All News

On Feb. 26, 2012, an unarmed 17-year-old African American man named Trayvon Martin was fatally shot in Sanford, Fla. At the time the case did not attract much media attention, though it has since become of the most covered news stories of 2012. Daniel Maree, a senior digital strategist for advertising agency McCann New York, sparked a massive movement and mobilized hundreds of thousands of people to show their support for the Martin family and for racial equality generally. He spoke at Hamilton on Oct. 17 about his vision for the younger generation’s potential to create change in the world.

Amit Taneja, director of the Days-Massolo Center, facilitated a conversation on inclusion at Mohawk Valley Community College in Utica on Oct. 4. Taneja was invited by MVCC leaders to help create a dialogue on inclusive practices and strategies, and the presentation was also live-streamed to the MVCC Rome campus.

On Sept. 27, members of the Hamilton community gathered in the Events Barn to listen as Kiese Laymon read his essay, “How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America: A Remembrance,” an intimate and personal account of Laymon’s teenage years growing up in Jackson, Mississippi. The silence was palpable as the audience listened to the tale of Laymon’s traumatic past and inspiring message.

Suzanne Goldberg, professor of law at Columbia University, will discuss Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, & Queer/Questioning (LGBTQ) Refugees and U.S. immigration policies and practices in a lecture on Monday, Sept. 24, at 4 p.m., in the Red Pit, KJ.  The discussion will pertain to those seeking asylum from persecution based on sexual orientation and gender identity/expression. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Dietra Harvey grew up in a household where critical citizenship and voting were basic tenets of family life. Today, in the same way she was brought into the voting booth as a young girl by her parents, Harvey carries on the tradition by bringing her own children to the polls every November.

Dietra Harvey, chair of the Utica NAACP, will give a lecture at Hamilton College on Wednesday, Sept. 12, at 4:15 p.m., in the Red Pit, Kirner-Johnson Building. Her talk is titled “More than just some Facebook posts: Voting as an act of critical citizenship.” Sponsored by the Days-Massolo Center, the lecture is free and open to the public.

The Days-Massolo Center at Hamilton College has announced speakers for the fall semester.  The Center, which opened in 2011, aims to promote diversity awareness and foster dialogue among the many diverse groups on campus. All events are free and open to the public.

Amit Taneja, director of the Days-Massolo Center, was one of four national experts invited to review the LGBT Services Office at Wellesley College.

“My name is Helen Sperling. I am a Jew. I am a survivor.” With these simple words, Helen Sperling began to recount her experience of the Holocaust before a crowd of Hamilton students and community members packed into the Chapel. During the course of the two-hour-long lecture, which was sponsored by the Days-Massolo Center and Hillel, Sperling recounted the darkest moments of her life with a vigor and compassion that belied her 92 years. Throughout her time in Polish ghettos and prison camps, Sperling’s indomitable spirit sustained her in the face of incredible hardship and heart-wrenching sorrow.

Dorothy Roberts, Kirkland & Ellis Professor at Northwestern University School of Law, will present a lecture on Wednesday, April 18, at 7:30 p.m., in the Chapel. The lecture, “Fatal Invention: Re-creating Race in the 21st Century,” is based on her 2011 book of the same name and is free and open to the public.