Zócalo Public Square

Barack Obama was president of the United States for eight years, and the broad outlines of his story—his Hawaiian birth, his fatherless childhood, his education at elite institutions, his work as a community organizer and politician in Chicago—are now familiar elements of American history. But even today, Obama retains a remarkable mystique, and can seem unknowable. All leaders must create narratives around themselves, but Obama’s is especially dense and complicated. Who is Barack Obama? How did he construct his own identity—and what did that construction mean for the way he governed America? David J. Garrow, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Rising Star: The Making of Barack Obama, sat down with Warren Olney at Zócalo to unpack the peculiar origin story of the American president in a Zócalo/KCRW “Critical Thinking with Warren Olney” event titled "How Did Barack Obama Create Himself?" at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in downtown Los Angeles.

By many measures of personal happiness, job satisfaction, and pride in their communities and their state, Hawaii residents rank near the top among all Americans. Yet this doesn’t translate into high levels of civic engagement. Hawaii consistently sits near the bottom in participation in national elections, and ranks low in charitable giving and volunteering. Dean of the Pepperdine School of Public Policy Pete Peterson, director of the Hawaii Government Employees Association Randy Perreira, and Barbara Ankersmit, president of research at marketing and communications firm Anthology, joined moderator Gina Mangieri, a KHON2 investigative reporter, in a Zócalo/Daniel K. Inouye Institute “Pau Hana” Event panel discussion titled “If We Love Hawaii So Much, Why Don’t We Vote?” on Nov. 29, 2017 at Artistry Honolulu.

By many measures of personal happiness, job satisfaction, and pride in their communities and their state, Hawaii residents rank near the top among all Americans. Yet this doesn’t translate into high levels of civic engagement. Hawaii consistently sits near the bottom in participation in national elections, and ranks low in charitable giving and volunteering. Dean of the Pepperdine School of Public Policy Pete Peterson, director of the Hawaii Government Employees Association Randy Perreira, and Barbara Ankersmit, president of research at marketing and communications firm Anthology, joined moderator Gina Mangieri, a KHON2 investigative reporter, in a Zócalo/Daniel K. Inouye Institute “Pau Hana” Event panel discussion titled “If We Love Hawaii So Much, Why Don’t We Vote?” on Nov. 29, 2017 at Artistry Honolulu.

As America retreats from global leadership—blowing up trade agreements, questioning longstanding security alliances, dropping out of the Paris climate accord—China is stepping into the void. Yet for all its advances, China remains a developing country itself, with one of the world’s most repressive governments. UCLA Anderson economist Jerry Nickelsburg, biotech executive Yiwen Li, UCLA Anderson business administration scholar Christopher S. Tang, and UC San Diego political economist Ruixue Jia, along with moderator Julie Makinen, former Beijing Bureau Chief of the Los Angeles Times, on Nov. 16, 2017 took part in a Zócalo/UCLA panel discussion titled “Is China Prepared to Lead the Global Economy?” at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in downtown Los Angeles.

As America retreats from global leadership—blowing up trade agreements, questioning longstanding security alliances, dropping out of the Paris climate accord—China is stepping into the void. Yet for all its advances, China remains a developing country itself, with one of the world’s most repressive governments. UCLA Anderson economist Jerry Nickelsburg, biotech executive Yiwen Li, UCLA Anderson business administration scholar Christopher S. Tang, and UC San Diego political economist Ruixue Jia, along with moderator Julie Makinen, former Beijing Bureau Chief of the Los Angeles Times, on Nov. 16, 2017 took part in a Zócalo/UCLA panel discussion titled “Is China Prepared to Lead the Global Economy?” at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in downtown Los Angeles.

