Co Sponsored Events

Past Events

Spring Research Colloquium on Human Rights and Social Change: Femicide - The Disapperance of Women in Morelia 

The Human Rights Institute and The Institute for the Study of Sport, Society and Social Change held San José State's Third Annual Spring Research Colloquium for Human Rights and Social Change. This event was designed to showcase student research and celebrate the work they do to promote social change, influence public policy, and collaborate with professionals in the field. The event included a keynote speaker, pre-recorded student presentations, student Q & A panels, and a presentation of awards and scholarships. This year, Anamaria Arias-Ixta presented on "Femecide - The Disapperance of Women in Morelia". 

Medea Benjamin (Co-founder of CODEPINK): Book Tour & Discussion - War in Ukraine

Whether from the current war in Ukraine, related NATO expansion, or dangerous tensions with China over Taiwan, the world risks descending further into disastrous levels of conflict, including the use of nuclear weapons.  We in the U.S. arguably have a responsibility to engage in a real public discussion about these dangers and our efforts to help avoid global catastrophe.

On Wednesday November 30th, the HRI had a discussion with Medea Benjamin (co-founder of CodePink and co-author of War in Ukraine:  Making Sense of a Senseless Conflict) on her book and the need for an international peace movement. 

The event was hosted live in the SJSU Ballroom, 2nd Floor and via Zoom to the widest possible streaming audience! This event was co-sponsored by the SJSU Human Rights Institute, San Jose Peace and Justice Center, and the San Jose Friday Peace Vigil.

"Women, Life, Freedom" Student voices: Women's Uprising in Iran

"Women, Life, Freedom" is a movement in Iran that has taken storm worldwide. On September 16th, 22-year-old- Mahsa Amini was killed because she did not wear her hijab correctly by the Iranian morality police. Countless waves of international protest show solidarity with the women in Iran for their freedom to choose. 

Presented by VIDA, Office of Social Science, and Humanities. cosponmsored with SJSU HRI.

The end of Roe v Wade: What now for reproductive Justice in the U.S?

Following our series in spring, we brought together this expert panel of scholars, activists, and providers from around the country. The event brought in people from around the state and country to  watch the panel discuss the current state of reproductive rights in the U.S. and what comes next in the
fight for reproductive justice.

Panelist 

Dr. Ghazaleh Moayedi is a board certified OB/GYN, educator, writer, and community activist who works at the intersections of reproductive health, rights, and justice. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin, completed her medical training at Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine, and trained as an OB/GYN resident at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center in El Paso. Dr. Moayedi completed a Complex Family Planning fellowship at the University of Hawai’i, where she also received her Master of Public Health degree in Health Policy and Management. In addition to her clinical work as an OBGYN and abortion provider, Dr. Moayedi teaches medical students and residents from across Texas, conducts research aimed at improving access to abortion care, and fiercely advocates for her community at the local, state, and national levels. 

Amanda Roberti is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at San Francisco State University where she teaches courses in the areas of: women and politics; reproductive politics; gender and social movements; gender, public policy, and law; and, American politics since 2020. For over a decade, Amanda has focused her research on abortion politics and policy in the US. Publishing in several journals, op eds, and media appearances. Her work focuses on the framing of regulatory abortion policies and the strategic use of feminist rhetoric in antiabortion policy. Her current book project is similarly on the evolution of our abortion policy, and Republican women’s roles in overturning Roe v. Wade. In 2018 Amanda received honorable mention for the 2018 Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women in Politics from the Carrie Chapman Catt Center at Iowa State University for her work on the rhetorical strategies of conservative antiabortion women lawmakers. Amanda is also the Co-Director of the Informed Consent Project, which analyzes the accuracy of state mandated fetal development booklets that are part of informed consent for people seeking abortion.

David S. Cohen is a professor of law at Drexel University’s Kline School of Law where he teaches constitutional law, sex discrimination and the law, and reproductive rights and justice. He is the coauthor of Obstacle Course: The Everyday Struggle to Get an Abortion (California 2020) (with Carole Joffe) and Living in the Crosshairs: The Untold Stories of Anti-Abortion Terrorism (Oxford 2015) (with Krysten Connon). He is on the board of the Abortion Care Network and litigates cases representing abortion clinics with the Women’s Law Project.

Roxanne Sutocky graduated from Rowan University with a Bachelor’s on Psychology and began her career working in mental health at Ancora State Psychiatric Hospital. Roxanne’s passion for destigmatizing and decriminalizing health care led her to The Women’s Centers. Reproductive health care access quickly became a passion, as Roxanne worked in The Women’s Centers’ Advocacy Center as a Phone Advocate and at Cherry Hill Women’s Center as patient advocate and financial intake. Soon, Roxanne became involved in South Jersey NOW- Alice Paul Chapter and began organizing the team of Clinic Escorts that support patients and staff at Cherry Hill Women’s Center, growing the numbers and shifts substantially. She also joined the board of New Jersey Abortion Access Fund, where she helped spearhead a new yearly fundraising event, Choose to Love & Love to Choose. During this time, Roxanne continued to work her way through different roles, eagerly learning as much as she could about abortion care and reproductive health, rights, and justice. Currently, Roxanne serves at the Director of Community Engagement, working  across The Women’s Centers with volunteers and learners, helping to support our advocacy work, and informing our communications. 

Human Rights and Reproductive Justice: What is Happening and What Can be Done? 

In the face of state level bans and a leaked Supreme Court decision that gravely threaten reproductive rights in the U.S., this expert panel discussed what's happening and what's next for the reproductive justice movement!

Continuing the Smith & Carlos Legacy [pdf]

The goal of the Smith-Carlos Day Legacy Event was for the campus community to come together to reflect on the significance of the Tommie Smith and John Carlos action in Mexico City, and explore its relevance to today's struggle for racial and social justice.

Human Rights and Reproductive Justice: What is happening and what can be done?

In the face of state level bans and a leaked Supreme Court decision that gravely threaten reproductive rights in the U.S., an expert panel joined for a discussion of what's happening and what's next for the reproductive justice movement!

Spring Research Colloquium on Human Rights and Social Change

The Human Rights Institute and The Institute for the Study of Sport, Society and Social Change held San José State's Second Annual Spring Research Colloquium for Human Rights and Social Change. This event was designed to showcase student research and celebrate the work they do to promote social change, influence public policy, and collaborate with professionals in the field. The event included a keynote speaker, pre-recorded student presentations, student Q & A panels, and a presentation of awards and scholarships.

Social Housing in America Event Series

Over the past few years, a movement has grown up trying to rethink the public role in American housing. Activists and legislators pushing for "social housing" are drawing from inspiration from around the world to reimagine how and for whom we build housing, focusing in particular on building a stronger role for public agencies in housing development. Social Housing has different definitions, draws on different traditions in housing, and brings together a diverse set of thinkers and organizers. As part of our effort to build public understanding of complex issues like housing, The Institute for Metropolitan Studies was proud to partner with the Human Rights Institute to present a series of educational conversations about Social Housing. We heard from legislators, activists and academics about what Social Housing is, where it comes from as an idea and a movement, and where it can possibly lead us as we confront our longstanding and ever worsening housing crisis.

Social Housing and California: A Conversation with Assemblymember Alex Lee

Assemblymember Alex Lee (D-San José), explained his journey to co-authoring AB2053: The Social Housing Act of 2022, in conversation with IMS Visiting Scholar Dr. Alex Schafran.

Social Housing and America: A Conversation with Shanti Singh, Cea Weaver, and Daniel Aldana Cohen

Some of the leading voices for social housing explored what social housing means to the housing movement, how it can be part of a Green New Deal, and what it means on the ground in San Francisco, New York City and and across the country.

Social Housing & History: A Conversation with Prentiss Dantzler, Karen Chapple & Alejandra Reyes

Leading experts on the history and current contexts of affordable housing, public housing, and social housing strategies joined for a conversation with IMS director Gordon Douglas about what lessons we can bring to considering social housing in the Bay Area and beyond.

Nuclear Weapons: Understanding and Reducing the Growing Danger

Nuclear weapons, while invisible to most, pose a threat to civilization so large that it is difficult to grasp. Currently, nine nations possess over 9,000 nuclear warheads in their military stockpiles. At all times, nearly 2000 warheads are on alert status, with civilization-ending explosive power, ready to launch within minutes of an order. This talk will overview the key physical facts of these weapons, the policies - good and bad - that govern their potential use, the geopolitical setting, and how we can pull back from this precipice.

Guest Speaker: Stewart Prager

Stewart Prager is a professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton University, and an affiliated faculty member with the Program on Science and Global Security. Until 2018 his research was dedicated to plasma physics, with applications to fusion energy and, to a lesser extent, astrophysics. In 2018, he switched his focus to security issues, and is co-founder of the Physicists Coalition for Nuclear Threat Reduction.

