Aspen Institute to Host Symposium on the State of Race in America

Featured panelists include Toure, Karen Narasaki, and Jose Antonio Vargas

Moderators will be Juan Williams, Fox News, and Jose Diaz-Balart, Telemundo

WASHINGTON, March 26, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On April 9th the Aspen Institute Communications and Society Program, in association with Comcast Corporation, will host the second annual Aspen Institute Symposium on the State of Race in America. The Symposium will explore new attitudes, opportunities, and challenges for and about people of color in 21st century America. The Symposium will touch on individual, cultural, institutional and structural causes of racial problems, looking towards new and viable solutions. 

The Symposium will feature five substantive panel sessions: Political Factors, the Latino Vote, the New American Identity, Education, and News Media.

When: Monday, April 9, 2012, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm EDT

Where: The Newseum, 555 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC.

Who:

Panelists include:

• James Jackson, Director of the Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan
• Charles Blow, Op-Ed Columnist, New York Times
• Karen Narasaki, President, Asian American Justice Center
• Norman Ornstein, Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute
• Maria Cardona, Democratic Strategist and Principal, Dewey Group
• Leslie Sanchez, Chief Executive Officer, Impacto Group
• Maria Teresa Kumar, Executive Director, Voto Latino
• Michael Scherer, White House Correspondent, TIME Magazine
• Jose Antonio Vargas, Founder, Define American
• Carlos Velez-Ibanez, Director, School of Transborder Studies, Arizona State University
• Toure, Author, "Who's Afraid of Post-Blackness"
• Kurt Schmoke, Dean, Howard Law School and former Mayor of Baltimore, Maryland
• Kaya Henderson, Chancellor, DC Public Schools
• Ruben Navarette, Columnist, Washington Post Writers Group
• Antoine Sanfuentes, DC Bureau Chief, NBC News

The Aspen Institute Communications and Society Program serves as a non-partisan venue for global leaders and experts to exchange insights on the societal impact of advances in digital technology and network communications. It also creates a multidisciplinary space in the communications policy-making world where veteran and emerging decision-makers can explore new concepts and develop new policy networks. www.aspeninstitute.org/c&s.

The Aspen Institute's mission is twofold: to foster values-based leadership, encouraging individuals to reflect on the ideals and ideas that define a good society, and to provide a neutral and balanced venue for discussing and acting on critical issues. The Aspen Institute does this primarily in four ways: seminars, young-leader fellowships around the globe, policy programs, and public conferences and events. The Institute is based in Washington, DC; Aspen, Colorado; and on the Wye River on Maryland's Eastern Shore. It also has offices in New York City and an international network of partners. For more information, visit www.aspeninstitute.org.

SOURCE The Aspen Institute