BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//BigTentUSA - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://bigtentusa.org
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for BigTentUSA
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:America/New_York
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20240310T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20241103T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20250309T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20251102T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20260308T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20261101T060000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250812T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250812T180000
DTSTAMP:20260430T014837
CREATED:20250713T115314Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250813T013918Z
UID:60109-1755018000-1755021600@bigtentusa.org
SUMMARY:Heather Cox Richardson & Stacey Abrams: MAGA's Rewriting History\, Rigging Elections
DESCRIPTION:On Tuesday\, August 12th at 5:00PM ET\, BigTentUSA was thrilled to welcome back civic strategist and former Georgia State Representative\, Stacey Abrams\, and renowned historian\, Heather Cox Richardson for a discussion moderated by Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Their discussion focused on how the Trump administration & MAGA are using America’s education system to entrench authoritarian power. From rewriting history to gutting diversity and issuing sweeping Executive Orders targeting higher education\, these actions are part of a broader strategy to consolidate control. That same authoritarian playbook is at work in Texas\, where Republicans are attempting to redraw congressional maps to dilute representation and lock in political power. \nTogether\, these efforts reveal a coordinated plan to undermine democratic norms — and Stacey and Heather  unpacked what’s at stake and how we can fight back. \nABOUT THE SPEAKERS \nSTACEY ABRAMS is a political leader\, business owner and New York Times bestselling author. A tax attorney by training\, Abrams served eleven years in the Georgia House of Representatives\, seven as Minority Leader\, and became the Democratic nominee for governor of Georgia in 2018 and 2022. Over the course of her career\, she has launched multiple organizations devoted to democracy protection\, voter engagement\, tackling social issues\, and building a more equitable future in the South. Committed to the pursuit of equity\, she works to break barriers for young people\, people of color and the marginalized through her work in the public\, nonprofit and corporate sectors. \nHEATHER COX RICHARDSON is a renowned historian\, writing widely about Reconstruction\, the Civil War\, and the history of the Republican Party. She is the author of seven books including\, most recently\, Democracy Awakening\, as well as the award-winning How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy\, Democracy\, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America. She writes the popular newsletter\, Letters from an American\, a daily chronicle of the history behind American politics. \nKIMBERLY ATKINS STOHR is a senior opinion writer and columnist at The Boston Globe. She is also an MSNBC contributor\, a frequent panelist on NBC’s “Meet the Press\,” and co-host of the weekly Politicon legal news podcast #SistersInLaw. Previously\, Kim was the inaugural columnist for The Emancipator\, a collaboration between The Boston Globe and Boston University’s Center for Antiracist Research that reframes the conversation about racial justice and equality.
URL:https://bigtentusa.org/event/p2025education/
LOCATION:BigTent Zoom Room
CATEGORIES:BigTent Spotlight Speaker Series,BigTent Events,Preserving Democracy
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://bigtentusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Stacey-and-Heather-169-2.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250821T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250821T200000
DTSTAMP:20260430T014837
CREATED:20250808T153607Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250915T203423Z
UID:60200-1755802800-1755806400@bigtentusa.org
SUMMARY:Conversation with Change Maker Jane Fonda | A Life of Activism
DESCRIPTION:Join us on Thursday\, August 21 at 7:00 PM ET for an intimate conversation with Jane Fonda — legendary actor\, activist\, and two‑time Academy Award winner—moderated by Rachel Janfaza\, founder of The Up and Up newsletter. Fonda will reflect on her extraordinary journey as a change maker and her unwavering commitment to the fight against the climate crisis. \nFrom standing on the frontlines of social justice movements to founding Fire Drill Fridays\, Jane has spent decades challenging power\, inspiring action\, and mobilizing people across generations to protect our planet. She will share lessons from a lifetime of activism\, her vision for a sustainable future\, and how each of us can join the movement to safeguard our environment for generations to come. \nThis is a rare opportunity to hear from one of the most influential voices of our time about what it takes to create lasting change — and why the fight for our planet is the fight of our lives. \nABOUT THE SPEAKERS: \nJANE FONDA is a two-time Academy Award-winning actor (Best Actress in 1971 for Klute and in 1978 for Coming Home)\, producer\, author\, activist\, and fitness guru. Her career has spanned over 50 years\, accumulating a body of film work that includes more than 50 films and significant contributions to political causes such as women’s rights\, Native Americans’ rights\, and environmental protection. She is a seven-time Golden Globe® winner and was honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2021. She accepted The Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice Award at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival. In April of 2024\, Fonda accepted the TIME Magazine Earth Award. She also recently received the SAG Life Achievement Award in February 2025. \nFonda led the charge on the climate emergency via Fire Drill Fridays\, the national movement to protest government inaction on climate change\, which she started in October 2019 in partnership with Greenpeace USA. In 2022\, she launched the Jane Fonda Climate PAC\, focused on defeating political allies of the fossil fuel industry. Her latest book\, “What Can I Do? My Path From Climate Despair to Action\,” details her personal journey with the movement and provides solutions for communities to combat the climate crisis. \nRACHEL JANFAZA is the founder of  The Up and Up – a newsletter about young voters – and and a consultant on youth civic engagement and media strategy. A member of Generation Z\, she is laser-focused on the cohort’s civic attitude and has convened listening sessions with hundreds of young people across the country. Her written work has been featured in The New York Times\, CNN\, The Free Press\, Glamour\, POLITICO Magazine\, Teen Vogue\, Vogue\, Elle\, Cosmo\, and Bustle. And her on-air analysis has been featured on CNN\, C-SPAN\, The Hill TV\, NY-1\, WNYC Public Radio\, and NPR/WBUR.
URL:https://bigtentusa.org/event/conversation-with-change-maker-jane-fonda-a-life-of-activism/
CATEGORIES:BigTent Spotlight Speaker Series
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://bigtentusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Jane-Fonda-169.webp
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR