Vanderbilt Project On Unity And American Democracy

U.S. Rep. David Price, who has represented the fourth district of North Carolina through seven White House administrations, shared insights about the changes he has witnessed in Congress during an online discussion with Vanderbilt political scientists Alan Wiseman and Larry Bartels on June 28. Read More

The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy will host a virtual discussion on Monday, June 28, at noon CT about the evolution of the U.S. Congress and how to find issues of common ground in a time of polarization. The discussion will feature current U.S. Rep. David Price and Vanderbilt political scientists Alan Wiseman and Larry Bartels. Registration is required.  Read More

Rather than allowing faith to fracture our politics, it should be used as a guiding force to help unify our communities, said former two-term Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam in a virtual discussion on May 25 with Vanderbilt Divinity School Dean Rev. Emilie Townes and author and political columnist Peter Wehner. Read More

The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy and Vanderbilt Divinity School will present a discussion on the role that religious faith plays in politics as explored in "Faithful Presence: The Promise and the Peril of Faith in the Public Square," a new book by former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam. The virtual event is scheduled for Tuesday, May 25, from noon to 1 p.m. CT. Read More

Presidential rhetoric expert Vanessa Beasley presents the history of the U.S. president's annual address to Congress—and what to expect in tonight's address. Read More

The Aspen Institute’s Socrates Program will host a virtual conversation, “Is National Unity Possible?” on Thursday, April 1, at 1 p.m. CT featuring the co-chairs of the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy: former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Vanderbilt faculty members Samar Ali and Jon Meacham. Read More

Betsega Bekele, MEd'14, helps lead American Portrait, a multiplatform, national storytelling project tied to PBS’ 50th anniversary celebration. The digital-first initiative that launched online in January 2020 is centered on this question: What does it really mean to be an American today? Read More

The Vanderbilt community will welcome a diverse panel of renowned civil rights and social justice activists, journalists, historians and scholars for an examination of Nashville’s role as an intellectual center of the struggle for racial justice, then and now. The daylong virtual symposium will be held on Friday, March 26, starting at 9 a.m. CT and is open to the public. Read More

Vanderbilt University students, faculty and staff gathered Feb. 24 for a virtual panel discussion that highlighted the need for empathy and action to improve the experiences of marginalized groups in the United States. Read More

A panel of Vanderbilt political science faculty explored the factors that led to the Jan. 6 riot in a virtual event, “Dissent, Disorder and Democracy: What Led to the U.S. Capitol Insurrection.” Hosted by the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy, the panel also engaged with the event’s serious implications for the strength of the nation's democracy. Read More

Whatever difficulties we face—in the world at large and closer to home—a united Vanderbilt spirit of compassion, intelligence, strength and courage pervades our community. Read More

The Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries, in alliance with The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy, will offer many opportunities to improve information consumption and responsible information sharing. The workshops and events are intended to help strengthen our collective knowledge in creating, using and evaluating evidence-based research and information. Read More

A new "USA Today" op-ed written by Chancellor Daniel Diermeier urges top universities like Vanderbilt to take a leading role in restoring “reason, rationality and honesty” into the national dialogue. Reflecting on this moment in America, Diermeier argues that universities should leverage their strengths in research and transformational education to reestablish faith in one another and our institutions. Read More

A panel of political science faculty will examine the social, legal and psychological causes and consequences of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol during a live virtual conversation hosted by The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Read More

The Office for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion will host a panel of Vanderbilt faculty, staff and students to share their personal and professional views and experiences on issues that inform “This Moment in America.” The virtual discussion is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 24, at 1 p.m. CT and is open to the Vanderbilt community. Read More

The co-chairs of The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy appeared on MSNBC’s "Morning Joe" Feb. 4 to discuss the university’s nonpartisan initiative that aims to elevate research and evidence-based reasoning in the national discourse. Read More

On the heels of the launch of The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy, several Vanderbilt University faculty have been tapped for their expertise relevant to the Biden administration’s transition, the presidential inaugural address and the predominant theme of unity in America. Read More

The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy debuted an exclusive conversation series featuring a tone-setting discussion on the redemptive power of reason and evidence in American politics with former vice president Al Gore and presidential historian Jon Meacham, followed by a dialogue between Meacham and Condoleezza Rice, the 66th Secretary of State, on the project’s first case study. Read More

At a time of deeply troubling division within our country, Vanderbilt stands uniquely positioned to help unite our country through the advancement of research, scholarship and compelling dialogue. Read More

Former Vice President Al Gore and the 66th Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice each will provide timely conversations with Vanderbilt’s Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-winning presidential historian and biographer, on Thursday, Jan. 14, to support the debut of the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy. Read More