The Takeaway

How Poetry Marches Democracy Forward

Spoken Word Artists Discuss the Power of Language in a ‘Post-Truth’ Nation

The connection between poems and American politics runs deep. Presidents from John Quincy Adams to Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama are published poets. Poets help usher in new presidential eras at inaugural ceremonies and inspire (and participate in) on-the-ground activism. Poems, even, insofar as they trade in hope, uncertainty, and the art of persuasion, are like political campaigns.

But does our democracy need poets? This was the question guiding a Zócalo/Da Poetry Lounge spoken word performance and conversation last night at ASU California Center in downtown Los Angeles.

Beau Sia opened the …

by Talib Jabbar |

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More In: The Takeaway

A Feminist-Led Uprising Brings the World to Iran’s Fight | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

A Feminist-Led Uprising Brings the World to Iran’s Fight

This Time Around, Social Media and Youth Fuel the Call for “Women, Life, Freedom”

by Talib Jabbar |

Last night, a quartet of Iranian women took the Zócalo stage to discuss the uprising in Iran, where a general strike has entered its third day and protests persist after …

Los Angeles Sends Writers in Novel Directions | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Los Angeles Sends Writers in Novel Directions

Three Authors Share How the City Inspired and Influenced Their Stories

by Talib Jabbar |

It is said that Los Angeles lacks a literary pulse—that the flash and glam of Tinseltown overpowers the cultural terrain. But writers here deftly channel this city’s rhythms, spinning fictions …

| Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

How Do You Solve a Problem Like L.A.’s City Council?

In This Moment of Pain and Division, There’s Opportunity to Demand Real Change for Our Democracy

by Jackie Mansky |

“Do we even need a city council?” That was the provocative title question posed at last night’s Zócalo/KCRW event at the Herald Examiner Building in downtown Los Angeles.

To get at …

tktk | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

California’s Most Remote Classrooms Are Surviving—How Can They Thrive?

One in Four Attend Rural School. But Sacramento and D.C. Aren’t Giving These Students One-Fourth of Their Time

by Jackie Mansky |

When it came to the title question of the Zócalo/California Wellness event, “Can Rural Education Survive the 21st Century?,” the panelists were of one mind. Speaking to the live audience …

tktk | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

What Will First Contact Be Like?

Imagining the Alien Arrival Is a Creative Endeavor—One That Might Just Bring Humanity Together

by Talib Jabbar |

An “ineffable sense of wonder” filled last night’s Zócalo event, “How Should We Prepare for Aliens to Arrive on Earth?,” an event produced as part of Experience ASU, a month-long …


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