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Ford Hall Forum

The Ford Hall Forum is the nation's oldest continuously operating free public lecture series. Its mission is to foster an informed and effective citizenry and to promote freedom of speech through the public presentation of lectures, debates, and discussions. Forum events illuminate the key issues facing our society by bringing to its podium knowledgeable and thought-provoking speakers. These speakers are presented in person, for free, and in settings, which facilitate frank and open debate.

http://www.fordhallforum.org/

How will COVID-19 Change National Security?

Wed, Aug 12, 2020

The idea that a pandemic would threaten our national security has been a known threat for many years. The only questions were when, in what form, how bad and how do we prepare? As we cope with the ravages of the COVID-19 outbreak, new questions emerge: Will the world after COVID be more or less dangerous? Will the U.S. role in the world be more important, or less? How can we best protect the integrity and safety of our elections during this crisis and, by extension, the integrity of our democracy? How do we best protect the most vulnerable among us? There is work to do if we are to retain readiness to deal with other crises and prevent economic insecurity from fueling destabilization, desperation and disruption. Our discussion this week examines how the pandemic is changing the landscape of National Security. This Suffolk University lecture series, presented with the Ford Hall Forum and WGBH Forum Network, is designed as a broad examination of the themes of interest to political scientists and public policy experts. The series is part of a novel online course offered to incoming Suffolk students and made available to the public. Follow Along with the Suffolk University Survey Course: **Listening assignment** [A Crisis Inside the Navy](http://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-daily/id1200361736?i=1000470867859) from The Daily on Apple Podcasts **Reading assignments** * 2019 World Wide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. [PDF](http://sites.suffolk.edu/pandemicpolitics/files/2020/06/2019-Worldwide-Threat-Assessment-SSCI.pdf) * Lisa Monaco “Pandemic Disease is a Threat to National Security: Washington Should Treat it Like One.” Foreign Affairs 3/3/2020 [PDF](http://sites.suffolk.edu/pandemicpolitics/files/2020/06/Pandemic-Disease-Is-a-Threat-to-National-Security-_-Foreign-Affairs.pdf) * Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. “Finding a Vaccine is only the First Step: No One Will be Safe Until the Whole World is Safe.” Foreign Affairs. 4/30/2020 [PDF](http://sites.suffolk.edu/pandemicpolitics/files/2020/06/Finding-a-Vaccine-Is-Only-the-First-Step-_-Foreign-Affairs.pdf) **Video assignment** [Condoleezza Rice](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UxzAlX92PI&t=5s): Covid-19 & National Security

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A Public Forum on Justice Reform with MA candidates for U.S. Senate

Tue, Aug 4, 2020

Massachusetts candidates for U.S. Senate, Joe Kennedy and Ed Markey, participate in consecutive public forums to answer questions from formerly incarcerated people. They share their perspectives on proposed changes to the U.S. justice system. The evening’s moderator is nationally recognized activist Andrea James, founder of Families for Justice as Healing. This forum is presented by Ford Hall Forum, the nation’s oldest continuously operating free public lecture series, in partnership with the following organizations: The National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls Black & Pink Boston Citizens for Juvenile Justice the Young Professionals Network of the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute For Race & Justice Sisters Unchained Families for Justice As Healing Disability Action Massachusetts Against Solitary Confinement

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Coronavirus Negligence: Risk, Liability, and Liberty

