The State of Hate - Part One: Hate and the Brain (Three-Part Virtual Series)
2024-06-10 17:00 - 18:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Online (Zoom)
The State of Hate is a multi-part online series co-sponsored by the Friends of Semel Institute and the UCLA Initiative to Study Hate. The series brings together UCLA experts to share new ways of understanding and mitigating hate.
The first installment in the series, “The Brain and Hate” will examine what we know about how hate takes rise in the human brain. Professors Adriana Galván and Mario Mendez will join in the conversation to explore the opportunities and challenges of studying the neuroscience of hate. They will also discuss some of the cognitive processes that advance hateful behavior and how we can counter them.
Click HERE to register for the event.

Compassionate Conversation with Dr. Yasmeen Abu Fraiha
2024-11-13 16:00 - 17:30
CLICK TO VIEW THE EVENT FLYER HERE
The UCLA Bedari Kindness Institute and the UCLA Dialogue across Difference Initiative are pleased to announce a new series called “Compassionate Conversations” featuring speakers who share a deep and humane commitment to engaging others with compassion, empathy, and respect.
The series will commence with a talk by Dr. Yasmeen Abu Fraiha on Wednesday November 13, 2024 from 4-5:30 pm. Space is limited. Students, undergraduate and graduate, from all disciplines are encouraged to attend! RSVP HERE
Dr. Yasmeen Abu Fraiha is a medical doctor with a specialty in internal medicine, a humanist and self-described global citizen who upholds compassion for every human being. As a Palestinian Bedouin physician in Israel, she was a first responder treating incoming victims of Hamas’ brutal attacks on October 7th. On that day she lost many colleagues, friends and neighbors, and in the subsequent weeks and months she lost friends in Gaza during Israel’s devastating military campaign. Throughout this traumatic period in her life, she refused to surrender her sorrow or concern for all innocent victims of violence. Dr. Abu Fraiha is a physician, health policy expert, and activist who possesses a boundless capacity for kindness and love.
She is currently completing a clinical fellowship in critical care medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston as well as a fellowship at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard. In 2019 she co-founded Yanabia, an organization that promotes socio-economic development of the Bedouin community in Israel, while focusing on health, education, women’s employment, housing and community empowerment. In 2023, she was named one of Israel’s 50 most influential women by Globes Magazine and serves on the board of the New Israel Fund. Yasmeen holds a B.S. and M.D. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and an MPA from Harvard Kennedy School.
Please join us to hear her remarkable story as she talks with David Myers, director of the Bedari Kindness Institute and UCLA professor of history.
After the conversation there will be an opportunity to engage in small-group dialogue and processing.

Compassionate Conversations: A Kids Book About Israel & Palestine with author Reza Aslan
2024-12-10 19:30 - 22:00 | Skirball Cultural Center
Join Reza Aslan and Miriam Udel, authors of A Kids Book About Israel & Palestine and Honey on the Page, in conversation on charting a course toward peace and understanding.
How can children’s books and families’ shared reading experiences foster empathy, resilience, and the skills for peace building even in the midst of violent conflict? Join Reza Aslan and Miriam Udel, authors of A Kids Book About Israel & Palestine and Honey on the Page, in conversation on charting a course toward peace and understanding.
A Kids Book About Israel & Palestine by Reza Aslan
What is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Why is it happening? Is peace possible? When kids ask questions like these, are grownups prepared to answer? This book was created to provide context for this conflict, open the door to conversation, and lay a path for understanding, peace, and compassion for our shared future.
Honey on the Page by Miriam Udel
This exquisite collection offers a feast of beguiling original translations of stories and poems for children. Arranged thematically—from school days to the holidays—the book spans the Yiddish-speaking globe, taking readers from Jewish holidays and history to folktales and fables, from stories of humanistic ethics to multi-generational family sagas.
This program is offered in partnership with the Skirball Cultural Center, UCLA Dialogue Across Difference Initiative, UCLA Bedari Kindness Institute, and The Jewish Studies Program at California State University, Northridge.
Reza Aslan (he/him) is a writer and scholar of religions. He lives in Los Angeles, California, with his wife and four kids, so he knows a thing or two about trying to solve conflicts.
Dr. Miriam Udel is Judith London Evans Director of the Tam Institute for Jewish Studies and associate professor of Yiddish language, literature, and culture at Emory University.
More Info: https://www.skirball.org/programs/compassionate-conversations-teaching-kids-superpower-empathy
RSVP link: http://27926.blackbaudhosting.com/27926/tickets?tab=2&txobjid=9999ac80-7a62-4062-8c03-34e08eb7a0b1&_ga=2.158833784.351601611.1732574141-271404573.1731696423
***If you are a student and are interested in a complimentary ticket and/or transportation to this event, please email mferdman@college.ucla.edu.***

