OAR Book Talks

Every year the Office for the Advancement of Research sponsors several book talks by our faculty members & external authors.

Spring 2024

House on G Street by Dr. Lisandro Pérez

March 27, Rm L61, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

In the House on G Street, Dr. Lisandro Pérez, Professor of Latin American and Latinx Studies at John Jay College, City University of New York, tells Cuba’s story through the lens of a single family: his own. His book relays the tales of two officers who fought against the Spanish for Cuban independence, a plantation owner who smuggles himself onto a ship, families divided by political loyalties, an orphaned boy from central Cuba who would go on to amass a fortune, a fatal love triangle; political violence, and the ever-growing presence of the United States. It all culminates with an unforgettable portrait of a childhood spent in a world that was giving way to another one. The House on G Street follows a family whose lives mirror the history of a nation. The result is a compelling blend of memoir and in-depth historical research, a remarkable new view of the path to revolution from the first person.

Consequential Museum Spaces by Dr. Bettina Carbonell

April 10, Moot Court, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

In Consequential Museum Spaces, Dr. Bettina Carbonell examines how African American history and culture is—and historically has been—represented in culturally specific and mainstream museums. Carbonell argues that African American museums provide a corrective history that is both argumentative and pragmatic: these museums educate and enlighten, and they seek to effect change. Her examples include a selection of regional African American museums—their buildings, framing devices, exhibitions, strategies of display, major themes, and relationships with the public. Recurring themes examined here include settlement narratives,  key movements, and individuals in political, social, and military history; the treatment of slavery—the African, transatlantic, and American slave trade, and the long history of slavery as an institution in the United States; the status of Africa—the continent and individual countries and regions—as a source of origins and traditions and a destination for reconnection with the past; and activism and human rights. Carbonell considers this museum-based work in the context of relevant historical (written) texts and contemporary theories involving memory and history, corrective history, intergenerational trauma, human rights, and historical consciousness. 

 

2023 Book Talks: 

  • Dr. Erin L. Thompson presented her book Smashing Statues, tracing the turbulent history of American monuments and their abundant ironies to the John Jay community on December 7, 2023. Watch the recording here. 
  • Dr. Oded Leshem, Senior Research Associate at the Psychology of Intergroup Conflict and Reconciliation Lab and The Harry S. Truman Research Institute for The Advancement of Peace presented his "Hope Amidst Conflict" which takes on the bold challenge of answering the question, of how does hope for peace form and proliferate in the seemingly hopeless reality of conflict, and why do despair and fear often prevail? Watch the recording here. 
  • Dr. Felicia Arriaga (Ph.D. in Sociology from Duke University), assistant professor in the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College presented her book "Behind Crimmigation" focusing on race and Ethnicity, immigration, and Crimmigration (criminalization of immigration policy and procedure), aka La Polimigra.
  • Dr. Samantha Majic (Ph.D.: Government, Cornell University), Professor of Political Science at John Jay College-CUNY, and a member of the doctoral faculty in the Political Science and Criminal Justice programs at the CUNY Graduate Center presented "Lights, Camera, Feminism? Celebrities and Anti-Trafficking Politics" on September 28.
  • Dr. Claudia Calirman the Chair and Associate Professor of Art History at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, delivered a talk on her  2023 book "Dissident Practices: Brazilian Women Artists, 1960s-2020s" published by Duke University Press. Don't miss out, watch it here. 
  • Dr. Ke Li, assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at the John Jay College of the City University of New York presented her book 2022 book, Marriage Unbound: State Law, Power, and Inequality in Contemporary China focusing on law, legal professions, courts, and women’s rights in China. 

Past Book Talks:

On September 5, 2019, Deborah Blum, Director of the Knight Science Journalism Program at MIT and Pulitzer Prize-winner, was joined by John Jay Professors Gerald Markowitz and Nathan Lents to discuss her book The Poison Squad: One Chemist's Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the Twentieth Century.

On October 10, 2019, Gohar Petrossian, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at John Jay College, gave a book talk to discuss her book The Last Fish Swimming: The Global Crime of Illegal Fishing.

