Past Events
& Exhibitions

Across the United States, children under the age of 18 can be tried as adults in criminal court. Although the practice is condemned by international law, we are the only country in the world that sentences young people to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

In the United States, 8 percent of the adult population—and 33 percent of the Black adult male population—has a felony conviction. Even after people have served time in prison, they are systematically excluded from civic participation, including serving on juries. Offered in collaboration with the Institute to End Mass Incarceration at Harvard Law School, this program will explore questions of jury service, civic participation in the criminal legal system, and the importance of such participation by people with prior convictions.

On Radcliffe Day 2021—Friday, May 28—Harvard Radcliffe Institute will award the Radcliffe Medal to Melinda French Gates.

This panel seeks to address the challenges and opportunities of equitable public health strategies around COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

Speakers on this panel will examine the roots in slavery of contemporary African American mistrust of the healthcare system, the lack of trust in medical providers fostered by experiences of everyday racism, and the African American community’s long dependence, born of necessity, on care from within the community.

In her research at Radcliffe, Ana Paiva is investigating the conditions and mechanisms that drive societies of agents and humans to be more pro-social.

Millions of Americans have long struggled to pay for housing, with communities of color additionally burdened by housing discrimination and historical race-based policies, such as legalized segregation, redlining, and mortgage discrimination. Our panel of experts will explore these issues as they relate to Greater Boston.

Thea Riofrancos’s current project explores the politics of the transition to renewable energy through the lens of one of its key technologies: lithium batteries.

This session will consider what it means to organize for gender rights in global contexts in the 21st century during a pandemic.

Ocean Vuong is the author of the New York Times best-selling novel, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous (Penguin Press, 2019), forthcoming in 30 languages. A 2019 MacArthur Fellow and 2014 Pushcart Prize recipient, he is also the author of the critically acclaimed poetry collection Night Sky with Exit Wounds (Copper Canyon Press, 2016).

While at Radcliffe, David Hemenway is continuing his work to find common ground between gun users and such groups as governors, faith leaders, and advocates to effectively address firearm injuries.

This special Radcliffe science event will focus on how AI can accelerate research and development in general and drug discovery in particular. The health AI experts Regina Barzilay and Casandra Mangroo will each speak about their innovative work and then join Radcliffe’s Alyssa Goodman in a conversation on AI’s promise—and potential pitfalls—as we look toward the future of human health.

Phillip B. Williams's works explore Black folklore, African-diasporic mythologies and spiritual practices, and alternative ways of documenting Black selfhood outside of the human/nonhuman dichotomy.

Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela returns to the archive of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to think through the horrific violence in contemporary South Africa.

In this program, Christy Coleman, an American historian, will discuss the power that museums have to genuinely engage with communities around what matters most to them.

Douglas Ridloff is the founder and executive director of ASL Slam, a nonprofit organization that creates safe spaces for the Deaf community to thrive in the many modalities of their native language.

The presidential initiative on Harvard and the Legacy of Slavery, anchored at Harvard Radcliffe Institute, is an effort to understand and address the enduring legacy of slavery within our University community.

The stories of Asian American women extend far beyond the geographic borders of the United States. Inspired by tales and objects from family history, their narratives often reflect the transnational nature of Asian American women’s lives.

Christina L. Davis is writing a book about the politics of exit and entry into international organizations to highlight discriminatory practices over membership in multilateral institutions.

Fred Wilson is a conceptual artist whose work investigates museological, cultural, and historical issues that are largely overlooked or neglected by museums and cultural institutions.

John Alba Cutler's new book will examine the literary archive of early-20th-century Spanish-language newspapers in the United States before the advent of “modern” Latinx literature.

Alexey Golubev's upcoming book project will examine the mass Soviet scientific literacy campaigns after World War II, and why mistrust of science remains a persistent feature in modern societies.

Kiese Laymon will talk with Courtney R. Baker about whether the actual histories of American colleges and universities should be ripe sites for Black American horror and comedic narratives. 

During her Radcliffe year, Tonya M. Foster is completing a book-length manuscript of poetry, “AHotB,” that takes up Fanny Lou Hamer’s idea that “a black women’s body is never hers alone.”