Wed, Aug 5, 2020

The pandemic has raised anew issues in which policy makers must address several key tensions: privacy, individual rights and the public’s right to know; individual freedom versus quarantine; and who is liable when coronavirus is contracted. At a time when we are discussing freedom and individual rights, the protests over the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and countless others have raised concerns about America’s “other pandemic” — the long history of racism, discrimination, and the denial of basic rights and freedoms to minorities living in the United States. Join Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins and labor attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan for this convsersation moderated by Renée M. Landers, a professor of law at Suffolk University. Follow Along with the Suffolk University Survey Course Listening assignment Imagining the New 9-5 | Teresa Ghilarducci https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Reading assignment MassLive [Black staffers on Beacon Hill say Massachusetts Legislature’s commitment to combating racism ‘has yet to be realized' ](https://www.masslive.com/politics/2020/07/black-staffers-on-beacon-hill-say-legislatures-commitment-to-combating-racism-has-yet-to-be-realized.html) Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection Students will be required to engage in at least one civic / political engagement event of their choice during the course of the term and document this with a short reflection essay. The type of event you attend remotely is up to you. It can be a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection must draw on readings from the class and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag @ForumNetwork and @supolscilegal.

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Partisanship v. Pandemic: Common Enemy, Disjointed Response

Wed, Jul 29, 2020

Times of crisis require governments to cooperate and coordinate large-scale responses. Yet Congress and the President are inherently partisan actors in a federal system — negotiating the competing pressures of obtaining concrete results for constituents, but not being seen as too accommodating of political rivals. What are the main political takeaways from legislating in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic? How have motives of major actors shifted or changed and how has this impacted the federal response? Does President Trump still dominate the GOP? Also, what electoral outcomes might we see in November, given what current polling, favorability ratings and climbing COVID cases and deaths tell us? ***Follow Along with the Suffolk University Survey Course*** Listening assignment How federal job vacancies hinder the government’s response to COVID-19 from Brookings Institution. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/events- from-the-brookings-institution/id1164631872?i=1000473551731 Readings New survey shows U.S. public is ‘firmly opposed’ to reopening the economy immediately https://shorensteincenter.org/new-survey-shows-u-s-public-is-firmly-opposed-to-reopening-the-economy-immediately/ Scan The Council on Foreign Relations Coronavirus Website: https://www.cfr.org/coronavirus. Sign up for 360 Dx Daily News weekly coronavirus newsletter: https://www.360dx.com/ Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection Students are required to engage in at least one civic / political engagement event of their choice during the course of the term and document this with a short reflection essay. The type of event you attend remotely is up to you. It can be a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection must draw on readings from the class and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag @GBHForumNetwork and @supolscilegal. This Suffolk University lecture series, presented with the Ford Hall Forum and WGBH Forum Network, is designed as a broad examination of the themes of interest to political scientists and public policy experts. The series is part of a novel online course offered to incoming Suffolk students and made available to the public.

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Migrants, Refugees, & Fragile States — The Humanitarian Crisis & COVID-19

Wed, Jul 22, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic is having devastating consequences for countries around the world. Refugees and migrants face challenges similar to, but even more dire than those of many of their host populations. Already impacted by massive disruption in their lives, including greater levels of food insecurity, poverty, and woefully inadequate access to essential services that would help mitigate the health crisis, refugees and migrants face a grim future. Unfortunately, these fragile populations are often invisible in their suffering. Propublica immigration reporter Dara Lind hosts a discussion with Douglas S. Massey, an expert on international migration at Princeton University, Suffolk Dean and global engagement expert Maria Toyada, clinical professor of law at Suffolk Ragini Shah, and Adriana Lafaille, a staff attorney with the ACLU of Massachusetts dealing with immigration detention and immigrants’ rights issues. Together they look at how the pandemic is exacerbating these issues. They consider how the crisis will fuel greater conflict around the world, as prices rise and incomes fall, and how it may create a call to action to increase health and social protections. This Suffolk University lecture series, presented with the Ford Hall Forum and WGBH Forum Network, is designed as a broad examination of the themes of interest to political scientists and public policy experts. The series is part of a novel online course offered to incoming Suffolk students and made available to the public. Image credit: [Wikimedia Commons](http://https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:20151030_Syrians_and_Iraq_refugees_arrive_at_Skala_Sykamias_Lesvos_Greece_2.jpg) Follow the course: Week #5 Assignments Listen: [Addressing COVID-19 in resource-poor and fragile countries](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/addressing-covid-19-in-resource-poor-and-fragile-countries/id717265500?i=1000474068418) [The Humanitarian Response to COVID-19: Protecting the World's Vulnerable Populations](https://www.cfr.org/event/humanitarian-response-covid-19-protecting-worlds-vulnerable-populations) Read: [“It’s the End of the World Economy as We Know It”](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/16/upshot/world-economy-restructuring-coronavirus.html) by Neil Irwin **Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection** Engage in at least one civic / political event of your choice during the course and document this with a short reflection essay. Try a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection should draw on readings from assignments and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag [@GBHForumNetwork ](https://twitter.com/GBHForumNetwork) and [@supolscilegal](https://twitter.com/supolscilegal).