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Staff and Faculty
2025-01-23 12:00 - 14:30
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for staff, administrators, and faculty to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Maia Ferdman.
Where: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP. Lunch will be served.

RSVP: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/7rq6y2m/lp/83c34643-6486-4ef7-8876-4febd9cccb81

The State of Hate - Part Two: Hate and Politics
2025-01-23 17:30 - 18:30 | Online (Zoom)
The State of Hate is a multi-part online series co-sponsored by the Friends of Semel Institute and the UCLA Initiative to Study Hate. The series brings together UCLA experts to share new ways of understanding and mitigating hate. The first installment in the series, Hate and Politics, will look at how hate is playing out in our national and international politics. Panelists will discuss what the dangers and dynamics of hateful rhetoric are to our political culture and well-being. They will also discuss what the role of the media is in both spreading and righting hate in our political environment.
Speakers:
Cesi Cruz, PhD – Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science
David Myers, PhD – Distinguished Professor, founding director of the UCLA Luskin Center for History and Policy, and the founding director of the UCLA Initiative to Study
Hate Lynn Vavreck, PhD – Marvin Hoffenberg Professor of American Politics and Public Policy at UCLA
Register HERE.

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Students
2025-01-29 11:30 - 14:30 | De Neve Acacia, 417 Charles E Young Drive West, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, United States
Speaking about political differences during this charged and divided time can sometimes feel impossible. Join other Bruins in discussing!
What: The Dialogue across Difference Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for UCLA graduate and undergraduate students to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences. Using the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally recognized organization dedicated to building courageous communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective communication skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Maia Ferdman. Lunch will be served!
Who: This session will be designed for and limited to UCLA students across campus. Graduate and undergraduate students are welcome. This session is open only to students.
Space is limited – spots are given on a first come, first serve basis. The DaD Initiative will host more of these sessions in the future, so if you are not able to join this session you will be placed on a waitlist for the next opportunity.
Location: De Neve Acacia – These sessions will be in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded.
RSVP link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dialogue-across-difference-presents-speaking-across-conflict-workshop-tickets-1131061578629?aff=oddtdtcreator

The State of Hate - Part Three: Hate and the Internet/Social Media
2025-02-13 17:30 - 18:30 | Online (Zoom)
The State of Hate is a three-part series, jointly sponsored by UCLA’s Friends of the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, UCLA’s State of Hate Initiative, and the Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital Board of Advisors.
Hate and the Internet/Social Media – Part 3 in the series, will examine how the landscape of hate online has changed (or not) since the 2024 elections. The speakers will also discuss how young people are experiencing hate online, and what kinds of interventions should educators, content creators, and policymakers institute to fight online hate?
Speakers:
David Myers, PhD, Distinguished Professor, founding director of the UCLA Luskin Center for History and Policy, and the founding director of the UCLA Initiative to Study Hate
Christine Ong, PhD, Research Scientist at CRESST
Saadia Gabriel PhD, Assistant Professor in UCLA Computer Science and affiliated with the Bunche Center for African American Studies
Register HERE.