On November 18, 2019, Alexander Long, Associate Professor of English at John Jay College, was joined by Professor of English Allison Pease and Associate Professor of English Dale Barleben for a reading from and commentary on his poetry collection On Distance.

On April 17, 2019, Philip Yanos, Professor of Philosophy at John Jay College, was joined by Kim T. Mueser, clinical psychologist and professor at Boston University's Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation, for a discussion of his book Written Off: Mental Health Stigma and the Loss of Human Potential.

On February 13, 2019, Mike Wallace, Distinguished Professor of History at John Jay College, held a book talk to discuss his book Greater Gotham: A History of New York City from 1898 to 1919.

On October 29, 2018, Michael Brownstein, Associate Professor of Philosophy at John Jay College, held a book talk to discuss his book The Implicit Mind: Cognitive Architecture, the Self, and Ethics. 

On October 11, 2018, Lisandro Perez, Professor of Latin American and Latina/o Studies at John Jay College, held a book talk to discuss his book Sugar, Cigars, and Revolution: The Making of Cuban New York. 

On September 6, 2018, Richard Rothstein, Distinguished Fellow at the Economic Policy Institute, held a book talk to discuss his book The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America. 

On April 25, 2018, Lauren-Brooke Eisen, Senior Fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice, held a book talk to discuss her book Inside Private Prisons: An American Dilemma in the Age of Mass Incarceration. She was joined by Professor Martin Horn, Distinguished Lecturer in Corrections at John Jay College.

On March 20, 2018, Edward Paulino, Professor of History at John Jay College, held a book talk to discuss Dividing Hispaniola: The Dominican Republic's Border Campaign against Haiti, 1930-1961. He was joined by Professors Chantalle Verna, from Floria International University, Anne Eller and Dixa Ramirez, from Yale University. 

On March 6, 2018, Amy Adamczyk, Professor of Sociology at John Jay College, held a book talk to discuss Cross-National Public Opinion About Homosexuality: Examining Attitudes Across the Globe. She was joined by Dr. Brian Powell, professor in Indiana University's Department of Sociology, and Ryan Thoreson, a researcher in the LGBT rights program at Human Rights Watch.

On November 7, 2017, John Pfaff, Professor of Law at Fordham University School of Law, held a book talk to discuss Locked In: The True Causes of Mass Incarceration and How to Achieve Real Reform.

On October 30, 2017, Monica Varsanyi, Associate Professor of Political Science at John Jay College and Doris Marie Provine, Professor Emerita of Social Inquiry at Arizona State University, held a book talk to discuss Policing Immigrants: Local Law Enforcement on the Front Lines.

On April 20, 2017, Ben Bierman, Associate Professor of Music at John Jay, held a book talk to discuss Listening to Jazz. 

On April 5, 2017, Michelle Holder, Assistant Professor of Economics at John Jay, held a book talk to discuss African American Men and the Labor Market during the Great Recession.

On March 6, 2017, Blanche Wiesen Cook, Distinguished Professor of History and Women's Studies, held a book talk to discuss, Eleanor Roosevelt III: The War Years and After. 

On November 15, 2016, Nathan Lents, Professor of Sciences, held a book talk to discuss, Not So Different: Finding Human Nature in Animals. 

On October 13, 2016, Baz Dreisinger, Professor of English and Founder/Academic Director of the Prison to College Pipeline discussed her book , Incarceration Nations. 

On March 29, 2016, Arthur Browne, Editorial Page Editor for the NY Daily News, gave a book talk on, One Righteous Man: Samuel Battle and the Shattering of the Color Line in New York. 

On March 8, 2016, Professor Emerita Diana Gordon gave a book talk on, Village of Immigrants: Latinos in an Emerging America. 

On February 24, 2016, Joe Domanick, associate director of the Center on Media, Crime and Justice, gave a book talk on, Blue: The LAPD and the Battle to Redeem American Policing.

On October 13, 2015, Professor Lucia Trimbur gave a talk on her book, Come Out Swinging: The Changing World of Boxing in Gleason's Gym.

​On October 27, 2015, Professor Jessica Gordon Nembhard gave a talk on her book, Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice.

On November 5, 2015, Washington Post criminal justice blogger Radley Balko gave a talk on his book, Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America's Police Forces.

Stay tuned for the recording of these events!