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Join Diversity & Social Justice Education and the University YMCA for Friday Forum + Conversation Café!

calendar lineup of each speaker and event date

We will hear from community leaders tackling our most pressing public concerns through an unwavering pursuit of social justice. 

  • When: Most Fridays
  • Time: 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
  • Location: University YMCA, 1001 S. Wright St., Champaign, IL.

Lunch provided at no cost to guests from the Y Thai Eatery.

Spring 2025 Speaker Lineup:

February 7: Inclusion for all of Society
Sean Garrick, Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion at the University of Illinois

February 14: Democratic Erosion and Women's Political Power: Perspectives from Europe
Saskia Brechenmacher, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

February 21: Bridging Differences to Build a "Beloved Community"
Allison Briscoe Smith, UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center
2025 Illinois Interfaith Conference Keynote Speaker

February 28: Breaking Chains, Building Communities: The Story of the AME Church
Rev. Terrance Thomas, Bethel AME Church, Champaign

March 7: Defending Immigrants under a Trump Administration: An Immigrant Advocate's Perspective
Diana Rashid, National Immigrant Justice Center
In conversation with current La Colectiva students

March 28: Plumas Negras by Juliette Carrillo
University of Illinois Department of Theater

April 4: To Thy Happy Children of the Future: Divestment as Progress
Students for Environmental Concerns
In conversation with Jim Hinterlong, University YMCA Executive Director

April 11: The Art of Recreating Transnational Solidarities Against Global Apartheids
Woman Life Freedom Collective and Humane Urbanisms Project

April 18: Stories From Her Work as a Tribal Attorney, Land Defender and Founder of the Giniw Collective
Tara Houska, Tribal Attorney and Founder of the Giniw Collective

Listen to the Spring 2025 audio recordings here:

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Thank You to Our Sponsors!
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Center for Advanced Study, Center for Global Studies, Center for Innovation in Teaching & Learning, Channing Murray Foundation, College of ACES, Counseling Center, Department of Anthropology, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, Education Justice Project, European Union Center, First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana, First Presbyterian (Champaign), Humanities Research Institute, International Education, League of Women Voters, Office of the Provost, School of Social Work, Social Action Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Urbana-Champaign, Student Cultural Programming Fee, Urbana Champaign Friends Meeting, Urbana Champaign Reproductive Justice, the Women & Gender in Global Perspectives Program, and the Women's Resources Center

Past Calendars

Fall 2024

Click here for the Fall 2024 audio recordings!

September 13, 2024: Voting Rights and Democracy in 2024
Sean Morales-Doyle, Director of Voting Rights Program at the Brennan Center for Justice

September 20, 2024: Champaign County Welcoming Plan in Action
New American Welcome Center

September 27, 2024: Bridging the Partisan Divide
Braver Angels

October 4, 2024: Elections and Voting: 2024 and Beyond
Aaron Ammons, Champaign County Clerk

October 11, 2024: Democracy as a Way of Life
Harry Boyte, Civic Organizer and Theorist of public work framework for democracy and citizenship
Marie Ström, Director of Education and Training, Institute of Public Life and Work

October 18, 2024: Giving Voice to the Middle
Jeremy Hobson, Host, Creator, and Executive Producer of ‘The Middle’ Podcast

October 25, 2024: Understanding White Christian Nationalism - Discussion Panel on ‘Bad Faith’ film
Rev. Terrance Thomas, Bethel AME Church
Pr. Michael Crosby, First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana

November 1, 2024: The Supreme Court and Democracy
Steve Schwinn, University of Illinois Chicago

November 8, 2024: The Certainty Trap: Democracy’s Existential Threat
Ilana Redstone, University of Illinois Department of Sociology

November 15, 2024: Election 2024 on Campus and Across the Country
Provost John Coleman, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Spring 2023

Our Community in Action:  Advancing Social Justice in Champaign-Urbana and Beyond

February 3, 2023: Stories From the Center: University Y Founders Day Event, Speakers Cassie Carroll, Mike Doyle, Becca Guyette, and John Jordan, Moderator: Scott Peters, Cornell  University

February 10, 2023: Art, Healing, and Justice, Speakers: Lou Turner, Liza Sylvestre, and Christopher Jones, Moderator: Sam Smith, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts

February 17, 2023: Envisioning Equity and Excellence in Public Schools, Speakers: Angela Ward, Amy Bloomberg, and Brandon Caffey, Moderator: Imani Bazzell, Center for Civic Engagement and Social Justice

February 24, 2023:  The Importance of Interfaith in Jewish Tradition, Speaker: Rabbi Allyson Zacharoff, New York University