Compassionate Conversation with Dr. Adam Phillips
2025-02-26 12:00 - 2025-02-27 21:00
On February 26th and 27th 2025, The UCLA Bedari Kindness Institute and the UCLA Initiative to Study Hate, in partnership with the UCLA Department of English and the Hammer Museum, will be hosting internationally acclaimed psychoanalyst and author, Adam Phillips, for a three-event series, which will include a lecture and a seminar at UCLA, and a talk at the Hammer Museum (see below for event details) devoted to kindness and hate.
Phillips, who has been called “the best living essayist writing in English” and “Britain’s foremost contemporary psychoanalysis thinker” (The New Yorker), is one of the world’s most celebrated and wide-ranging intellectuals. He has authored many critically acclaimed works of psychoanalysis, literary criticism, and commentary including On Kindness, Missing Out, Unforbidden Pleasures, In Writing, Becoming Freud, and On Getting Better. Formerly a principal child psychotherapist, he is currently the general editor of the Penguin Modern Classics Freud translations, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and a visiting professor in the English Department at the University of York.
February 26th at 4 pm: A Lecture, “On Resistance”
Description: In this lecture, Adam Phillips will explore the notion of resistance in psychoanalysis
Location: James West Alumni Center Collins Room; 325 Westwood Plaza, 90095
Register HERE

February 27th at noon: A Seminar, “Exploring Christopher Bollas’s ‘The Transformational Object.”
Description: Adam Phillips will lead a seminar with UCLA students, faculty, and staff that explores the paper, “The Transformational Object” by Christopher Bollas. Bollas’s work will be distributed to registrants prior to the seminar. Lunch will be served.
Location: Young Research Library Main Conference Room; 280 Charles E Young Dr., 90095
Register HERE

February 27th at 7:30 pm: A Conversation: “On Kindness and Hate.”
Description: UCLA English Professors David Russell and Mona Simpson will join Adam Phillips in a conversation on Kindness, Hate, Missing Out, Wanting to Change, Getting Better, and Giving Up. Note that this is a Hammer Museum event that is being hosted at the Landmark Westwood.
Location: Landmark Westwood, 1045 Broxton Ave. 90024. View map here.
For more information and ticketing, click HERE
Seats will be assigned on a first come, first served basis.

Compassionate Conversation with Dr. Jamil Zaki
2025-03-04 17:30 - 19:30 | De Neve Plaza
BKI is thrilled to welcome Dr. Jamil Zaki, the author of this year’s Common Experience Book, The War for Kindness, to join us for a conversation that explores the themes of kindness and empathy as they relate to UCLA & present-day crises. This installment of the Compassionate Conversations series is offered in partnership with the Common Experience Program at UCLA and UCLA Alumni.
RSVP: https://form.smartsuite.com/shi4mzg5/9zpcvk9oPb

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Staff and Faculty
2025-03-20 12:00 - 14:30
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for staff, administrators, and faculty to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Maia Ferdman.
Where: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP. Lunch will be served.

RSVP: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/5rsptyp/lp/06d5049b-2db6-4102-9335-d3927f6610e5?__cf_chl_tk=l3ZYyMeQ7pZ.W4YuFMly3wmDo6gvo1bmDBP9Tlb1lKk-1736965689-1.0.1.1-D0SAoBBbhEqWcIU8sRy4gvPbMcDLV0.oQKfzS73qO5M

Compassionate Conversation with The Parent’s Circle-Families Forum
2025-04-03 18:00 - 20:00
The fourth installment of the Bedari Kindness Institute’s Compassionate Conversations series will feature extraordinary members of the Parents Circle – Families Forum (PCFF). PCFF is a joint Israeli-Palestinian organization made up of more than 800 bereaved families. Their common bond is that they have lost a close family member to the conflict. But instead of choosing revenge, they have chosen a path of reconciliation. Through their educational activities, these bereaved members have joined together to take tens of thousands of Palestinians and Israelis on journeys of reconciliation. As a joint Israeli-Palestinian peace organization, the PCFF models constructive dialogue around shared values. American Friends of the Parents Circle – Families Forum shares the human side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with the American public in order to foster a peace and reconciliation process.
The Compassionate Conversations series features speakers who share a deep and humane commitment to engaging others with compassion, empathy, and respect. Members of PCFF embody this commitment. They will share about their experience of loss, dialogue, and peace building during the hardest of moments.
This program is co-sponsored by the Dialogue Across Difference Initiative.
RSVP HERE
About the Speakers

