Skocpol urges faculty to examine academia’s post-election role

“The Democratic Party needs to be mended, not ended,” said Harvard political scientist Theda Skocpol, wrapping up a two-day visit to UB for the Critical Conversations discussion series on Friday. Her appearances included a keynote address on Nov. 17 and, the next day, two small-group discussions held in Park Hall and a faculty panel discussion in Slee Hall, where she made several bold statements about how to fix the liberal movement in the U.S.

Both events gave faculty, staff and students an opportunity to ask questions and voice concerns about how a Trump administration might affect academic and personal freedoms, scholarly research and the future of U.S. public policy.

Skocpol, who, in 1984 became the first female sociologist to receive tenure at Harvard, shared some pointed opinions about the future of the country’s more progressive politics, as well as the responsibility of the academic community to uphold democracy and civil rights.

A self-described staunch Democrat who doesn’t shy away from her support of Hillary Clinton, Skocpol said her work as an analyst and scholar is informed by decades spent studying all aspects of American government, from the Tea Party to Obamacare, and their influence on health care reform, social policy and civic engagement.

Her advice to despairing Democrats and other liberal-minded citizens: “The states are the fulcrum. We have to think about the middle, not just the national and local races,” she said of activists and campaign managers who focus more on the presidential and Supreme Court nominations than candidates running for what she calls “key” posts: governorships, state attorney generals and judges that the public usually knows little about.

Danielle Johnson, coordinator of UB’s Daniel Ackers Scholars program, attended a group session Friday morning and asked Skocpol how faculty could become more engaged off campus.

“Create more occasions and events,” Skocpol replied. “Take the time to do the prep work, get the word out. We have to be there, out in the community in more traditionally conservative regions, with our research explaining what it means for everyday folks.”

Later after the event, Johnson said she appreciated Skocpol “making a call to academics to cross boundaries off campus and become engaged in the community.”

“We’re going to need all aspects of the university community to help create change: academic talent, organizers, those with relationship-building skills — a coming together of minds in lots of different ways,” said Johnson, who volunteers with several Buffalo social justice organizations.

One of those ways, Skocpol said, is to build new networks of thinkers and doers across all levels of government. “We can forget about getting rid of the Electoral College — it’s the rules of the game,” said Skocpol, who is director of the Scholars Strategy Network, a federated, non-partisan organization of more than 700 scholars from 189 universities that promotes academic research and makes it more accessible for policymakers, the media and the public.

Passing around a pen and pad of paper at the Park Hall sessions, Skocpol encouraged UB faculty members to join the network and “start listening better. Public service sectors at universities and academics need to listen and show respect” to opposing views and organizations. One reason Trump won votes among so many uneducated whites, she said, is the perception that academics are elitist and unwilling to help the working-class American understand their work and its importance to society.

Kristin Stapleton, associate professor of history, also attended a group session. “In these times of political transition, many faculty are looking for ways to share their expertise with the public, and Skocpol’s SSN initiative offers what may be an effective model,” she said.  

Johnson said it was important to her that she get involved in civic matters outside her job at UB, adding, “It took me a long time to build up the courage to do it. The ongoing conversations with various staff and faculty members helped me gain clarity on who I am, and the type of role I want to have in the public sphere.”

Diane Elze, an associate professor of social work and an expert on the health and well-being of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth, attended all three Skocpol events and said “all of them were excellent. I found them helpful to clarify and focus on the steps we need to take to continue organizing for social and racial justice, and to stand up for the people who will be most threatened by what the incoming administration may try to do.”

Elze said she’s working on a proposal for a student workshop on non-violent, direct action and civil disobedience, to be held in the spring.

During the midday panel discussion in the CFA’s Black Box Theatre, more UB faculty from history, law, English and other disciplines joined Skocpol on stage with moderator Robert Granfield, vice provost of faculty affairs, to address topics from Donald Trump’s influence on political science to the important role of the humanities in encouraging democracy. Truman Scholar Madelaine Britt, a double-major in political science and environmental design, and the sole student panelist, spoke about the need for sustainable urban planning to support social equality in U.S. cities.

Most if not all of the eight panelists were vocal in their distress over the election results and how a Trump administration would govern. Athena Mutua, a professor of law, spoke out against “whitelash” in reaction to “the browning of America,” while Gwynn Thomas, associate professor of global gender studies, spoke about trends she found while researching the rise of female presidents in South America.

Jason Young, an associate professor of history, shared a moving anecdote recounting a conversation with his 12-year-old son, who asked him during the election campaign who David Duke was. Young said it took him right back “to when I was 12 and asked my father the same question” about the former Ku Klux Klan leader and white supremacist who has come out in support of Trump’s presidency.

As Young spoke, the only other sound in the theater was a woman quietly weeping in the audience.

When it was Skocpol’s turn, she warned against “trashing the things that worked with the election.” She reminded the audience that politics are cyclical and to pick battles carefully when dealing with such a polarized citizenry.

Her words echoed what she said earlier that day at the group session: “Facts matter, but we have to take them to all people. We have to promote issues that are cherished by nearly everyone, like Medicare.

“Remember, politics is warfare.”