Message from the Director

Welcome to the 2021-2022 academic year. I am excited to launch a new “Conversations that Matter” series with a question of how “to form a more perfect union?” The phrase, “to form a more perfect union,” is in the U.S. Constitution and justifies the formation of a new nation.

The question of how to form a more perfect union is particularly timely, given the heightened divisions that exist in our society. These divides, in turn, stem from a longer history of conflicts that emerged with the formation of the United States, a country built upon Indigenous dispossession, slavery, and the selective incorporation of immigrants and refugees.

To explore the question of how “to form a more perfect union,” the UCI Humanities Center will be partnering with UCI Illuminations and other units to bring in banner writers and creators: Tracy K. Smith, Joy Harjo, Viet Nguyen, and Sandra Cisneros. And, we invite members of the UCI and broader community to share their ideas and vision to move towards social justice with a common purpose. We hope you join us!

Judy Tzu-Chun Wu
Director, UCI Humanities Center

Please also see: 
"Centering the human experience: Judy Tzu-Chun Wu to lead UCI Humanities Center"