March 3, 2023: Risograph, Zines, and "Cheap" Art, Speaker: Will Arnold, Art @ the Y exhibition on view through 3/10

March 24, 2023: Building Anti Racist Immigrant Communities: reflections on arts mediated dialog projects, Speaker: Ken Salo, Urban & Regional Planning

March 31, 2023: In pursuit of intersectional equity beyond the walls of academia: Learning from the marginalized Sunni-Baluch women needleworkers in peri-urban Iran, Speaker: Atyeh Ashtari, Urban Planning PhD Candidate

April 14, 2023: Community Violence and Anti-Violence Efforts, Speakers: Rachel Garthe, School of Social Work and Jorge Elvir, City of Champaign, Moderator: Sam Smith, KCPA

April 21, 2023: Environmental Activism and Change on Campus and Beyond, Adelina Avalos, Jorge Corral, Stefan Iliev, Alyssa Prisby, Claire Sullivan, Sakshi Vaya, Moderator: Karel Pene Njine, Daniela Marin, Hannah Beck, Terra Salgado, Hanaa Khan

Fall 2022

Our Community in Action:  Advancing Social Justice in Champaign-Urbana and Beyond

September 16, 2022: Welcoming Immigrants in Champaign County, Speaker Gloria Yen

September 23, 2022: AZUKI!! Manga as a Bridge Between Cultures, Speaker Kofi Bazzell-Smith

September 30, 2022: We are Here! Cultivating Belonging for our Queer Students of Color at Illinois, Speakers Dementro Powell & Carlton Cummings

October 7, 2022: I Go on Singing: Paul Robeson's Life in his Word and Song, Speaker Anthony Brown, accompanied by Philip De Luna

October 14, 2022: Faith and Race in Building Local Coalitions for Justice, Speakers Rev. Terrance Thomas & Rev. Michael Crosby

October 21 , 2022:  Neighborhood Ambassadors Program, Speaker Jacqueline Kalipeni

October 28, 2022: Juvenile Justice in Champaign County: A Wicked Possibility, part 1, Speaker Sam Smith

November 4, 2022: Juvenile Justice in Champaign County: A Wicked Possibility, part 2, Speaker Sam Smith

November 11, 2022: Keep HOPE Alive! We Can Prevent Violence in Champaign County, Speaker Tracy Dace

Spring 2022

February 4, 2022: Art at the Y: Radical Printmaking, Speaker William Estrada

February 11, 2022: Afrofuturism as Social Justice, Speakers Stacey Robinson & Jason Finkelman

February 18, 2022: Building Community Through Re-entry, Speakers Marlon Mitchell and Crushion Stubbs

February 25, 2022: Faith, Race, Loss, and Radical Hope, Speaker Rev. Jennifer Bailey

March 4, 2022: Community Resistance to Gentrification in Chicago, Speakers Christian Mejia & Dr. Jacquelyn Lyon

March 25, 2022: Bad, Fat, Black Girl: An Afternoon with a Trap Feminist, Speaker Sesali Bowen

April 1, 2022: Champaign Racial Justice Task Force, Speakers Minnie Pearson & Dr. Thom Moore

April 8, 2022: In the Wake of Unit 4's Resolution Against Racism, Speakers Dr. Ken Salo, Dr. Angela Ward, Ms. Brenda Taylor

 

Fall 2021

September 17, 2021: Intersectioins of Racism and Migration, Speakers Susan Ogwal, Lauren Aronson, Michael H. Leroy and James R. Fujimoto

September 24, 2021: Education Justice Project: Prison-to Gown Initiative, Speaker Rebecca Ginsburg

October 1, 2021: Future Spaces in Community Places: Closing the Gap on Town and Gown, Speaker Stacey Robinson

October 8, 2021: Protect our Vote: The History of African American Voting, Speaker Sundiata Keita Cha-Jua

October 15, 2021: Trauma & Resilience Initiative, Inc., Speaker Karen Crawford Simms

October 22, 2021: Moving Upstream: An Anti-Racist Approact to Healthcare Education, Speaker Kaytlin Reedy-Rogier

October 29, 2021: Anti-Hate Training with Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Speaker Catherine Shieh

November 5, 2021: How Oppression and Gender Based Violence are Linked: Why an Anti-Oppression Lens to Domestic and Sexual Violence is Necessary for an Inclusive Approach, Speakers Akua Forkuo-Sekyere, Elena Gonzalez & Women's Resources Center students

November 12, 2021: Shamar Betts Case: Unequal Justice in the Aftermath of George Floyd's Murder, Speakers Elisabeth R. Pollock, Savannah Donavan & Brian Dolinar