the 20th century. The bricks they made literally built Los Angeles and the surrounding region. Produced by UC Irvine professor Alejandro Morales, this documentary explores themes of immigration, discrimination and cultural foundry as told by former residents and historians of Simons, California . Series: "Immigration" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 27723]

Harry Kreisler welcomes George Packer for a discussion of his new book, “The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America.” Packer discusses his formative experiences, including forging his own political identity and coming to terms with the legacy of his progressive grandfather and his liberal father. He then recounts the influence of his mother on his writing and his odyssey—Peace Corps, construction, working with the homeless, and membership in the socialist party-- that led him to writing as a vocation. After sketching the skills and temperament of a writer, Packer describes the origins of his new book and its architecture. He then discusses the two groups of men and women whose personal narratives his book explores and relates how their lives give insight into the unwinding of the American dream. The discussion offers a compelling portrait of the inner history of the new America defined by glaring inequality and the collapse of institutions. Series: "Conversations with History" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 25519]

The political fight that has broken out in the US about contraception is both surprising and at the same time traditionally American. Linda Gordon, Professor at New York University, puts today's reproduction control controversies -- foreign aid for family planning, the abortion debates, teenage pregnancy and childbearing, stem-cell research --into historical perspective and argues that reproduction control has always been central to women's status. Series: "Ethics, Religion and Public Life: Walter H. Capps Center Series" [Public Affairs] [Health and Medicine] [Humanities] [Show ID: 24156]

Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes Pulitzer Prize winning historian Eric Foner for a discussion of his book, “The Fiery Trial.” The conversation focuses on Lincoln’s relationship to slavery over the course of his career. As Lincoln moved from local, to state and then national politics, he grew in stature and his understanding of the complexity of the issue matured. The discussion focuses on the key dimensions of his intellectual and political growth including Lincoln’s background, his command of language in his speeches and writings, and his remarkable skills as a political leader. The discussion concludes with a comparison of Lincoln and President Obama and the political situations they confront. Series: "Conversations with History" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 22930]