Tuesday, April 9, 3–4 p.m. ET
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Former President Trump is facing four prosecutions: the January 6 and classified documents cases in federal court, the election interference case in Georgia, and the “hush money” case in New York. Join us for the premiere of the recording of our recent in-person event explaining the cases with Melissa Murray and Andrew Weissmann, coauthors of the new book The Trump Indictments. Murray is the Frederick I. and Grace Stokes Professor of Law and faculty director of the Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Center at NYU Law. Weissmann, a professor of practice at NYU Law and a legal analyst for MSNBC, previously served as general counsel to the FBI and one of the senior prosecutors on Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Trump-Russia investigation.

Speakers: Melissa Murray, Frederick I. and Grace Stokes Professor of Law, NYU School of Law // Andrew Weissmann, Professor of Practice, NYU School of Law; Legal Analyst, MSNBC // Moderator: Michael Waldman, President, Brennan Center

Thursday, April 11, 3–4 p.m. ET
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A decade of reforms has shrunk the sprawling misdemeanor system, but the prosecution of shoplifting, traffic violations, and other lesser offenses remains a burden on vulnerable communities and law enforcement resources even as concern over physical and social disorder in public spaces spurs calls for renewed enforcement. A new Brennan Center report zooms in on New York City as a case study for how misdemeanor enforcement has changed in recent years, offering insights into the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and reform initiatives.

Join report author Josephine Hahn, the MacArthur Foundation’s Bria L. Gillum, and Michigan county sheriff Jerry Clayton for a virtual discussion moderated by Law Enforcement Leaders Senior Counsel Rosemary Nidiry about this under-examined part of our criminal justice system.

Speakers: Bria L. Gillum, Senior Program Officer, MacArthur Foundation Criminal Justice Program // Josephine Hahn, Senior Research Fellow, Brennan Center Justice Program // Jerry Clayton, Sheriff, Washtenaw County, Michigan // Moderator: Rosemary Nidiry, Senior Counsel, Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime and Incarceration, Brennan Center Justice Program

Wednesday, April 17, 3–4 p.m. ET
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The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world, a dubious distinction with grave social consequences. Excessive Punishment: How the Justice System Creates Mass Incarceration, a new book edited by the Brennan Center’s Lauren-Brooke Eisen, explores the roots and social costs of mass incarceration, as well as reforms that would prioritize human dignity and restoration over retribution. Join us virtually for a live event moderated by Eisen to hear from several of the book’s contributors on why the U.S. criminal justice system is so punitive and what alternatives could rebalance it.

Speakers: Jeremy Travis, Senior Fellow, Columbia Justice Lab // Khalil Cumberbatch, Senior Fellow, Council on Criminal Justice; Co-CEO, Edovo // Nkechi Taifa, President, The Taifa Group // Moderator: Lauren-Brooke Eisen, Senior Director, Brennan Center Justice Program

Tuesday, April 30, 3–4 p.m. ET
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Threats are part of the disturbing new reality of American politics. While abuse directed at federal officeholders grabs the headlines, a new Brennan Center report reveals that intimidation aimed at state and local officials is distressingly common: 43 percent of state legislators, for example, have experienced threats within the past three years.

In addition to menacing public servants and their families, these threats have serious repercussions for representative democracy. Officeholders report being less willing to work on contentious issues like reproductive rights and gun control and reluctant to continue serving. Additionally, intimidation is often targeted at groups already underrepresented in government, such as women and people of color. Join us for a virtual discussion of this alarming trend as well as recommendations to stem the abuse.

Speakers: Anna Eskamani, State Representative, Florida House of Representatives // Gowri Ramachandran, Deputy Director, Brennan Center Elections and Government Program // Tom Roberts, Former Assemblymember, Nevada State Assembly // Moderator: Deirdre Walsh, Congressional Correspondent, NPR // Opening Remarks: Letitia James, Attorney General, New York State

Thursday, April 18, 6–8 p.m. ET
Constance Milstein and Family Global Academic Center
Abramson Family Auditorium
1307 L Street NW, Washington, DC
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Despite high-minded Enlightenment rhetoric about equality and liberty at the founding of the United States, it took until the 1960s to enact major civil rights legislation that codified those principles into law. And the fight continues today to resist the erosion of those hard-won rights.

The Theater and Policy Salon project presents a reading of journalist and playwright Jamie Stiehm’s new play, Across The River, which explores what happened when founding-era visions of equality for all collided with the reality of a brutal social order marked by slavery and patriarchy. Following the play reading, a panel will discuss how that struggle persists today as idealists of varied backgrounds and gender identities try to advance an agenda of an ever-more-inclusive American democracy.

Speakers: Fergus Bordewich, Author, Klan War: Ulysses S. Grant and the Battle to Save Reconstruction // Maya Kornberg, Research Fellow, Brennan Center Elections and Government Program // Jasleen Singh, Counsel, Brennan Center Democracy Program