Program description:

As the recent election has shown, America has perhaps rarely been divided as we are now. But elections and political parties are surface-level divisions. Our question is about the deep divisions... what's really dividing us and what are the driving forces of those divisions? In this seminar, Dr. Stuart offers his answer in the form of four fundamental experiences of division currently moving American politics. From the status of liberalism to 1619 and MLK to urban and rural politics to God and religion, this seminar will function as a kind of overview and cover a lot of ground quickly. We will deepen more questions than we can answer definitively, but will come away with more clarity and resources for thinking through the greatest problems facing our country and our politics.

Our COVID response for our programs:

Our seminars are designed for the local Austin community to be enriched through in-person discussion. In keeping to this program’s purpose and the times we are in, our in-person attendance follows the City of Austin’s most current COVID guidelines. In-person attendance is offered on a first come first serve basis, and all others will be emailed a Zoom link. If for any reason you do not want to participate in person, please, let us know in advance, so that your spot could be filled by someone else. Thank you for your understanding!

About our scholar:

Dr. Kevin E. Stuart, Ph.D.,

Executive Director of the Austin Institute for the Study of Family & Culture

Dr. Stuart received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin where he studied public law and political philosophy, and was a visiting scholar at the University of Cambridge. He earned a Master of Sciences from the London School of Economics and Political Science after receiving undergraduate degrees in history and English literature from Louisiana State University. He is the editor of the Catholicism & Society book series for the Society for Catholic Social Scientists (Franciscan University Press).

About this semester's themes:

The Great Divides

Polarization is a buzz word and all one has to do is spend a few minutes on the internet or watching TV to figure out why. On issue after issue, we are divided. From constitutional law to climate change to the relationship between religion and science, the spring 2021 semester's programming at the Austin Institute is designed to convey a sense of the landscape, to map out many of the biggest disagreements separating Americans.