Sept 20—22/ 2018

Revolution (noun)

  • A forcible overthrow of a government or social order, in favor of a new system.
  • A paradigm-shifting change in conditions, attitudes, ideas, or technologies.
  • The circular movement of an object around another; e.g., celestial revolutions.

Revolt (verb)

  • Take violent action against an established government or ruler; rebel.
  • Refuse to acknowledge someone or something as having authority.
  • Cause to feel disgust.

Revolve (verb)

  • 
Move in a circle on a central axis.
  • Revolve around: Treat as the most important element.
  • Consider (something) repeatedly and from different angles; think about, give thought to, consider, reflect on, mull over, contemplate, study, meditate on, muse on, deliberate about, cogitate on, dwell on, brood over, agonize over, worry about, ruminate on, puzzle over, speculate about, review
    E.g., the essential being of a humanist

Adapted from Oxford Living Dictionaries

The 2018 Buffalo Humanities Festival will foster a series of community conversations on these and other “revolutions” with a special emphasis on past, present and future movements effecting social, political and cultural change. From the events of 1776 and 1968, through the impact of the tech revolution and big data, to #metoo and Black Lives Matter in 2018, come join us as we examine revolution? versus REVOLUTION!

Festival Overview

Thursday, Sept. 20, 6 PM

Buffalo & Erie County Public Library – Downtown Central Branch
Humanities New York presents “Anti-Social Media: Digital Space and the Destabilization of Democracy”

PARTICIPANTS:

Safiya Umoja Noble, Assistant Professor at the University of Southern California Annenberg School of Communication, author of Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism

Siva Vaidhyanathan, Robertson Professor of Media Studies and Director of the Center for Media and Citizenship, University of Virginia, author of Antisocial Media: How Facebook Disconnects Us and Undermines Democracy (Oxford University Press, 2018), Intellectual Property: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2017), and The Googlization of Everything — and Why We Should Worry (University of California Press, 2011).

Moderated by: Ulises Mejias, Associate Professor of Communication Studies, SUNY Oswego

Friday, Sept. 21, 8 PM (7 PM VIP reception)

Albright-Knox Art Gallery

Spotlight Speaker: Angie Thomas

Image of Angie Thomas by Anissa Photography

New York Times’ best-selling novelist Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give, is among the most exciting and empowering voices of her generation. Her novel—now a major motion picture—shines a bright light on the tragedies that brought #blacklivesmatter to the fore, while urging readers to make a stand against the plague of hate that infects our communities and holds our institutions hostage.

We are honored to feature Angie Thomas as the Spotlight Speaker of the 2018 Buffalo Humanities Festival. We hope her timely call for action against hate will inspire honest self-examination and open dialogue.

Special introduction by the Honorable Byron Brown, Mayor of the City of Buffalo.

Saturday, Sept. 22, 10:30 AM

Rockwell Hall, Buffalo State College
The full festival day begins with a performance by Dan Hoyle of “BORDER PEOPLE” and continues with talks, panels, and community conversations focusing on Revolutions: examinations of past, present and future movements effecting social, political and cultural change.

Click here to download the 2018 Buffalo Humanities Festival program.