Applied Democracy Exchanges

The David Mathews Center for Civic Lifeis a 501(c)(3) nonprofit located in Montevallo, Alabama. We firmly believe that Alabamians should be involved in making decisions that affect themselves and their communities. However, rather than advocateforAlabamians, we workwithAlabamians and Alabama communities as they seek to work better together. We encourage you to check out our website at mathewscenter.org.

The David Mathews Center for Civic Life

Discussing the Perils and Promises of Democracy at Home and Abroad

These monthly discussions, held every third Thursday, will focus on the current perils and future promises of democracy in the U.S. and abroad. These discussions will focus on a unique, democracy-related theme each month. We are particularly interested in bridging the gap between theory and practice, bringing together both researchers of democracy and its practitioners on the ground. Guest speakers and practitioners will include journalists, teachers, researchers, and everyday people from all over the world. What they all have in common is a deep belief in democracy and a shared concern for its future.Dr. David Mathews will be joining us for these conversations and we'd love to have you as well! This event is free and open to the public. Join here: <a href="https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81753776544" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81753776544</a>

<h3>2﻿023 Discussion Topics and Speakers</h3>J﻿une 15th - &quot;Communities as Classrooms, Students as Citizens&quot;How can we create innovative ways to expand civic education beyond the classic classroom setting, inspiring the next generation of leaders? In this exchange, we will be featuring Auburn University&#x27;s <a href="https://cla.auburn.edu/cah/programs/living-democracy/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Living Democracy</a> program, an immersive summer civic experience serving the areas of Camden, Chatom, Collinsville, and Elba. Join faculty mentors, Mark Wilson and Nan Fairley, past and present student interns, and community partners to learn about the impact of the students&#x27; civic learning experiences. ---May 18th - &quot;Trust and Justice: Reviving the Public Responsibility to Maintain Legitimate Legal Systems&quot;What role does trust play in maintaining a healthy relationship between legal systems and the citizens they govern? How can citizens act to ensure accountability throughout the legal institutions that govern their everyday lives? How does democracy suffer when individuals don&#x27;t believe they are given a fair shot in the courts? These are some of the questions we will consider in this Applied Democracy Exchange. Participants will hear from:<ul><li>Carla Crowder, the Executive Director of <a href="https://alabamaappleseed.org" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Alabama Appleseed</a>, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to work to achieve justice and equity for all Alabamians. Alabama Appleseed advocates for criminal justice reforms in our state&#x27;s criminal legal system, and the organization has achieved extraordinary results for individuals sentenced to die in prison under Alabama&#x27;s Habitual Felony Offender Act (HFOA).</li><li> Thomas Rains, the Executive Director of the<a href="https://www.thejohnsoninstitute.org" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer"> Judge Frank M. Johnson, Jr. Institute</a>. TheJohnson Institute was founded in Montgomery, Alabama in 2019 and has become an award-winning, non-partisan voice sharing stories of our Constitution and Judiciary through programs that illuminate issues and perspectives, foster thoughtful and civil discourse, and inspire our national community in our nation’s never-ending pursuit of a more perfect union.</li></ul>---April 20th - &quot;Building A Durable Life: The Impact of Social Infrastructure on Alabama&#x27;s Public Health &amp; Civic Life&quot;The nuanced role that our social lives and built environments play in determining our health is often ignored, putting us at great peril. Considering the lived experiences of people, along with the spaces, networks, and cultural contexts in which they occur, is vital to understanding and treating both our physical deterioration and social immobility. <ul><li>Dr. John Dorsey, Founder and Executive Director of <a href="https://www.projecthsf.org/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Project Horseshoe Farm</a>.</li><li>Kristin Boggs, Executive Director of the <a href="https://asfalabama.org/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Alabama Schweitzer Fellowship</a>.</li></ul>---March 16th - &quot;100 Years and Counting: Women’s Advancement in Alabama&quot;In 1920, the U.S. ratified the 19th amendment which granted women the right to vote; however, women have played a pivotal role in our nation’s democracy long before this ruling. Over a century later, women still face challenges in democracy with mounting barriers unknown to their male peers. Join us as we examine the pivotal roles women have taken in our nation’s democracy and the efforts made by modern women to overcome these pervasive gendered issues. <ul><li>Dr. Valerie Pope Burnes, Professor of History at the University of West Alabama, and executive secretary for the <a href="http://www.awhf.org/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Alabama Women&#x27;s Hall of Fame</a></li><li>Heather Daniels-Whitson, Director of Digital Media at Alabama Public Television, and contributor to <a href="https://mathewscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Votes-for-Women-Suffrage-1915.pdf" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Votes for Women: Suffrage 1915</a>.</li></ul>---February 16th - &quot;Research and Reckoning: Uncovering the Hidden Histories of Marginalized Communities&quot;In this exchange, we&#x27;ll be featuring Alabamians who have done incredible work recovering and confronting legacies of racial injustice in their own communities. Guests will include:<ul><li>Kathy King, who co-founded the <a href="https://themontevallolegacyproject.com" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Montevallo Legacy Project </a>(MLP) to protect, preserve, interpret, and educate about the history and culture of under-represented communities in Montevallo. MLP is guided by their belief in the healing power of stories, as evidenced by their recent publication, <a href="https://www.mathewscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Untold-Stories-of-Black-Montevallo.pdf" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Untold Stories of Black Montevallo</a>, a thoroughly-researched anthology of local histories forgotten to time.</li></ul>---January 19th - &quot;A Free Press: Examining the Role of Journalism in a Functioning Democracy&quot;In this exchange, we&#x27;ll be featuring the <a href="https://alabamahumanities.org/program/democracy-and-the-informed-citizen/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Democracy and the Informed Citizen Podcast</a>, which shares the stories of the <a href="https://pacersinc.wordpress.com/about/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">PACERS</a> network of community journalists who use local newspapers to help revitalize their rural Alabama towns. Guests will include:<ul><li>Nan Fairley, associate professor of Journalism at Auburn University and representative of the PACERS network.</li><li> Laura Anderson, Program Director at the Alabama Humanities Alliance, and co-producer of the Democracy and the Informed Citizen Podcast.</li></ul>

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Applied Democracy Exchanges

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