Speaker Series
SPRING 2024
All Clarke Speaker Series events are free and open to the public. Please contact us at clarke@cmich.edu or 989.774.3864 if you are in need of accommodation.
IN-PERSON EVENT - SARAH AND DANIEL OPPERMAN AUDITORIUM
Dr. Fred Johnson, III
The Enemy Within: American Democracy and the Normalization of Mob Violence
IN-PERSON EVENT:
Wednesday, March 20, 7:00 pm
Over the course of American history, different groups have been essentially abandoned in times of social and civil difficulty, as legislators, law enforcement, and others symbolizing the guardrails of democracy have either looked the other way or, worse, contributed to the problem. Dr. Johnson will discuss examples of this throughout history, including the normalization of vigilante mob violence as seen in the lynchings that Congress failed to address in a meaningful way from the Civil War up to and through the 20th century.
Dr. Fred Johnson, III, is the Guy Vander Jagt '53 Professor of History at Hope College.
A reception will follow in the Clarke Historical Library.