All Events
Cup of Culture
America to Me (Episodes 1 and 2)
MCC Theater
This unscripted documentary series presents an exclusive look into an academic year at suburban Chicago's Oak Park and River Forest High Schools. Students, teachers, and administrators from one of the country's highest performing and diverse public schools are profiled in the face of decades-old racial and educational inequities. The series delves into the experiences of the racially diverse student population, sparking conversations about what has and has not succeeded in the quest to achieve racial equity and overcome bias in education.
Race & Religion
’Begin Again’: Fighting for Democracy in the Age of Trump
MCC Theater
The talk begins with a reflection on James Baldwin’s formulation in Just Above My Head. “Responsibility is not lost; it is abdicated. If one refuses abdication then one begins again.” Here the fight for democracy, in this moment with the erosion of norms and the fragility of democratic institutions, requires of us, in our specific places and in full light of the kind of society we want, a different kind of struggle and a more robust political language. Eddie S. Glaude Jr. is the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor and chair of African American Studies at Princeton University. Whether he is teaching in the classroom, writing in popular magazines, or offering commentary on television, Glaude is driven by a commitment to think carefully with others in public.
Music Performance
An Evening of Persian Music: Noor, The Path of Light The Lian Ensemble
MCC Theater
Noor means light. Noor, The Path of Light, will explore modern connections between two art forms with ancient ties through a powerful crossover between Persian music and a variety of genres including Tuvan, Indian, Jazz, Flamenco and Celtic music.The Lian Ensemble’s members, Houman Pourmehdi, Pirayeh Pourafar, Mani Bolouri, and Alireza Shahmohammadi, are all passionate and skilled virtuoso performers and composers. Individually and collectively, through their masterful use of traditional Persian instruments, they creatively create a synthesis of mystical world music composed of traditional and folk melodies. Lian Ensemble has emerged as one of the leading groups in World Music today. The ensemble’s music flows effortlessly between a diverse range of styles and traditions, while fearlessly forging a path and sound that is all their own . $5 for UCSB students and youth under 12; $15 for general admission.
Buy Tickets Here: https://events.ucsb.edu/event/an-evening-of-persian-music-noor-the-path-of-light/
Engaging Communities with Resilient Love
Engaging Communities with Resilient Love
Campbell Hall
Jose Antonio Vargas is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Emmy-nominated filmmaker, and a leading voice for the human rights of immigrants. He is the founder and CEO of Define American, the nation’s leading non-profit media and culture organization that fights injustice and anti-immigrant hate through the power of storytelling. His memoir, Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen, was published by HarperCollins in the fall of 2018. In this lecture, Vargas will take the audience deeper into his story, sharing details of his journey to America from the Philippines as a child; his journey through America as an immigration reform activist; and his journey inward as he re-connects with his mother, whom he hadn’t seen in person in over 20 years. With anecdotes from both his personal experiences and the struggles of countless other undocumented immigrants in America, Vargas poignantly explores one of the most divisive questions facing our country today: how do you define “American”?
