The Institute for Advanced Study is thrilled to announce the 2024–25 (In)Justice Series on Just Policing.
In 2024–25, the (In)Justice Series presented by the Institute for Advanced Study at the University of Minnesota will partner with the Andrew W. Mellon-funded Sawyer Seminar on “Just Policing.” In conversation with community activists and leading scholars, we will critically examine how policing intersects with broader societal issues across the globe and explore efforts to reform, transform, or abolish policing. Together, we will gain a deeper understanding of how to build a better future and a more just world.
Join the Institute for Advanced Study, Sawyer Seminar participants, community members, and others for this these timely conversations.
All events are free and open to the public.
(In)Justice Series | Inside the Carceral State: Policing in El Salvador
Wed, Sep 11, 3:30 p.m. CT
In-person only
Best Buy Theater, Northrop
Join for the special in-person only launch of the 2024–25 (In)Justice Series on Just Policing and explore how the complex landscape of policing in El Salvador resonates on a global scale. Our panelists will discuss how rampant gang violence led to the suspension of constitutional rights in El Salvador under a "state of emergency" and how El Salvador has since become a model for other leaders internationally—including in the United States.
(In)Justice Series | The Colonial Roots of Policing: Puerto Rico & Beyond
Wed, Oct 23, 3:30 p.m. CT
In-person / Online
Best Buy Theater, Northrop
Dive deep into the intricate relationship between colonialism and contemporary policing practices. Our panelists will discuss how police power has reinforced social inequality, worsened conditions of vulnerability in marginalized communities, and spurred a cycle of criminalization and harm—and ask how we can interrupt these cycles.
(In)Justice Series | Advocating for Police Reform: Pakistan & Beyond
Wed, Nov 6, 3:30 p.m. CT
In-person / Online
Best Buy Theater, Northrop
Can colonial policing be reformed? Our panelists will discuss how postcolonial states have chosen to instill reforms selectively and block progress—maintaining the status quo, empowering the political elite, and limiting space for public accountability—and will highlight the roles civil society actors and political activists play in fostering institutional change.
(In)Justice Series | Policing, Prisons, and Political Power in America
Wed, Dec 4, 3:30 p.m. CT
In-person / Online
Best Buy Theater, Northrop
Untangle the history of policing in prisons in the United States and the extensive influence these systems have on elections, policy, and governance. How does modern day incarceration replicate the same power structures of slavery? How does our reliance on these systems influence our current political state?
(In)Justice Series | Perceived Threats: Postcolonial Futures of Policing
Wed, Feb 5, 3:30 p.m. CT
In-person / Online
Best Buy Theater, Northrop
Why are police equipped and trained to treat citizens like enemies of war? Pinpointing how the mindset of imperial expansion and domination abroad permanently changed how police treat citizens at home, our panelists will explore the deep subconscious assumptions that inform contemporary trends—all with an eye towards what it will take to demilitarize policing.
(In)Justice Series | Building an Archive for Police Reform
Wed, Mar 19, 3:30 p.m. CT
In-person / Online
Best Buy Theater, Northrop
How can we ensure the lessons learned by organizers and activists today are made accessible for generations to come? Our panelists will explore the challenges of creating an archive that not only records the history of police reform, but also serves as a dynamic resource for future research, policymaking, and activism.
(In)Justice Series | Toward Just Futures
Wed, Apr 16, 3:30 p.m. CT
In-person / Online
Best Buy Theater, Northrop
In the final event of the 2024–25 (In)Justice Series on Just Policing, we come back to the core concern of our project: What might it take to create just policing? What can scholarship, activism, and community engagement do to move us toward a more just future?