Layla Alsheikh lives in Bethlehem in the West Bank. In 2002, her 6 month old son, Qussay, became ill and Israeli soldiers prevented Layla from taking him to the hospital for more than five hours. Qussay soon died from the lack of timely treatment.  Layla joined the Parents Circle in 2016. Following her son’s death, she never thought of revenge, but rather has devoted her time and energy to ensuring a better, more peaceful future for her children.

Mor Ynon is based in Tel Aviv. On October 7, 2023, her parents, Belha and Yaakov, were killed in their home in Moshav Netiv Ha’Asara by Hamas. The pain of losing them was a wake-up call and a reminder to pursue peace with a commitment to equality, justice, and security for everyone. Mor worked in global high-tech for 25 years, developing strategies and performance measures. Today she serves as the Israeli co-Chair of the Parents Circle Board.

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Staff and Faculty 4/23
2025-04-23 12:00 - 14:30
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for staff, administrators, and faculty to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Maia Ferdman.
Where: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP. Lunch will be served.

RSVP: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/j67e2em/lp/ea956338-3675-4a61-91f6-a59fbd7e4534

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Students on 5/8
2025-05-08 11:30 - 14:30
Speaking about political differences during this charged and divided time can sometimes feel impossible. Join other Bruins in discussing!
What: The Dialogue across Difference Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for UCLA graduate and undergraduate students to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences. Using the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally recognized organization dedicated to building courageous communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective communication skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Maia Ferdman. Lunch will be served!
Who: This session will be designed for and limited to UCLA students across campus. Graduate and undergraduate students are welcome. This session is open only to students.
Space is limited – spots are given on a first come, first serve basis. The DaD Initiative will host more of these sessions in the future, so if you are not able to join this session you will be placed on a waitlist for the next opportunity.
Location: To be announced. These sessions will be in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded.
RSVP link: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/czf4kce/lp/f65fe8ac-9cfc-48fa-bbe2-ddedf75eb955

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Staff and Faculty 5/19
2025-05-19 12:00 - 14:30
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for staff, administrators, and faculty to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Maia Ferdman.
Where: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP. Lunch will be served.

RSVP: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/jfbspcq/lp/71537e9f-4729-40b7-99cd-5d5468c8d690

End-of-Year Impact Symposium
2025-05-27 13:00 - 16:00 | James West Alumni Center Founder’s Room
Join us for our second Impact Symposium, which will highlight key findings from ISH’s projects over the last three years and will include three panel discussions: Extremist Recruitment: From Point of Entry to Point of Exit, Mitigating Hate in the Broad Media Landscape, and Studying Hate in Fraught Times.
Register HERE.
Full program with panelist information coming soon!

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Students on 5/30
2025-05-30 11:00 - 14:00
Speaking about political differences during this charged and divided time can sometimes feel impossible. Join other Bruins in discussing!
What: The Dialogue across Difference Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for UCLA graduate and undergraduate students to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences. Using the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally recognized organization dedicated to building courageous communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective communication skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. Lunch will be served!
Who: This session will be designed for and limited to UCLA students across campus. Graduate and undergraduate students are welcome. This session is open only to students.
Space is limited – spots are given on a first come, first serve basis. The DaD Initiative will host more of these sessions in the future, so if you are not able to join this session you will be placed on a waitlist for the next opportunity.
Location: To be announced. These sessions will be in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded.
RSVP link: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/akhq39z/lp/358f2250-a787-4d2a-a2e7-d13ed37c9b72

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Staff and Faculty - 10/15
2025-10-15 12:00 - 14:30
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for staff, administrators, and faculty to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Maia Ferdman.
Location: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP.
RSVP link

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Graduate Students
2025-10-28 12:00 - 15:00
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for graduate students to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety.
Location: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP.
RSVP here.

