The Singh Family Distinguished Lecture Series
Christiane Taubira - Uncovering our Painful Past and Recognizing our Differences
Description
Thanks to the generous support of the Singh Family Distinguished Lecture Series, the Faculty of Social Sciences was pleased to welcome Christiane Taubira, French politician, and former minister of Justice (2012–2016) to celebrate the 20-year mark since she was the driving force behind Act 2001-434, known as "Taubira's Law", that recognizes the Atlantic slave trade and slavery as a crime against humanity.
In this conference, we discussed various topics related to race and social justice, both in Canada and abroad.
Keynote Speaker
Christiane Taubira is a left-wing French politician from Cayenne, Guyana. Professor of economics, holder of a license in sociology and a certificate in African American ethnology. Her political engagement began in 1978 within the Guyanese Decolonization Movement where she campaigned for independence until 1981. She was then deputy of Guyana from 1993 to 2012. Under the presidency of François Hollande, she was appointed Justice Minister in 2012. In 2013, she passed the bill opening same-sex marriage, which she described as a "civilization reform".
Moderator
Professor Abdoulaye Gueye is a member at the School of Sociological and Anthropological Studies at the University of Ottawa. His research includes: Globalization, Race Studies and Sociology of knowledge.
Discussion points
- How can we convince those who resist to recognize the differences in our modern societies?
- What is the relationship between the recognition of particular memories and social justice?
- How can States integrating groups that are victims of past injustice due to their ethno-racial difference ensure national cohesion when these groups do not intend to forget the past?
- What is the importance of human rights laws in transforming collective consciousness about the situation of ethno-racial or sexual minorities?
- Does the birth of Christiane Taubira on the American continent, whose history is marked by political revolutions for equality, allow us to better understand her political struggle for the recognition of differences on French territory?
This discussion was followed by a live Q&A session with attendees.
An event organised by the Faculty of Social Sciences Alumni Team.
Natan Obed - Inuit Self-Determination: Working towards a National Inuit Policy
On November 4th, 2019, we hosted Natan Obed is president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the national voice for Inuit communities in the Canadian Arctic. He has devoted his career to working with Inuit representational organizations to improve the well-being of Canadian Inuit. In this era of reconciliation, the federal government and the Canadian public have struggled to match an earnest wish for a new relationship with the tools to secure it.
Natan Obed opened the discussion on implementing Inuit self-determination at the federal level, developing an Inuit Nunangat (Inuit regions) policy and the implications for how Canada defines itself. We discussed ways in which Inuit have worked with the federal government to break down barriers that have kept them from equitable funding and rightful control and participation in essential areas, such as the Inuktut language, tuberculosis, suicide prevention and housing.
Alongside our keynote speaker, a University of Ottawa panel including members of the Faculty of Social Sciences shared their insights:
Panellists:
Veldon Coburn, Assistant Professor, Institute of Indigenous Research and Studies
Willow Scobie, Assistant Professor, School of Sociological and Anthropological Studies
Moderator:
Janique Dubois, Assistant Professor, School of Political Studies
Ralph Nader - Corporate crime, state violence and accountability in the Trump era
Photo credit: Bonnie Findley
A four-time presidential candidate, Ralph Nader has a record of achievement eclipsing that of many U.S. presidents. Most famously, his legacy includes now-standard car safety features such as seat belts and airbags, which have saved millions of lives around the world.
He was instrumental in the creation of key U.S. agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board, Environmental Protection Agency and Occupational Safety and Health Administration. He is also credited with helping to bring about landmark legislation, such as the Freedom of Information, Clean Water, and Consumer Product Safety acts.
A graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School, Nader has helped launch dozens of citizens’ organizations, including Public Citizen and the Public Interest Research Group movement (OPIRG Ottawa is one such group). General Motors inadvertently provided the seed money for his first group after he won a lawsuit against the company for hiring private detectives to spy on him. He used the $425,000 settlement to start the Center for Study of Responsive Law, an incubator for the young volunteer legal researchers who came to be known as Nader’s Raiders.
Now 84, Nader writes a weekly blog, co-hosts a talk show, the Ralph Nader Radio Hour, and continues to produce a steady stream of books. He has never been one to rest on his laurels — nor, he would argue, should citizens of Canada or anywhere else. The stakes are currently too high not to be engaged in pressing for positive change.
Nader brought his urgent message to uOttawa on September 24 at the start of Criminology Week 2018, marking the 50th anniversary of the Faculty of Social Sciences' Department of Criminology. In a talk titled "Corporate Crime, State Violence and Accountability in the Trump Era," he offered both a trenchant critique of troubled times and a stirring call to action.
Roméo Dallaire - The road to recovery: panel on post-traumatic stress disorder
On November 8, 2017, the Faculty of Social Sciences welcomed on campus, Lieutenant General (retired), the Honorable Roméo Dallaire as keynote speaker. After almost two decades of retirement from the Canadian Armed Forces, Dallaire discussed his journey living with PTSD after his mission in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide.
Following General Dallaire’s presentation, a panel of experts from the Faculty of Social sciences spoke about the factors that played a role in the development of this disorder.
The panel was composed of the following experts:
- Hélène LeScelleur, PhD candidate, veteran and 2017 Invictus Games competitor
- Stuart Fogel, professor, School of Psychology
- Andrea Ashbaugh, professor, School of Psychology
- Jean-François Martinbault, intensive case management program coordinator, Sandy Hill Community Centre
Excerpt from Talk between Roméo Dallaire and Michael Enright
Charles Doran - Canada-U.S. relations: 100 days into the Trump administration
Charles Doran, director of Canadian studies at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Relations.
On May 4, 2017, during the University of Ottawa Alumni week, the inaugural lecture, featured international relations scholar Charles Doran, an expert on Canada–US relations. Selected to kick off the lecture series by the dean and vice-dean of research at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Doran spoke about the first 100 days of President Donald Trump’s administration.
Facebook Live: Canada-U.S. Relations: 100 Days into the Trump Administration