Host: Curtis Asplund

Curtis Asplund is an assistant professor in the SJSU Department of Physics & Astronomy, and is a Next-Generation Fellow with the Physicists Coalition for Nuclear Threat Reduction.

March for Citizenship & Economic Rights

Demand Congress Provide:

- Humane pathway to citizenship
- Free community college & Pre-K education
- Medicare for all
- Equal labor rights

Spring Research Colloquium on Human Rights and Social Change: Equity in the Age of COVID-19

The Human Rights Institute and The Institute for the Study of Sport, Society, and Social Change hosted San Jose State's first annual Research Colloquium for Human Rights and Social Change. The purpose of this conference was to engage scholars, students, and community organizations in conversations on research, reporting, and advocacy relating to human rights and social change. The event included a keynote speaker and concurrent thematic student led presentation of research and an awards presentation for students, faculty, and community partners. The theme for this year's symposium was "Equity in the age of COVID-19".

View the individual presentations here

Dr. Bettina Aptheker

100 Years of Women's Suffrage

Celebrating Woman Suffrage (1920-2020) and the Ongoing Campaign for Voting Rights. Come join Dr. Aptheker as she talks about all the history and ways in which woman suffrage has intertwined with struggles against racism, white supremacy, lynching, settler colonialism, and anti-immigrant insularity. 

Ann Lucas Lecture Series: Law & Justice

Hands Up Don’t Shoot by Dr. Jennifer Cobbina

Join the SJSU Department of Justice Studies as they present a webinar followed by a Q&A session with Hands Up, Don't Shoot author Dr. Jennifer Cobbina and discussion panelists Dr. Delores Jones-Brown and Dr. Andres Rengifo. 

How to Safely and Legally Record Police

A timely and important discussion about the First Amendment and your right to record the police. Presented by Halima Kazem-Stojanovic - SJSU School of Journalism and SJSU HRI. Joining her was speakers Stephen Solomon (editor of First Amendment Watch), Sophia Cope (Electronic Frontier Foundation), Robert Salonga (Mercury News Criminal Justice Reporter), and Cpt. Sean Washington (Fremont Police Department).

NAACP SJ/Silicon Valley: Die in Event

At the end of May 2020, the SJSU HRI was approached by local organizer Jalyn Mitchell (also of Silicon Valley Law Foundation) to organize a public “die-in” to commemorate what would have been the birthday of police murder victim, Brianna Taylor on June 5, 2020. The HRI immediately partnered with the NAACP, BLM San Jose, Silicon Valley DeBug, and others to inform the public on the Taylor case and mobilize the public to participate in what was one of several powerful days of protest and solidarity building in San José.

The day began with a series of gripping speakers from the public and front lines of local protests.  As the crowd grew to fill the entire City Hall Plaza, clear public support grew with it—evident from the constant honking of cars and airhorns from construction workers several stories above.  Following a silent die-in to honor the life of Brianna Taylor and other victims of racist police violence, organizations and community members seized the opportunity to collaborate—evident in a sustained march that followed to the SJPD and County Main Jail.

ArtLords

ArtLords is the leading platform for artists and activists across Afghanistan and the team is inspiring artists to work towards a sustainable peace process through messages of tolerance and empathy. Their art installations have been recognized by Afghan and international leaders and prominent media outlets.

Afghan artists and cofounders of Artlords, Omaid Sharifi and Kabir Mokamel, will talk about the intersection of art, activism and peace building in Afghanistan. Sharifi, Mokemel and their team of artists pain vibrant and thought provoking murals on blast walls along Kabul streets.

Oscar López Rivera: Two Years Later Resistance and Resilience

Oscar López Rivera's strong conviction that Puerto Rico should be free from U.S. colonial control led him to fight for Puerto Rican independence. He was arrested in 1981, and convicted of seditious conspiracy and related charges, along with ten others who were arrested the previous year. Sentenced to 55 years in prison, he became the longest held Puerto Rican political prisoner in the history of Puerto Rico's struggle for independence, regarded as the "Nelson Mandela of the Americas." In 2017, as the result of broad human rights campaign, and after he served almost 36 years in prison, President Obama commuted his sentence. The Puerto Rican People and their allies celebrated the end of his sentence on May 17, 2017.

Since then, he has continued to advocate to end U.S. colonialism and resumed his role as an organizer, working to establish a holistic community center in Rio Piedras. His organization will deepen its relationship to the municipalities of Loiza and Comerio, working educational and community-based projects.