Events

Watch: As part of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging speaker series, Heather McGhee talks to Kenji Yoshino about the importance of transcending zero-sum thinking and building solidarity.

Speaker Series

The Meltzer Center offers an annual speaker series featuring leaders from academia and the public and private sectors on a range of topics relating to diversity and inclusion. Speakers for the 2024-25 academic year are:

  • Michèle Lamont, Professor of Sociology and of African and African American Studies and the Robert I. Goldman Professor of European Studies at Harvard University and author of Seeing Others: How Recognition Works—and How It Can Heal a Divided World (2023). [October 22, 2024] RSVP for the event.
  • Eboo Patel, Founder and President of Interfaith America and author of We Need to Build: Field Notes for Diverse Democracy (2022). [November 12, 2024]
  • Deborah Archer, President of the ACLU and Margaret B. Hoppin Professor of Clinical Law at NYU School of Law. [April 15, 2025]
  • Sherrilyn Ifill ’87 Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., Esq. Endowed Chair in Civil Rights and former president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. (Spring 2025)

 

Past Speakers

 

2023-2024

Speakers for the 2023-24 academic year were:

2022-2023

Speakers for the 2022-23 academic year were:

  • Loretta J. Ross, Professor at Smith College in the Program for the Study of Women and Gender and author of several books on reproductive justice. [October 6, 2022]. Watch the recording.
  • Dolly Chugh, Jacob. B. Melnick Term Professor at NYU Stern School of Business and author of A More Just Future (forthcoming, 2022). [October 27, 2022]. Watch the recording.
  • Suzanne Nossel, Chief Executive Officer of PEN America and author of Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All (2020). [March 7, 2023]. Watch the recording.
  • Heather McGhee, Author of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together (2021). [April 19, 2023]. Watch the recording.
2021-2022

Speakers for the 2021-22 academic year were:

2020-2021

Speakers for the 2020-21 academic year were:

2019-2020

Speakers for 2019-20 academic year were:

  • Kwame Anthony Appiah, Professor of Philosophy and Law at NYU School of Law [September 26, 2019]. Watch the video.
  • Katherine Phillips, Reuben Mark Professor of Organizational Character at Columbia Business School, and Director of the Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Center for Leadership & Ethics at Columbia Business School [October 29, 2019]. Watch the video.
  • Dolly Chugh, Associate Professor of Management and Organizations at NYU Stern School of Business and author of The Person You Mean To Be: How Good People Fight Bias (2018) [February 20, 2020]. Watch the video.
2018-2019

Speakers for the 2018-19 academic year were:

2017-2018

Speakers for the 2017-18 academic year were:

  • Arlie Russell Hochschild, Professor Emerita at UC Berkeley Sociology Department and author of Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right (2016) [November 6, 2017]. Read about the event.
  • Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court [February 5, 2018]. Watch the video.
  • Chris Hayes, Emmy Award-winning host of All In with Chris Hayes on MSNBC and author of A Colony in a Nation (2017) [March 22, 2018]. Watch the video.
  • Mahzarin Banaji, Richard Clarke Cabot Professor of Social Ethics at Harvard University and author (with Anthony Greenwald) of Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People (2013) [April 12, 2018].
2016-2017

Speakers for the 2016-17 academic year were:

Other Events

To watch some of our other events, go to our playlist on the NYU Law YouTube channel.

The Meltzer Center is delighted to partner with groups at the Law School on events consistent with our mission. If you would like the Meltzer Center to co-sponsor an event with your group, please complete a survey.