North Korea test-fires intercontinental missiles that may be able to reach the U.S. West Coast. Kim Jong Un threatens Guam, tangles with China, and conducts a nuclear test of what his country claims is a hydrogen bomb. And in America, a dysfunctional and internationally unpopular White House answers North Korean provocations with threats of “unprecedented fire and fury.” How close is the world to a calamity on the Korean peninsula? UCLA Korea historian John Duncan, senior advisor at the nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation collaborative N Square Paul Carroll, cultural researcher at UCLA film school Suk-Young Kim, CEO of Liberty in North Korea Hannah Song, and moderator Jean H. Lee, former Pyongyang Bureau Chief of the Associated Press, visited Zócalo on Oct. 24, 2017 to discuss the looming threat, and potential aftermath, of a renewed Korean war in a Zócalo/UCLA panel discussion titled “Is War With North Korea Inevitable?” at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in downtown Los Angeles.

North Korea test-fires intercontinental missiles that may be able to reach the U.S. West Coast. Kim Jong Un threatens Guam, tangles with China, and conducts a nuclear test of what his country claims is a hydrogen bomb. And in America, a dysfunctional and internationally unpopular White House answers North Korean provocations with threats of “unprecedented fire and fury.” How close is the world to a calamity on the Korean peninsula? UCLA Korea historian John Duncan, senior advisor at the nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation collaborative N Square Paul Carroll, cultural researcher at UCLA film school Suk-Young Kim, CEO of Liberty in North Korea Hannah Song, and moderator Jean H. Lee, former Pyongyang Bureau Chief of the Associated Press, visited Zócalo on Oct. 24, 2017 to discuss the looming threat, and potential aftermath, of a renewed Korean war in a Zócalo/UCLA panel discussion titled “Is War With North Korea Inevitable?” at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in downtown Los Angeles.

Housing never has been more valuable than it is in today’s California—the average Golden State home is worth nearly a half-million dollars, more than two-and-a-half times the national average. But what are the hidden costs of this over-the-top home equity to California, its economy, and the aspirations of longtime residents as well as newcomers? What kind of pressures do soaring housing costs place on Californians—from young families struggling to buy first homes and achieve financial security, to older working people who want to retire but fear whether they can afford to keep living here? How much of a factor are housing prices in the decisions of Californians to live farther from their jobs or depart the state entirely? These and other questions were discussed by California Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León, AARP housing policy expert Rodney Harrell, executive director of Housing California Lisa Hershey, and dean of the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs Gary Segura during a Zócalo / AARP event, titled “Are Housing Prices Destroying the California Dream?” on October 12, 2017 at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in Los Angeles.

Housing never has been more valuable than it is in today’s California—the average Golden State home is worth nearly a half-million dollars, more than two-and-a-half times the national average. But what are the hidden costs of this over-the-top home equity to California, its economy, and the aspirations of longtime residents as well as newcomers? What kind of pressures do soaring housing costs place on Californians—from young families struggling to buy first homes and achieve financial security, to older working people who want to retire but fear whether they can afford to keep living here? How much of a factor are housing prices in the decisions of Californians to live farther from their jobs or depart the state entirely? These and other questions were discussed by California Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León, AARP housing policy expert Rodney Harrell, executive director of Housing California Lisa Hershey, and dean of the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs Gary Segura during a Zócalo / AARP event, titled “Are Housing Prices Destroying the California Dream?” on October 12, 2017 at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in Los Angeles.

America’s college campuses have become crucial testing grounds—and, at times, battlegrounds—as the country grapples with rapidly changing modes and mores of sexual behavior and expression. Fraternities are being scrutinized for promoting a culture of alcohol-fueled male privilege and presumption. Lecture halls and quads ring out with passionate debates about how to set the ground rules for sexual consent. Academic officials are being called to act as judges and arbiters over some of the most intimate aspects of students’ lives. Vanessa Grigoriadis, contributing editor at The New York Times Magazine and author of Blurred Lines: Rethinking Sex, Power, and Consent on Campus, explored these trends, as well as the written and unwritten rules of sexual engagement, at a Zócalo event, “Are College Campuses Rewriting the Rules of Sex in America?” on October 11, 2017 at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in Los Angeles.