Montclair State University\u2019s School of Communication and Media and the Montclair Art Museum announced a partnership that will begin with a panel discussion on Monday, November 12 at 7 p.m. at the Alexander Kasser Theater on the intersection of social justice, race, media and art. This inaugural event, titled, “From Kara Walker to Colin Kaepernick: Racial Justice through Media and Art, a Conversation,” will feature Soledad O\u2019Brien, Joy Reid and Kai Wright as panelists. James E. Johnson of the Brennan Center for Social Justice will moderate the discussion. The event is free and open to the public.<\/p>\n
The panel discussion is being framed by the Museum\u2019s fall exhibition titled, “Kara Walker: Virginia\u2019s Lynch Mob and Other Works,” and also uses the 50th anniversary of the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy \u2013 and their respective coverage \u2013 as a backdrop proving ample perspective of our nation\u2019s struggles and progress.<\/p>\n
Keith Strudler, director of the School of Communication and Media, believes this event provides a strong perspective on a critical topic from some of our nation\u2019s most engaging thought leaders. \u201cWe are so thrilled to have such amazing guests visiting our campus and speaking with our various publics, including our local community, civic leaders and organizations, and our campus community.\u201d noted Strudler. \u201cI truly believe that is one of the essential privileges and responsibilities of top Schools of Communication and Media like ours \u2013 to host important conversations about the confluence of media and social issues that collectively move our society forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Montclair Art Museum Director Lora Urbanelli, the Museum is excited to partner with Montclair State University on this important event. \u201cIn presenting the work of Kara Walker, a prominent African-American artist who explores race, gender, sexuality and violence in her work, we were aware that her methods and medium can be galvanizing and controversial,\u201d said Urbanelli. \u201cA major goal for the Museum was fostering community dialogue around the persistent legacy of racial discord in America, and the powerful place of art and media in our contemporary lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Soledad O\u2019Brien is the anchor for Matter of Fact with Soledad O\u2019Brien<\/em>, a nationally syndicated weekly political show on Hearst Television. She is also a correspondent for HBO\u2019s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. <\/em>O\u2019Brien has also appeared as a television anchor for NBC, MSNBC, CNN and Al Jazeera America. She co-hosted CNN\u2019s America Morning<\/em> and Weekend Today<\/em> on NBC.<\/p>\n Joy Reid is a political analyst for MSNBC and host of AM Joy<\/em>. She is also the author of the book, Fracture: Barrack Obama, the Clintons and Racial Divide <\/em>and co-editor of We Are the Change We Seek: The Speeches of Barack Obama<\/em>.<\/p>\n Kai Wright is the host of WNYC\u2019s podcast There Goes the Neighborhood <\/em>and is editor and host of WNYC\u2019s Narrative Unit and a columnist for\u00a0The Nation<\/em>\u00a0magazine. He is the former editorial director of Colorlines and a longtime fellow of the Investigative Fund at the Nation Institute. Wright is the author of Drifting Toward Love: Black, Brown, Gay and Coming of Age on the Streets of New York <\/em>as well as two books on African-American history.<\/p>\n View the live stream on Monday, November 12 at 7pm<\/a><\/p>\nRegistration for this event is now closed.<\/h2>\n