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Students - 11/5
2025-11-05 09:00 - 12:00
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for UCLA students to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety.
Location: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP.
RSVP here.

Viral Harm, Contested Definitions: Antisemitism and the Politics of Listening
2025-11-12 11:00 - 12:00 | Royce Hall, 236
Hosted by the Alan D. Leve Center for Jewish Studies, ISH postdoctoral fellow Dr. Kathryn Huether will present her talk Viral Harm, Contested Definitions: Antisemitism and the Politics of Listening, on November 12th at Royce Hall.
Dr. Huether’s talk will examine how antisemitism is transmitted and amplified through sound on contemporary social media platforms, situating this analysis within today’s contested debates over how antisemitism itself is defined. Moving beyond text-based definitions to examine music, ambient audio, and meme-driven clips, she will show how these sonic practices blur parody and hate, evade moderation systems, and circulate antisemitic affect through the viral logics of digital culture.
This talk is being hosted by the Alan Dr. Leve Center for Jewish Studies. To register, click here.

Compassion in Practice: Providing Water and Shelter in Gaza
2025-11-17 18:00 - 20:00
A Conversation with Seba Abudaqa and Tom Kellner, co-founders of Clean Shelter
This event will feature the work of Clean Shelter, a grassroots organization registered in Germany that delivers immediate relief to displaced communities in Gaza through essential sanitation and shelter solutions. Founded by Seba Abudaqa, a Palestinian from Gaza living between Munich and Cairo, and Tom Kellner, an Israeli based in Berlin, the organization focuses on concrete action on the ground, providing shelter, sanitation, and water. Since January 2024, Clean Shelter has established multiple IDP camps, installed water desalination units and constructed water infrastructure, and provided aid to more than 150,000 displaced people across Gaza.
Seba and Tom will speak about what brought them together and what motivates them in the midst of the overwhelming challenges of Gaza.
Register here.

Racial Exhaustion: How to Move Through Racism in the Wake of DEI
2025-12-02 17:00 - 19:00
Book Launch with Vice Provost for Inclusive Excellence Ralina Joseph
Ralina L. Joseph, a university professor, educator, administrator, and advocate whose work focuses on issues of equity, access, and belonging in higher education and beyond, is UCLA’s new vice provost for inclusive excellence. In her new book, Racial Exhaustion: How to Move Through Racism in the Wake of DEI, Joseph draws on personal narrative, real-world dialogue, and critical race scholarship to explore how radical listening can help us navigate conversations about race. Racial Exhaustion challenges us to recognize and address the fatigue that racial discourse brings while offering strategies to foster more equitable communication and productive change.
Vice Provost Joseph will be joined in conversation by Prof. Robin Kelley (History), Prof. Salma Mousa (Political Science), and Dr. D’artagnan Scorza (LA County Anti-Racism, Diversity, and Inclusion Initiative)
RSVP Here.

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Faculty and Staff
2026-01-13 12:00 - 14:30
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for staff, administrators, and faculty to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Maia Ferdman.
Location: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP.
RSVP link.

The Politics of Migrant Scapegoating: A Conversation on Inclusion and Exclusion
2026-01-29 18:00 - 20:00
Prof. Claire Adida is a Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and faculty co-director at the Immigration Policy Lab at Stanford University. Her research on the topic of immigration and kindness investigates how countries manage new and existing forms of diversity, what exacerbates or alleviates outgroup prejudice and discrimination, and how vulnerable groups navigate discriminatory environments. Prof. Adida will be joined conversation by Prof. Hiroshi Motomura, faculty co-director of the UCLA Center for Immigration Law and Policy, and Prof. Abel Valenzuela, the dean of UCLA’s Division of Social Sciences.
Register for this event here.

