Held in Studio F.
All are warmly invited to attend an event organized by the UCSB Humanities and Social Change Center. The event, “What do we owe to trolls and Nazis?,” is part of Provocations, a new project launched by the fellows at the Center, aimed at engaging the wider public with the academic research conducted by humanities.
Lead by Lexi Naeme, “What do we owe to trolls and Nazis?” will examine if and how the proliferation of online conversations among citizens have affected the democratic ideal of a civic discourse based on the virtues of respect, reason and sincerity. Should we try to reason with Nazis? Must we show respect to trolls? Drawing on case studies and participants’ own experiences, this session will ask hard questions about democracy and citizenship in the digital age. We will listen to Lindy West’s story, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, SAY IT IN ALL CAPS,” and read excerpts from Angela Nagles’ Kill All Normies to consider what the evolution of online communities and the “culture wars” might mean for American democracy.