Zócalo Public Square

The possibility that a Donald Trump administration might restrict Muslim immigration and compile a registry of Muslim Americans has raised alarms among ethnic and religious groups, civil libertarians, and others. Ann Burroughs, interim president and CEO of the Japanese American National Museum and chair of the board of directors of Amnesty International USA, moderated a Zócalo/UCLA panel, in partnership with the Japanese American National Museum, on how the mass internment of Japanese Americans during World War II provides a case study of what could happen if a tragic incident were to trigger a federal crackdown against a particular religious or ethnic group. She was joined by Hiroshi Motomura, a scholar of immigration and citizenship law at the UCLA School of Law; Lane Ryo Hirabayashi, a sociocultural anthropologist in UCLA’s Department of Asian American Studies; and Ali Noorani, Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum.

Many foodies and sustainability activists don’t like genetically-modified organisms, or GMOs.  But are their concerns a matter of style or substance?  A recent Zócalo/UCLA panel, held at MOCA Grand Avenue in downtown L.A. and moderated by KCRW Good Food host Evan Kleiman, explored concerns about GMO products. UCLA molecular biologist Bob Goldberg joined longtime Los Angeles Times food editor Russ Parsons and Edward Parson, a co-director of the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at UCLA, in a wide-ranging discussion that touched on food safety, environmental regulation, corporate monopolies and what foods the panelists like to cook, buy, and eat.

Many foodies and sustainability activists don’t like genetically-modified organisms, or GMOs.  But are their concerns a matter of style or substance?  A recent Zócalo/UCLA panel, held at MOCA Grand Avenue in downtown L.A. and moderated by KCRW Good Food host Evan Kleiman, explored concerns about GMO products. UCLA molecular biologist Bob Goldberg joined longtime Los Angeles Times food editor Russ Parsons and Edward Parson, a co-director of the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at UCLA, in a wide-ranging discussion that touched on food safety, environmental regulation, corporate monopolies and what foods the panelists like to cook, buy, and eat.

Comedian Max Amini, comedian and performance artist Kristina Wong, and Skidmore College scholar and author of All Joking Aside: American Humor and Its Discontents Beck Krefting talked with writer Carina Chocano about their thoughts on political correctness and humor at a Zócalo/UCLA event. They didn't always agree on where to draw the line and how to decide whether to make a joke, but they did agree that humor that bullies individuals or targets certain groups is decidedly unfunny.

Comedian Max Amini, comedian and performance artist Kristina Wong, and Skidmore College scholar and author of All Joking Aside: American Humor and Its Discontents Beck Krefting talked with writer Carina Chocano about their thoughts on political correctness and humor at a Zócalo/UCLA event. They didn't always agree on where to draw the line and how to decide whether to make a joke, but they did agree that humor that bullies individuals or targets certain groups is decidedly unfunny.

At a Zócalo/UCLA event moderated by Reuters editor Lisa Girion, Sam Quinones, author of Dreamland: True Tales of America’s Opiate Epidemic, UCLA legal scholar and health policy expert Jill Horwitz, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Benjamin Barron, and Larissa Mooney, Director of the UCLA Addiction Medicine Clinic, discussed a public health crisis that has killed more than 200,000 Americans in the past decade and affects 20 million people today: opioid addiction. They offered their experiences, research, and thoughts on what is driving this problem and how we can combat it.

At a Zócalo/UCLA event moderated by Reuters editor Lisa Girion, Sam Quinones, author of Dreamland: True Tales of America’s Opiate Epidemic, UCLA legal scholar and health policy expert Jill Horwitz, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Benjamin Barron, and Larissa Mooney, Director of the UCLA Addiction Medicine Clinic, discussed a public health crisis that has killed more than 200,000 Americans in the past decade and affects 20 million people today: opioid addiction. They offered their experiences, research, and thoughts on what is driving this problem and how we can combat it.

At a Zócalo/Democracy Internationa event moderated by Zócalo executive editor Andrés Martinez, German lawyer and journalist Max Steinbeis of the Reef; International IDEA senior manager Annette Fath-Lihic and Swissinfo deputy editor-in-chief Reto Gysi von Wartburg discussed the challenges that digital media pose for journalists and for democracy. They talked extensively about the perils of social media and the need for media organizations to build trust, and they warned against overregulating media in response to media abuses.

At a Zócalo/Democracy Internationa event moderated by Zócalo executive editor Andrés Martinez, German lawyer and journalist Max Steinbeis of the Reef; International IDEA senior manager Annette Fath-Lihic and Swissinfo deputy editor-in-chief Reto Gysi von Wartburg discussed the challenges that digital media pose for journalists and for democracy. They talked extensively about the perils of social media and the need for media organizations to build trust, and they warned against overregulating media in response to media abuses.

What challenges are struggling Los Angeles communities facing, and what are individuals, organizations, and government doing to improve these neighborhoods? These were some of the questions tackled at a Zócalo/The California Wellness Foundation event at MOCA Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles. Los Angeles City Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson, UC Irvine criminologist Charis E. Kubrin, St. John’s Well Child and Family Center/Harbor-UCLA Medical Center pediatrician Chris Mink, and GRYD Foundation president Adrienne Newsom spoke about their work and their hopes for the future at a panel moderated by Zócalo editorial director Sara Catania.