Racial disparities in our carceral systems are profound and troubling. As a society, we appear to be at an inflection point where racial justice is a core priority for the incoming Biden administration and a majority of the public. This program will bring together the compassionate work of a practitioner on the front lines with the expertise of a world-renowned researcher in criminal justice policy.

Héctor Tobar is working on a nonfiction book about the profound shifts in American culture brought forth by the anti-immigrant movement.

How does the precarious position of African American young adults facilitate a reimagining of democracy? What does this reimagining mean for American politics?

The COVID-19 pandemic—the greatest public health challenge in more than a century—has forced many hard decisions. The partial or full closures of schools nationwide have become a flashpoint with very strong opinions on both sides and have reinforced the critical role that schools play in supporting the health of our children.

As a Radcliffe fellow, Jarvis Givens completed his first book that explores the subversive history of Black education, focusing particularly on the concealed pedagogical practices of African American teachers. 

We are in the midst of an education crisis, greatly exacerbated by COVID-19, that is preventing many children from reaching their full potential. These gaps are most acutely felt by Black and brown children. The speakers in this program will discuss inequalities among social groups in schools and society, with a focus on racial, economic, social, and cultural differences, and the role of education in the lives of all youth, including African American men. 

Harvard College Opera presents an acoustic exploration of friendship, feminism, and resilience inspired by the Radcliffe exhibition Accompanied: The Artworks of Marilyn Pappas and Jill Slosburg-Ackerman.

Join leading epidemiologists for a panel discussion as they assess the current and future state of the epidemic. 

This concluding sessions asks a variety of experts to briefly unfold a single “big idea” that captures the significance of the 19th Amendment for voting rights, citizenship, and democracy today.

Ira Dworkin's book “’Imperfectly Known’: Nicholas Said and the Routes of African American Narrative,” will examine Borno's influence on Black literary culture in the US during the 18th and 19th centuries.

Speakers on this panel will discuss how higher education can and should rise to the challenges of 2020 and beyond.

Shrill, an upcoming book and multimedia chamber opera by Tina Tallon will explore the history of voice technology and how bias in its development continues to influence whose stories are told and how.

Join us for a discussion about antiracism in higher education with award-winning author Ibram X. Kendi, joined by Radcliffe Institute Dean Tomiko Brown-Nagin and Harvard College Dean Rakesh Khurana.

Anne Wojcicki, cofounder and CEO of 23andMe, will discuss the next phase of consumer genetics: taking action.

“Education Justice: Centering Student Voices” is the second in a two-part series that explores education justice in carceral settings and through nontraditional paths.

Paul Martini is working on analysis tools and data from DESI (Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument) to address the mystery of cosmic acceleration.

At Radcliffe, Alaa Murabit is working on “Architects of Peace: Redefining the Role of Women in Today’s Growing Security Agenda,” focusing on the unique roles women have in conflict resolution and global peace-building.

“What college does, it helps us learn about the nation,” said Rodney Spivey-Jones, a 2017 Bard College graduate currently incarcerated at Fishkill Correctional Facility in New York, in the docuseries College behind Bars. “It helps us become civic beings. It helps us understand that we have an interest in our community, that our community is a part of us and we are a part of it.” 

Michael K. Honey's upcoming work, “They Never Can Jail Us All: Repression, Resistance, and the Freedom Struggle, a Memoir and History (1960–1976)” considers what is past and what is present in the struggle to be free.

This program will explore how uneven distribution of social support drives obesity; how framing affects policy; and how lack of research fuels speculation and reinforces racist stereotypes.

The speakers in this program will discuss water’s vital role across four areas of modern inquiry: biology, earth science, public health, and the search for extraterrestrial life.

This panel draws together the ideas and growing influence of conservative women, the political activism of gay communities, and the mobilization of Latinx constituencies in the ongoing struggle over votes.

Robert F. Reid-Pharr's work “James Baldwin: The Making of an American Icon” is an attempt to understand how Baldwin achieved his fantastic celebrity status and why his image continues to be so compelling to the public.

This roundtable conversation looks at the relationships among the Reconstruction Amendments, the 19th Amendment, the Voting Rights Act (VRA), and the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

This panel of experts will examine the role and impact of slavery in the North and discuss the influence of Agassiz and how Black abolitionists responded to scientific racism.

During his fellowship, Will Mackin is working on “Animals,” a collection of short stories based on his experiences as a special operations soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan.