Open to the public.

Or to make your reservation, e-mail us at events@prairie.org or call 312.422.5580.

Issues of race and gender are at the center of this historic race for the White House between potential Democratic presidential nominees Senator Barack Obama and Senator Hillary Clinton. The desire for change and the opportunity to elect the first African American or female president is mobilizing voters to participate in the election process in greater numbers than we’ve seen in decades.

Join us for an engaging conversation with scholars, activists, and youth organizers who will explore the nuances of the race vs. gender debate and the politics of social change. The candidacies of Clinton and Obama have caused political commentators and the media to ask if racism or sexism is more prevalent today. But is this the right question to be asking? With all the talk of “change” coming from the presidential candidates, will this election actually bring about change? How can we move beyond rhetoric and dig deeper to seek peace, justice, and a better world?

Panelists include:

• Mia Henry, Director, Chicago Freedom School
  
• Miriam Martinez, Youth Innovation Fund Coordinator, Mikva Challenge
  
• Barbara Ransby, Associate Professor of History and African-American Studies at the University of Illinois Chicago, author of Ella Baker & the Black Freedom Movement: A Radical Democratic Vision
  
• James Thindwa, Executive Director, Chicago Jobs with Justice
  
• Cassandra West, Director of Communications, Chicago Foundation for Women
  

This program is presented by The Public Square at the IHC, in partnership with the Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago Foundation for Women, Chicago Freedom School, Crossroads Fund, Ella’s Daughters, Columbia College Chicago’s Institute for the Study of Women and Gender in the Arts and Media, In These Times, and the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum.