"A Right to the City:" An Urban Humanities Public Forum & Debate on Development in Over-the-Rhine

From McMicken College of Arts and Sciences:

The Taft Research Center will host a day-long forum, "A Right to the City:" An Urban Humanities Public Forum & Debate on Development in Over-the-Rhine at the University of Cincinnati on Friday, Nov. 4, 2011

On Friday, Nov. 4, 2011, the Taft Research Center at the University of Cincinnati will host “A Right to the City”: An Urban Humanities Public Forum and Debate on Development in Over-the-Rhine. Beginning at 9:00 a.m., this day-long forum of presentations, round-table discussions and audience interaction, will focus on issues related to downtown development. It is free and open to the public, and will take place at the Main Street Cinema venue at Tangeman University Center at the Uptown Campus of the University of Cincinnati. View the event poster for a detailed schedule.

After an official welcome by University of Cincinnati President Gregory H. Williams, the round-table panelists will take turns speaking about ideas, perspectives and debatable issues stemming from important questions about the city and its citizenry. These talks will be followed by a Q&A with members of the audience. A diverse group of dynamic voices from Cincinnati’s local political, academic, urban planning and community arenas have accepted our invitation to participate, including:

• Cincinnati Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls
• City of Cincinnati Planners Charles Graves and Caleb Faux
• Hamilton County Regional Planners Todd Kinskey and Catalina Landivar
• Cincinnati civil rights leader Reverend Carl Westmoreland
• Acting Director of the Over-the-Rhine Community Council Peter Hames
• Director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless Josh Spring
• Director of Miami University’s Center for Community Engagement in Over-the-Rhine, Thomas A. Dutton
• Director William Williams and Assistant Professor Michael Zaretzsky of the University of Cincinnati School of Architecture and Interior Design
• Associate Professor Adrian Parr of the University of Cincinnati Department of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
• Associate Professor Nikki Taylor and Professor David Stradling of the University of Cincinnati Department of History
• Professor Andrea Kornblu of the UC Blue Ash College Department of History
• Associate Professor Anna Linders of the University of Cincinnati Department of Sociology
• Forum Moderator, Professor Stanley J. Corkin of the University of Cincinnati Department of English

Striving for inclusive dialogue, “A Right to the City” seeks to foster engaged, inclusive and productive discussion about development of Over-the-Rhine as our city enters a challenging time in its history. Each panel will engage important questions such as:

• What does it mean to have—and exercise—one’s right to the city?
• What roles do city-dwellers, as well as urban designers and city planners, exert not only in shaping, but also structuring their lived urban environments?
• How are urban revitalization and urban revolution linked to citizenship?

Each round-table panel will focus on specific themes: civic, corporate, and architectural perspectives; historical perspectives; economic development and social justice; and urban development and design: academic and political perspectives. Each panelist will have 10-12 minutes to deliver his or her perspective on the theme as it relates to Cincinnati’s downtown development. Moderator Prof. Stanley J. Corkin will then engage individual panelists in interactions with one another before opening the discussion to the audience’s questions.

The idea for our forum is adopted from French cultural critic Henri Lefebvre’s notion of a “right to the city,” a concept recently re-elaborated by urban geographer David Harvey.

For additional information, please contact Jana Evans Braziel, Faculty Chair of the Taft Research Center at jana.braziel@uc.edu or 513-558-7367.