By Hannah McCollum
Oct. 19-21, 2017, Gonzaga University will host the Fourth International Conference on Hate Studies. The interdisciplinary academic forum tackles the topic of hate and related social issues, and the ways to combat it. Notable academics from around the world, activists, journalists, representatives of governmental and non-governmental organizations, law enforcement personnel and experts in human rights and other fields will present on the theme “Engaging with Communities for Justice.”
The conference is sponsored by the Gonzaga University Institute for Hate Studies, the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations and the Spokane County Human Rights Task Force.
The purpose of the conference is stated as:
If hate is understood better, then approaches to combat it can increasingly become testable theories, and then analyzed and improved. The result can have real-world impact, including creating models for changes in society, government, culture and our individual and communal lives.
The first International Conference on Hate Studies was held at Gonzaga in 2004 and helped establish the field of hate studies; the Gonzaga Institute for Hate Studies, founded in 1997, is the first academic program of hate studies in the nation.
The second conference, held in 2011, built on the success of the first and featured Hannah Rosenthal as a speaker. Rosenthal served as the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism during the Obama administration. The transcript of her speech is available on the U.S. Department of State archives website.
Current Gonzaga students, faculty and staff are welcome to attend the conference and events for free. Special pricing is available to high school and college students and to individuals who work for community service organizations, are employed in public interest, or are clergy members. The deadline for early attendee registration is Sept. 15; the regular price is $150. Register for the conference here.
More information on the Fourth International Conference on Hate Studies, including the schedule of events and suggested hotel accommodations, is available here.
