Critical Concerns Visiting Writers Series Lecture: Khalilah L. Brown-Dean
About this Event
"Finding Your Voice Is Not Enough: Writing, Power, and the Responsibility to Disrupt" by Dr. Khalilah L. Brown-Dean
Date: Tuesday, October 20, 2026
Time: 7pm
Location: The Crystal Room, Mercy Hall, University of Saint Joseph
Cost: Free and open to the public
Parking: Free onsite
Refreshments to follow
Description: What good is finding your voice if you never decide what to do with it? In a moment when everyone has a platform but not everyone is heard, Professor Khalilah L. Brown-Dean explores the relationship between voice, power, writing, and public responsibility. Drawing from her experiences as a scholar, author, radio host, and civic leader, she considers who gets to speak, who gets believed, and how stories can challenge the systems that shape our lives. Moving beyond the familiar call to “find your voice,” Brown-Dean asks a more demanding question: How will you use yours to disrupt, serve, and build something better?
This project is supported in part by the NEH Arts & Humanities Fund at the University of Saint Joseph. Organized by the Department of Cultures, Arts, and Literatures at USJ.
About the Speaker
Wesleyan University Professor
Host of Disrupted on Connecticut Public Radio (WNPR)
Dr. Khalilah L. Brown-Dean is the Rob Rosenthal Distinguished Professor of Civic Engagement and inaugural Executive Director of the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life at Wesleyan University. She combines over 20 years of innovative academic and administrative experience with a national profile of civic leadership that shapes policymaking, grassroots action, and litigation. Brown-Dean holds a B.A. in Government from The University of Virginia and a Ph.D. in Political Science from The Ohio State University. Whether in the classroom, on the airwaves, or in the community, she remains driven by a singular vision: to co-create a democracy that is vibrant, inclusive, and enduring.
Dr. Brown-Dean’s scholarship centers the role of identity in shaping access to democracy, justice, and representation. Her most recent publications explore voting rights, civic engagement, and the politics of punishment. She is the author of Identity Politics in the United States and co-author with Ray Block, Jr. of Penn State University of a new project entitled Protesting Vulnerability: Race and Pandemic Politics. She co-authored a comprehensive report on the contemporary status of voting rights in the United States commissioned by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies and presented during the 50th Anniversary of the Bloody Sunday March in Selma, Alabama.
Beyond academia, Brown-Dean hosts Disrupted, the award-winning Connecticut Public Radio show that earned the 2024 Gracie Award for “Outstanding Talk Show” from the Alliance for Women in Media. She is the inaugural recipient of the Constance Baker Motley Award bestowed by the Connecticut Women’s Education and Legal Fund and earned the Spirit of Hope Award from the Junior Achievement of Southwest New England’s Business Hall of Fame.
About the Critical Concerns Visiting Writers Series
The Critical Concerns Visiting Writers Series at the University of Saint Joseph is an annual lecture given by a noted local writer and public intellectual on a topic that underscores the value of critical thinking, storytelling, writing as a form of empowerment, and the social impact an individual can have on the broader community. The flagship event of the First-Year Writing program (FYW), this lecture will engage the public, faculty, staff, and students alike in civil discourse, demonstrating that critical thinking and writing skills matter—that we all have a voice, and an ethical obligation to use it as a force for good.
Any questions? Please contact [email protected].
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 0.00
