In a time of increasingly divisive national politics, the impossibility of consensus calls us to find ways of working together in difference. In this immersive and open conversation, participants hear from transformative justice scholar adrienne maree brown and venture into breakout rooms for group discussions on the topic of how we talk with one another. The second event of the Dialogue Series, this program follows the opening performance, Primer for an Impossible Conversation, and furthers our collective inquiry into the topic of dissent as a mode for building social bridges.

A prolific writer and impassioned activist, adrienne maree brown is well known for her essential texts that explore activism, pleasure, and transformative justice. Brown’s books include Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds; Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good; and most recently We Will Not Cancel Us: And Other Dreams of Transformative Justice. The next text in her Emergent Strategy Series, Holding Change: The Way of Emergent Strategy Facilitation and Mediation, will be released in April of 2021.

ABOUT THE 2021 DIALOGUE SERIES ON DISSENT

What happens when the legacies we inherit are not the ones we would choose? Building on last year’s exploration of inheritance, the 2021 Dialogue Series provides a space to think about dissent and how pushing against existing structures strengthens our social bonds.

Throughout the spring, we’ll consider how we talk with each other, nurture each other, call each other out, and ask more of each other and the structures that are built around us. Through a series of live virtual events, invited speakers and audience members discuss the power of dissent and disagreement paired with connection and mutual care. For the first time, the Dialogue exploration begins with an artwork, a performance built out of a years-long conversation and configured for this contemporary moment and virtual environment. Series speakers include theater-makers, scholars, chefs, media personalities, and artists.

The Dialogue Series is a museum-wide commitment to sustained inquiry about museum practice, access, and inclusion. Each annual series includes eminent speakers presenting innovative work happening across disciplines, panel discussions, and opportunities for open dialogue with audiences.

The Dialogue Series is organized by January Parkos Arnall, Curator, with the Performance and Public Practice team.

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