Community Conversations: Exploring Issues of Civic Responsibility

Facing History and Ourselves and The Allstate Foundation present a series of community-wide dialogues across the US. Prominent scholars, authors, filmmakers, and policy leaders will speak and participate in discussions about civic engagement, individual and collective responsibility and tolerance.

Fall 2008 Events

Marco Williams
A hundred years ago, in communities across the U.S., white residents forced thousands of black families to flee their homes. Even a century later, these towns remain almost entirely white. Banished tells the story of three of these communities and their black descendants, who return to learn their shocking histories. Join us for a screening of the film, followed by a conversation with director Marco Williams.
Chicago, IL, October 21, 2008

Marian Wright Edelman
Founder and president of the Children’s Defense Fund and best-selling author Marian Wright Edelman examines how to make our nation and world safe and fair for all children. She will also offer insights from her new book The Sea Is So Wide and My Boat Is So Small. Presented in partnership with The Allstate Foundation.
Cleveland, OH, October 1, 2008
San Francisco, CA, October 26, 2008

Mona Golabek
Golabek is an internationally acclaimed concert pianist, the host of a syndicated classical music radio show, and the author of The Children of Willesden Lane, the story of her mother’s rescue from Nazi-occupied Austria on a Kindertransport and her teenage years as a refugee. Through a powerful musical and narrative performance, Ms. Golabek will relate her family history and address Facing History themes of identity, participation, courage, and resilience.
Chattanooga, TN, September 23, 2008

Scott Simon
NPR's Weekend Edition host and author Scott Simon will share insights and stories from his reporting on immigration in the U.S. and abroad. Along with student artists from the photography exhibit "The Way We See It: L.A. Teens on Immigration," Simon will help us consider what it means to "Become American" in the 20th Century.
Los Angeles, CA, December 2, 2008

Sonia Nazario
Sonia Nazario will discuss her book Enrique's Journey, based on her Pulitzer Prize-winning series from the Los Angeles Times. This true story of a Honduran boy’s dangerous odyssey to rejoin his mother in the U.S. has the potential to reshape our conversations about immigration. Presented in partnership with The Allstate Foundation.
Denver, CO, September 25, 2008

Highlights from Past Events

Don Cheadle and John Prendergast
Not on Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond

Azar Nafisi
Literature and History

Romeo Dallaire
Taking an Active Role in African Affairs

Terrence Roberts, Judith Vecchione, and Sandra Robbie
Lessons of the Civil Rights Movement and Today

Marco Williams and Whitney Dow
I Sit Where I Want: The Legacy of Brown v. Board of Education

Paul Rusesabagina
Courage and Rescue During the Rwandan Genocide

Justice Albie Sachs and Vanessa September
Transformation in a Time of Democratic Fever

Francis Bok
Escape from Slavery

James Fallows
National Correspondent for the Atlantic Monthly

Jerry Mitchell
The Role of Media in a Democracy

Carl Wilkens
Responsibility and Choice in our Global Community


About The Allstate Foundation
Established in 1952, The Allstate Foundation is an independent, charitable organization made possible by The Allstate Corporation. The Allstate Foundation sponsors community initiatives to promote "tolerance, inclusion, and diversity;" "safe and vital communities;" and "economic empowerment." The Allstate Foundation believes in the financial potential of every individual and in helping America's families achieve their American dream. For information about Community Conversations, email info@facing.org.