A Multifaith Conversation on Justice, Forgiveness, and Compassion
2026-02-24 18:00 - 20:00
In our deeply fractured world, religion serves both to connect and offer wisdom and to foster conflict and division. Over the course of centuries, it has been frequently invoked to justify brutal violence, but can it be an effective tool to advance justice? To explore different perspectives on the topic of faith, forgiveness, and justice, we will be joined by a distinguished panel of religious leaders: Father Greg Boyle, Rabbi Sharon Brous, Valarie Kaur, and Imam Dr. Jihad Turk.
Father Greg Boyle is a Jesuit priest and director of Homeboy Industries, the world’s largest gang intervention and rehabilitation program. Rabbi Sharon Brous is the senior and founding Rabbi of IKAR, a Jewish spiritual community in Los Angeles. Valarie Kaur is a civil rights leader and activist, filmmaker, educator, best-selling author, and founder of the Revolutionary Love Project, a movement to reclaim love as a force for justice. Imam Dr. Jihad Turk is the founding President of Bayan Islamic Graduate School, a preeminent Muslim institution of higher education.
This event is co-sponsored by the UCLA Center for the Study of Religion.
Registration here.

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Faculty and Staff
2026-04-09 12:00 - 14:30
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for staff, administrators, and faculty to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Ariane White.
Location: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP.
RSVP here.

Symposium on Sound and Hate
2026-04-10 10:00 - 16:00 | Schoenberg Music Building, Lani Hall
This half-day symposium at UCLA will examine the intersection of sound and hate, highlighting how auditory experiences can propagate, resist, and reflect social animosities. Bringing together diverse perspectives from sound studies and related fields, the event will deepen understanding of how sound influences, challenges, and shapes the dynamics of hate in society. The keynote address, “Sectarian Reckonings: The Politics of Voice and Song in Post-Authoritarian Syria,” will be delivered by Shayna M. Silverstein, Associate Professor in the Department of Performance Studies and faculty member of the Middle Eastern and North African Studies program at Northwestern University. Her talk explores public reckonings with sectarian violence in Syria from the 2010s conflict to the precarious present, offering guided listening to sonic practices—from chant and song to rock and livestream audio culture—that respond to sectarianized hate, violence, and animosity. Additional speakers include UCLA School of Music Associate Professor Jenny Johnson, UCLA Initiative to Study Hate (ISH) Research Manager Dr. Amalia Mora, and the symposium’s curator Dr. Kathryn Huether (ISH and Leve Center for Jewish Studies Postdoctoral Fellow-Antisemitism Studies).

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Graduate and Professional Students
2026-04-14 12:00 - 15:00
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for Graduate & Professional Students to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Beth Goodhue and Felicia Graham.
Location: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP.
RSVP here.

Bridging and Belonging with Professor john powell
2026-04-15 18:00 - 20:00
Professor john powell is a renowned scholar and advocate in the areas of civil rights, structural racism, housing, constitutional law, equality, democracy, and belonging. He is the director of the Othering & Belonging Institute at UC Berkeley, where he holds the Robert D. Haas Chancellor’s Chair in Equity and Inclusion and is a Professor of Law, Ethnic Studies, and African American Studies. Prof. powell has served as the National Legal Director of the ACLU and is well-known for the development of an “opportunity-based” model for thinking about affordable housing, racialized space, and the many ways that housing influences other opportunity domains including education, health, health care, and employment. He is the author most recently of The Power of Bridging.
Prof. powell will be joined in conversation by BKI Deputy Director Maia Ferdman and Vice Provost for Inclusive Excellence Ralina Joseph.
A reception and book signing will be held from 6-7pm, with the conversation with Prof. powell to follow at 7pm
Register here.

Speaking Across Conflict Workshop for Students
2026-04-17 11:00 - 14:00
The Dialogue across Differences Initiative at UCLA is proud to offer an interactive opportunity for Students to delve deeper into a core skill for having more constructive conversations across charged political differences.
Based on the methodology of Resetting the Table, a nationally renowned organization dedicated to building honest and open communication, this workshop will allow participants to practice speaking about divisive political topics using effective skills. The session will be highly interactive, and we ask that participants be present for its entirety. It will be led by Felicia Graham.
Location: This session will be held in-person only on the UCLA campus and will not be recorded. Location shared upon RSVP.
RSVP here.