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Militarization and US Policy — Costs, Consequences, and COVID-19

Wed, Jul 15, 2020

Many argue that the Trump Doctrine in foreign policy has been characterized by a retreat from global leadership in multilateral institutions, abandonment of traditional diplomacy, strained relationships with allies, and an enhanced projection of military strength. The response to the coronavirus pandemic has been similar; an insistence on going solo. What have been the costs and consequences of an over-reliance on the militarization of U.S. policy abroad and at home? What role should the military play in U.S. democracy and how has the pandemic impacted our ability to respond to national security threats, both traditional and new, such as COVID-19 and climate change? "Politics in the Time of Global Pandemic" is a Suffolk University lecture series presented with the Ford Hall Forum and WGBH Forum Network. It is designed as a broad examination of the themes of interest to political scientists and public policy experts. The series is part of a novel online course offered to incoming Suffolk students and made available to the public. This week, Andrew Bacevich, president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, joins Michal Ben-Joseph Hirsch, an assistant professor in the Political Science & Legal Studies Department at Suffolk University. **Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection** Engage in at least one civic / political event of your choice during the course and document this with a short reflection essay. Try a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection should draw on readings from assignments and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag [@GBHForumNetwork ](https://twitter.com/GBHForumNetwork) and [@supolscilegal](https://twitter.com/supolscilegal).

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From Quorum to Proxy: Governing, Representing and Campaigning Remotely

Wed, Jul 8, 2020

Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA) joins Suffolk University's Ford Hall Forum to discuss the changing landscape of governing, serving constituents, and running for office in a time of global pandemic. How has Congress adapted to manage its business during the major crises facing the nation: COVID-19, its economic impact, and the growing movement for social justice? To what extent have new rules impacted this vital work? What challenges does Congress face in responding to unprecedented times and what will be the most likely next steps? How do Members keep in touch with their constituents, whose needs are now greater than ever? What does a virtual campaign look like and how will all of this impact voting in remaining primaries and November's General Election? **Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection** Engage in at least one civic / political event of your choice during the course and document this with a short reflection essay. Try a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection should draw on readings from assignments and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag [@GBHForumNetwork ](https://twitter.com/GBHForumNetwork) and [@supolscilegal](https://twitter.com/supolscilegal).

