ACLU of Alaska's Tara Rich speaks to Prof. Brandeis' Civil Liberties class

ACLU of Alaska's Legal Policy Director Tara Rich in
Prof. Jason Brandeis' Civil Liberties class

ACLU of Alaska's Legal and Policy Director Tara Rich spoke to Prof. Jason Brandeis' Civil Liberties class (JUST/LEGL A443). Rich gave a presentation on the ACLU's nationwide Campaign For Smart Justice and engaged the class in a discussion of criminal justice issues in Alaska. At the end of the class, Rich distributed pocket-sized constitutions to all of the students.

Blaine Harden, author of Escape from Camp 14, talks to Justice Center students about his book and human rights law issues

Blaine Harden talks to students about the oppressive regime in North Korea.

Blaine Harden, author of Escape from Camp 14, one of the UAA/APU Books of the Year, spoke to Justice/Legal Studies students in classes taught by Prof. Deb. Periman, J.D., and Dr. Ron Everett, Justice faculty, on Wednesday, October 21.  Mr. Harden discussed his book and related international human rights law issues.

L to r: Dr. Ron Everett, Blaine Harden, Prof. Deb Periman, J.D.

The book tells the true story of Shin Dong-hyuk's life in a North Korean prison camp, and his escape after 20 years. Completely isolated, he knew nothing of contemporary existence - all information about history and the outside world was a stream of untruths and propaganda. Through the lens of Shin's life, journalist Blaine Harden shows the impact of information on our lives, both for good and for ill. 

Blaine Harden is an American author and journalist. For 28 years, he worked for The Washington Post as a correspondent in Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia, as well as in New York and Seattle. For four years, he was a local and national correspondent for The New York Times and a writer for the Times Magazine. He has also reported for PBS Frontline, The Economist, Foreign Policy, National Geographic and the Guardian. His latest book is The Great Leader and the Fighter Pilot.

 The UAA/APU Books of the Year program, part of the Ford Foundation Difficult Dialogues Project, encourages faculty to integrate into their curriculum books selected for their relevance and timeliness.

UAA/APU Books of the Year author Blaine Harden speaks at UAA October 22

Author Blaine Harden

Blaine Harden, author of Escape from Camp 14, one of the UAA/APU Books of the Year, will speak to Justice/Legal Studies students in classes taught by Prof. Deb. Periman, J.D., and Dr. Ron Everett, Justice faculty, on Wednesday, October 21, at 8:30 a.m. in SSB 211.  Mr. Harden will speak about his book and related international human rights law issues.

About the book: Shin Dong-hyuk was born in a completely isolated North Korean prison camp, lived in extreme information deprivation for over 20 years, and is one of the very few inmates who have escaped. Shin knew nothing of contemporary existence--all information about history and the outside world was a systematic barrage of untruths. Through the lens of Shin's life, journalist Blaine Harden shows the impact of information on our lives, both for good and for ill. 

Blaine Harden is an American author and journalist. For 28 years, he worked for The Washington Post as a correspondent in Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia, as well as in New York and Seattle. For four years, he was a local and national correspondent for The New York Times and a writer for the Times Magazine. He has also reported for PBS Frontline, The Economist, Foreign Policy, National Geographic and the Guardian. His latest book is The Great Leader and the Fighter Pilot.

 The UAA/APU Books of the Year program, part of the Ford Foundation Difficult Dialogues Project, encourages faculty to integrate into their curriculum books selected for their relevance and timeliness.

The 2013-2015 UAA/APU Books of the Year are The Influencing Machine by Brooke Gladstone and Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West.

Together these books question the power of ideas and ideology to shape our realities,and emphasize the importance of critically assessing the validity of information.

Brooke Gladstone talks to Justice students about biases in journalism

Brooke Gladstone (center) talks about how she came to write a graphic novel about journalism.

L to r: Brooke Gladstone and Dr. Everett

Brooke Gladstone, host and editor of NPR's "On the Media," spoke to students in Dr. Ron Everett's Justice Theory and Policy Analysis class and Prof. Deb Periman's Legal Ethics class on February 26, as part of her visit to Alaska for UAA/APU Books of the Year.

She discussed her book, The Influencing Machine, which was chosen as one of the UAA/APU Books of the Year for 2013-2014.  During her remarks she focused on the need to think critically when reading media reports on issues related to justice and the legal system, and she encouraged students to look for the, often hard-to-discern, biases in journalism. Ms. Gladstone also described how she came to write a graphic novel, the process of creating the novel, and what a typical work week is like at "On the Media."

Her book is a media manifesto in graphic form, listed among the top books of 2011 by The New Yorker, and among the “10 Masterpieces of Graphic Nonfiction” by The Atlantic. Ms. Gladstone's career includes stints as an NPR Moscow-based reporter, its first media reporter, senior editor of NPR’s "All Things Considered," and the senior editor of "Weekend Edition" with Scott Simon. 

Brooke Gladstone of NPR "On the Media" speaks in Dr. Everett's class on February 26

Brooke Gladstone

Brooke Gladstone, host and editor of NPR's "On the Media," will speak in Dr. Ron Everett's JUST 360 class Justice Theory and Policy Analysis this month.

Topic: How the Media Influences Public Perceptions of Justice
Date:  Wednesday, February 26
Time: 8:30 a.m.
Place: Rasmuson Hall 220

She will be discussing her book, The Influencing Machine, which was chosen as one of the UAA/APU Books of the Year for 2013-2014.
 

Ms. Gladstone is the author of The Influencing Machine, a media manifesto in graphic form, listed among the top books of 2011 by The New Yorker, and among the “10 Masterpieces of Graphic Nonfiction” by The Atlantic.


Her career includes stints as an NPR Moscow-based reporter, its first media reporter, senior editor of NPR’s "All Things Considered," and the senior editor of "Weekend Edition" with Scott Simon. While in Anchorage, Ms. Gladstone will also be speaking at the Alaska Library Association Annual Conference.

Prof. Brandeis continues Justice Center partnership with the federal archives

Archivist Robyn Dexter discusses resources available at the NARA.

 Prof. Jason Brandeis, J.D., Justice faculty, invited representatives of the National Archives at Anchorage (NARA)  to guest lecture in his JUST 250 Development of Law class on September 15.  Regional Archives Director Bruce Parham and Archivist Robyn Dexter presented information on the types of resources available at the NARA.  Students will use the federal archives as part of a research paper assignment on a chosen judicial, legislative or administrative action.

  The education outreach partnership between the NARA and the Justice Center began in 1993 with students in the Development of Law class visiting the National Archives in Anchorage as part of a class project, and has grown and continued with great success over the years.

Regional Director Bruce Parham has been lecturing to classes since 1993.  However, he will be retiring this year after 22 years of service with the NARA, and Robyn Dexter, Archivist, will take over outreach to the Justice Center. Prior to joining the NARA, Mr. Parham worked as an archivist in Arkansas and California, and has spent 37 years in this work both as an archivist and as an administrator. Robyn Dexter and Susan Means, Senior Records Analyst, will manage the Anchorage office until a new director is hired.

L to r: Archivist Robyn Dexter, Regional Archives Director Bruce Parham,
and Prof. Brandeis.