‘The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." -Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
This year's Richard Smith Lecturer, Dr. Michael Shermer joins us to discuss his book, The Moral Arc: How Science and Reason Lead Humanity toward Truth, Justice, and Freedom, in which he claims that we are living in the most moral period of our species’ history. It is a book about moral progress that demonstrates through extensive data and heroic stories that the arc of the moral universe bends toward truth, justice, and freedom. Of the many factors that have come together over the centuries to bend the arc in a more moral direction, science and reason are foremost. The Scientific Revolution led by Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton was so world-changing that thinkers in other fields consciously aimed at revolutionizing the social, political, and economic worlds using the same methods of science. This led to the Age of Reason and the Enlightenment, which in turn created the modern secular world of liberal democracies, civil rights and civil liberties, equal justice under the law, open political and economic borders, and the expansion of the moral sphere to include more people—and now even animals—as worthy of moral consideration. Epic in scope, The Moral Arc is the Cosmos of human history.
View Dr. Shemer's biography (.pdf)
This event is free of charge. Parking is $8 per vehicle at the Information Booth (Prairie Street and Darby Avenue), from a parking permit dispenser or may be purchased in advance from the CSUN Permit Store. Both the parking permit dispensers and Information Booths accept cash and credit cards to purchase your daily parking permit.
Communication services (sign language interpreters, note takers, real-time captionists, or assistive listening devices) are available for this event. Requests for services must be submitted at least five (5) working days in advance. For questions or to request this service, please call (818) 677-7169.
Seating for this event is limited, please call (818) 677-7169 to reserve your space or register online for free at Eventbrite.