Monday, September 21, 2020

9:30 – 10:30 MONDAY INTEREST GROUPS Please see the Bulletin page 17.

NON-FICTION BOOK DISCUSSION                      on Zoom

The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haid
Discussion Leader: Sheryl Sostarich

Jonathan Haidt, a professor of psychology at the University of Virginia, explores why humans can be so convinced that they are right. Haidt dismisses the idea that the human mind is rational. Rather, emotion and intuition determine our judgments, while reasoning serves to justify those judgments. The book helps guide us to better understand ourselves and respect those of differing religious and political beliefs.

LITERATURE DISCUSSION                               on Zoom

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
Discussion Leader: Gini Hickman

A middle class bookstore owner and her eight-year-old son are fleeing Acapulco for America after their entire family was murdered on orders from a local narco- trafficking cartel kingpin. This was because her journalist husband profiled and thus exposed the cartel leader. During the treacherous journey that ensued, they traveled as undocumented immigrants, riding the rails on a freight train and traveling with a paid coyote smuggler. This book is filled with terror, violence, love, joy, and is compassionate and riveting!

11:00 – 12:00                                            WOMEN’S VOICES                                       on Zoom

ERA 2020

Speaker: Betty Folliard, Founder of ERA Minnesota, Former Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives

Folliard will talk about ERA 2020—the great modern push to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment 97 years after it was first introduced into Congress in 1923. In the wake of Virginia becoming the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in January and the ensuing lawsuits both for and against voiding the 1979 arbitrary deadline imposed on women’s rights, Folliard will give an up-to-the-moment presentation on state and national efforts to finally ratify the ERA

12:00 noon ANNOUNCEMENTS

1:15 – 2:15                                PUBLIC POLICY                                         on Zoom

Voting Suppression

Speaker: Steve Simon, Minnesota Secretary of State

“Elections truly matter; our voice is our vote!” As the Minnesota chief elections official, Simon is committed to protecting and strengthening the security and fairness of Minnesota’s election process. His office works to ensure every vote is properly cast, counted, and recorded. While reliance on paper ballots is the cornerstone of Minnesota’s ballot security, electronic systems play an important supporting role. Simon will talk about election security, cyber security, and new security initiatives.