The Democracy Summit is pleased to welcome Masih Alinejad, an Iranian-American journalist and women's rights activist. Alinejad gained worldwide attention when she removed her veil, or hijab, and posted a photo on her Facebook page standing proudly with her hair blowing in the wind. From that, My Stealthy Freedom was born—her viral social media campaign against compulsory hijab that became the biggest civil disobedience movement in the history of the Islamic Republic.
The American Dream is one of the enduring ideals of our nation. It holds that all Americans can achieve success through hard work and perseverance and thereby leave their children better off than they were. While some firmly believe that the American Dream is realizable, others question whether such socioeconomic mobility still exists today or has ever existed.
Democracy in India, Democracy in the World: A Conversation with Russ Muirhead and Victoria Holt
Mehta is the former Vice Chancellor (and co-founder) of Ashoka University in Delhi, a position he was pressured to abandon because of his public dissent from the policies of the Modi government. He is a political theorist and a columnist who is as recognizable in India as Thomas Friedman is in the United States. Co-Sponsored by the Political Economy Project Event.
Student debates are the quintessential DPU event. They combine student voice with politics, the expression of differing ideas with a free and open environment, and spur student engagement in grappling with the biggest issues of our time.
Does Socialism Work?
Nancy Fraser, a Visiting Research Professor at Dartmouth College, is renowned for her expertise in critical social theory and political philosophy. As the Henry A. and Louise Loeb Professor of Philosophy and Politics at the New School for Social Research and a member of the Editorial Committee of New Left Review, she has made significant contributions to the fields of justice theory, capitalism's impact on racial oppression, social reproduction, ecological crisis, feminist movements, and right wing populism.
A Conversation with Former Congressman Adam Kinzinger
Adam Kinzinger served as the United States Representative from Illinois’ 16th District from 2011 to 2023. During the Trump presidency and immediately after, he rose to prominence as an anti-Trump Republican, going as far as to vote in favor of the second impeachment of Donald Trump and serving on the January 6th Select Committee.
Kinzinger fielded questions from students and community members about this experience, his time in office, and what comes next both for himself and the Republican Party.
A Senate Retrospective
Dartmouth alumnus Rob Portman ‘78 represented Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District from 1993 until 2005 and served as one of Ohio’s Senators from 2011 until 2023. Additionally, he served in the Bush Administration as the US Trade Representative and Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Portman reflected on his career as Ohio’s Senator and his bipartisan work on Capitol Hill.
Governing Under Gridlock: Progressive Politics in a Partisan Polity
Senator Peter Welch currently serves as Vermont’s Junior Senator having been elected to his first term in 2022. Previously, he served in the Vermont State Legislature and as Vermont’s At-Large Representative from 2007 until 2023.
Congresswoman Cheney is invited to detail her efforts to uphold American Democracy. She will reflect on her work with the January 6th Committee as well as share her analysis and foresight on how we as a country can move forward while delicately balancing free speech and the need to safeguard democracy.
Rep. Cheney served as the U.S. Representative for Wyoming's at-large congressional district from 2017 to 2023. She chaired the House Republican Conference, the third-highest position in the House Republican leadership, from 2019 to 2021, and served as the Vice Chair of the Select Committee investigating the January 6 insurrection. She was also a member of the House Armed Services Committee, China Task Force, Natural Resources Committee, and the House Committee on Rules. Cheney served previously at the State Department as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, and in positions for USAID and the Department of State working in Poland, Hungary, Russia, and Ukraine. Cheney practiced law with White and Case and at the International Finance Corporation. A specialist in national security and foreign policy, she is the co-author, along with her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, of Exceptional: Why the World Needs a Powerful America. In her new memoir, Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning, Cheney details her experiences in Washington leading up to and following January 6, 2021.
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