1968 was one of the most turbulent years of the 20th century.  2018 marks the 50th anniversary of that year’s landmark political, social and cultural events--events that continue to influence our world today.  Are you interested in politics, student riots, racism, redlining, civil rights, wild and scenic rivers designations, Laugh-in and popular culture, or advancements in the space program? Have you considered spatial relationships among factors that diminish social equity, environmental safety, and ultimately, quality of life? Then you are interested in mapping 1968.

Since 1865 and the passage of the 13^th Amendment, every time African Americans have made advances toward full participation in our democracy, white reaction has fueled a deliberate and relentless rollback of their gains. In this presentation, Anderson will discuss her New York Times bestselling book that carefully links historical flashpoints when social progress for African Americans was countered by deliberate and cleverly crafted opposition.

This dramatic hip-hop spoken word and dance performance depicts the death and inner life of a young woman, Myeisha Mills, based on the true story of Tyisha Miller. It reimagines the night she was shot by four police officers while she lay unconscious in a car. The two-person play takes a powerfully clear-eyed look at the relationships between race, the body, and violence by following the trajectory and impact of the 12 bullets that struck her—each one triggering its own unique memory.

Performers: John Merchant and Natali Micciche

What is it about the Moon that captures the fancy of humankind? A silvery disk hanging in the night sky, it conjures up images of romance and magic. It has been counted upon to foreshadow important events, both of good and ill, and its phases for eons served humanity as its most accurate measure of time. This presentation by retired NASA Chief Historian Roger Launius discusses the Moon as a target for Human exploration and eventual settlement.

The civil rights struggles of the 1960s led to calls for establishment Afro-American and American Indian studies programs at the University of Minnesota. In 1969 the activism of African American and American Indian students and supporters led to the founding of Departments of Afro-American Studies (now African American & African Studies) and American Indian Studies (the first in the nation). The new intercollegiate Higher Education Consortium on Urban Affairs, or HECUA, soon followed.

With Nancy Gertner, Harvard Law, Retired Federal Judge and Lecia Brooks, Southern Poverty Law Center; moderated by UMN American Studies Regents Professor Elaine Tyler May.

This panel discussion brings Gertner and Brooks into conversation to discuss issues of race and justice in America. The two discuss the roles of the justice system and advocacy, and why the history of the late 1960s is so relevant to issues of violence and race today.

This discussion, moderated by Star Tribune columnist John Rash, will feature family members of some of the 1968 Presidential candidates: Minnesota Senior Judge the Honorable William Howard (Hubert Humphrey's nephew) and documentarian Mary Beth Yarrow (Eugene McCarthy's niece), discussing their experiences of the late 1960s—featuring what it was like to be a young person and student at the time, their experiences being at the Democratic National Convention that year, and the background of the Vietnam War.