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Misinformation Wars

Wed, Jul 1, 2020

How does information, as well as misinformation impact public understanding of the COVID-19 pandemic? Distribution of information in this global crisis is a powerful role: where, how and from whom do people get their information and how does it shape their behavior? A panel of experts look closely at research happening in real time during the pandemic on the rapid decline in trust in public institutions, public figures, and the media. They discuss the resulting impact on the health of democracy. The panel includes Felice J. Freyer, a health policy and public health reporter at The Boston Globe; Jennifer Kavanagh, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation; Jonas Kaiser, an affiliate at Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society; and Shoshana Madmoni-Gerber, an associate professor of Communication, Journalism, & Media and Suffolk University. **Follow the Course: Week #2 Assignment** Listen: FiveThirtyEight: [One Virus, A World Full Of Responses from FiveThirtyEight Politics](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fivethirtyeight-politics/id1077418457?i=1000475357937) Read: NGA [Coronavirus What You Need To Know](https://www.nga.org/coronavirus/#actions) (compare different actions taken by U.S. States in response to Covid-19) Washington Post: [How Democracies Can Survive Dilemmas like coronavirus](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/05/13/how-democracies-can-survive-crises-like-coronavirus/) Washington Post: [Which Kind of Democracies Respond More Effectively to a Pandemic?](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/05/19/which-kinds-democracies-respond-more-effectively-pandemic/) Mischiefs of Faction: [To Crack Down on Dissent in Hong Kong, Beijing is Sidelining Local Democratic Institutions ](https://www.mischiefsoffaction.com/post/to-crack-down-on-dissent-in-hong-kong-beijing-is-sidelining-local-democratic-institutions?postId=5ec828796fa6b600176fd79c) Freedom House Reports:[Democracy During Pandemic](https://freedomhouse.org/issues/democracy-during-pandemic) and [Digital Election Interference](https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-on-the-net/2019/the-crisis-of-social-media/digital-election-interference) **Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection** Engage in at least one civic / political event of your choice during the course and document this with a short reflection essay. Try a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection should draw on readings from assignments and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag [@GBHForumNetwork ](https://twitter.com/GBHForumNetwork) and [@supolscilegal](https://twitter.com/supolscilegal).

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The New Normal After COVID-19

Thu, May 28, 2020

The ongoing coronavirus outbreak has changed everything—from how we work to how we view our elected officials. David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center, shares polling data on public sentiment from his recent surveys conducted in Massachusetts and across the country. Learn how Bay Staters and Americans in general are handling the pandemic, and what they think our new normal might look like. Panelists discuss the political implications of the pandemic as well as the big hurdles in our shared recovery, from voting to concert-going to riding the T. Joe Mathieu, anchor and executive editor for WGBH's Morning Edition moderates the discussion. Image: Pixabay.com

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A Patchwork of Responses to the Pandemic in Comparison

Wed, Jun 24, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic is a global event unlike any other experienced in the contemporary era. Its size, scope, reach, and implications are enormous, ongoing, and unequal. Outcomes — from how people all over the world will live their daily lives to whether democracy will survive — are all in question. This free, 9-week-long lecture series is designed to be a broad survey of many of the themes most of interest to political scientists and public policy experts and is part of an online course Suffolk University is offering this summer to incoming students. Panelists will discuss the differential impact of the pandemic around the world, and the differential responses across nations, comparing countries, regions and states in the context of democracy, populism, public trust, and compliance. To kick things off, Sebastián Royo, Ph.D., an expert on Southern European politics at Suffolk University, sits down with Mahrukh Doctor, Ph.D., an expert on Latin America focusing on Brazil at the University of Hull, and Vivien Schmidt, Ph.D., an expert on European political economy and institutional legitimacy at Boston University. _Image credit: Gina Jano Design_ **WEEK 1 ASSIGNMENTS** Listening assignment: Council on Foreign Relations "Epidemics in World History" https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/epidemics-world-history-frank-m-snowden Readings Weather Conditions & Covid-19 Transmission https://projects.iq.harvard.edu/covid19 “What History Can Teach Us About Building a Fairer Society after Coronavirus” by Richard Sayeed https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/apr/18/history-fairer-society-coronavirus-workers-black-death-spanish-flu Civic Engagement Activity & Reflection Students will be required to engage in at least one civic / political engagement event of their choice during the course of the term and document this with a short reflection essay. The type of event you attend remotely is up to you. It can be a virtual town or city hall meeting with local or state representatives, a meeting of an activist group, etc. The reflection must draw on readings from the class and your own additional research. Members of the public who wish to share their reflections should post a link on Twitter and tag [@ForumNetwork](https://twitter.com/ForumNetwork) and [@supolscilegal](https://twitter.com/supolscilegal).

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