The Democracy Summit
A collaborative summit between The Dartmouth Political Union, The Rockefeller Center for Public Policy, and The Dickey Center for International Understanding.
The summit will host several lectures and debates on the endurance of democracy domestically and internationally from winter through fall 2023. Additional summit events will be added in the coming weeks.
Masih Alinejad: Gender
Apartheid in Iran
February 8 from 6:30-7:45 PM
Filene Auditorium
The Democracy Summit is pleased to welcome Masih Alinejad, an Iranian-American journalist and women's rights activist, for its opening event. 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. Recording on Dartmouth College’s YouTube.
Student Debate: The American Dream: Dead or Alive?
February 22nd from 7:00-8:30 PM
Filene Auditorium
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.
Pratap Mehta
April 6, 2023 from 5:00-6:00 PM
Haldeman Hall 041
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.
Student Debate on Affirmative Action
April 12th from 7:00-8:30 PM
Filene Auditorium
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. Sign up to be a student participant in the Dartmouth Political Union's 23S Student Debate.
Former Senator Rob Portman
April 22, 2023 from 5:00-6:00 PM
Filene Auditorium
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. Recording on Dartmouth College’s YouTube.
Former Congressman Adam Kinzinger
April 21, 2023 from 4:30-5:30 PM
Filene Auditorium
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. Recording on Dartmouth College’s YouTube.
Senator Peter Welch
May 5, 2023 from 5:00-6:00 PM
Rockefeller 003
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. Recording on Dartmouth College’s YouTube.
Nancy Fraser
October 25, from 5:00-6:00 PM
Filene
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 rightwing populism. Recording on Dartmouth College’s YouTube.
The Keynote Address of The Democracy Summit: Former Congresswoman Liz Cheney
January 5, 2024
Student Reception 1:00-2:00 PM
Keynote Address 4:00 PM
We are pleased to welcome former Congresswoman Liz Cheney (R-WY) for the keynote address of The Democracy Summit. Rep. 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. Standing room may be available should all seats be filled. After 3:45 PM, no-show seats will be open to those who were unable to register for tickets.