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Juneteenth: A day for reflection, conversation, and learning
Open palm holding a small candle

Juneteenth: A day for reflection, conversation, and learning

As the Penn community takes time today to consider the significance of Juneteenth, Penn Today also pauses for critical reflection

Kristen de Groot , Kristina Linnea García , Louisa Shepard

Final chapter in a pandemic’s shadow
Person in glasses is surrounded by bookcases.

David B. Ruderman, the Joseph Meyerhoff Professor of Modern Jewish History. (Image: Omnia)

Final chapter in a pandemic’s shadow

Historian David Ruderman was set to publish a new book and celebrate his retirement. Then the pandemic hit.

Kristen de Groot

A virtual tour of architectural masterpieces
Interior of Fisher Fine Arts building, looking out the window to Locust Walk at the landing of the indoor staircase

Fisher Fine Arts Library, designed by renowned Philadelphia architect Frank Furness. (Image: Eric Sucar)

A virtual tour of architectural masterpieces

David Brownlee, Frances Shapiro-Weitzenhoffer Professor of 19th Century European Art in the School of Arts and Sciences, leads a virtual tour of some of Penn’s best-known historic buildings.

From The Power of Penn

Can widespread protests bring lasting change?
A crowd of people wearing masks march in the streets, one protester holds a sign reading "Justice for George Floyd."

Demonstrators march to protest George Floyd’s killing by a police officer.

  • Q&A

    • Can widespread protests bring lasting change?

    Amidst the current protests decrying the killings of Black people by police and demand for reforms, Penn Today speaks to political scientist Daniel Gillion about his new book, “The Loud Minority: Why Protests Matter in American Democracy.”

    Kristen de Groot

    Historian Mary Frances Berry responds to the George Floyd protests
    portrait of woman with cropped hair and glasses

    Mary Frances Berry, Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and a professor of history and Africana studies. (Image: Jim Abbott)

    Historian Mary Frances Berry responds to the George Floyd protests

    The professor of history and Africana studies speaks with Penn Today about protesting injustice, pushing for change, and the history of African American civil rights.

    Kristina Linnea García

    Can, or should, the Insurrection Act be invoked?
    Armed soldiers stand in the grass in front of a low wall behind which a large protest is taking place.

    Military police soldiers attached to the Texas Army National Guard’s 136th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade support local law enforcement during a protest in Austin, Texas, on May 31, 2020.

  • Q&A

    • Can, or should, the Insurrection Act be invoked?

    Claire Finkelstein of the Law School spoke to Penn Today to discuss the history and meaning of a rarely used law, propelled into the news this week.

    Kristen de Groot

    Why violent protests work

    Why violent protests work

    Daniel Gillion of the School of Arts & Sciences spoke about the history of American protests and how they’ve effected change. “I’m not pushing for individuals to engage in unlawful behavior, but if we are objectively examining the influence of protests, we’re being disingenuous to say that violent protest does not bring individuals to the table, that it does not lead to policy change,” he said. “That simply isn’t true.”