Edition No. 69
Arts and Culture
The Grosse Pointe Artists Association challenges artists with its next exhibit theme Worlds Collide (aka Hybrid Challenge).
Community and Family
Bestselling author A.J. Baime virtually returns to The War Memorial to speak about his new book, White Lies: The Double Life of Walter F. White and America’s Darkest Secret.
American Democracy
The Atlantic’s Yasmeen Serhan reminds us of the threats to democracy rising within some European Union and NATO member states.
CALL FOR ENTRIES: Worlds Collide, (aka Hybrid Challenge)
Deadline, May 16, 2022
The Grosse Pointe Artists Association is challenging artists with its next exhibition Worlds Collide (aka Hybrid Challenge) which combines two seemingly discordant ideas into one finished artwork. The goal is to discover the unexpected when opposing forces occupy the same physical space. The focus should be on the coalescing of ideas, not mediums.
Steve Miller will be the juror of this exhibit. Miller is an artist, songwriter and graphic artist. He completed his BFA in painting and printmaking at the University of Oklahoma in 1995. After graduating, he spent a decade working as an art director for advertising agencies in Dallas and Chicago, moving to Michigan in 2002. His work has been showcased in art communities throughout Michigan, Texas and Oklahoma. He won the Corrine Maillard Robinson Award in the 38th Annual Michigan Fine Arts Competition at the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center.
Bestselling author talk with The War Memorial shifts to online-only format
On Wednesday, April 20, bestselling author A.J. Baime virtually returns to The War Memorial to speak about his new book, White Lies: The Double Life of Walter F. White and America’s Darkest Secret.
Originally scheduled as an in-person American Democracy event, with an online component, Baime’s discussion will now be online only. The author talk will be on Zoom at 7 p.m.
Released in February to positive reviews in the New Yorker, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and other publications, White Lies is a true story of undercover investigations, political organizing, and racial identity. The book explores the complexities of Walter White’s life and illustrates his lasting impact on American life.
Baime called White the most influential civil rights leader of the first half of the 20th century, “Walter White was a minor character in the last four books I’ve written and every time in my research I came back to him, I found his story got more and more incredible.”
“I’m always excited to come to Detroit and even more so for this book,” Baime said. He went on to explain that White Lies has a Detroit connection through the Dr. Ossian Sweet trials, which riveted the nation in 1925 and 1926. Baime said Sweet was a prominent black physician who, in 1925, moved into a largely white section of Detroit with his wife and 14-month-old baby. On the night that the Sweet family moved into their new home, Ku Klux Clan-inspired mob violence broke out and a man was shot and killed. Dr. Sweet, family members, and friends were charged with murder but successfully defended by a defense team organized by Walter White and including the famous Clarence Darrow.
The 7 p.m. author talk can be streamed to your computer or other device, that option is free, but registration is required. To learn mor eabout Baime, his book or to register for the event, click the button below.
“The Other Threat to Democracy in Europe,”
The Atlantic, April 11, 2022
With the world’s attention focused on Putin’s war of aggression in Ukraine, The Atlantic’s Yasmeen Serhan seeks to remind us all of the threats to democracy rising within some European Union and NATO member states, most notably Hungary where Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was just reelected by a two-thirds supermajority. With a supermajority, Orbán’s Fidesz party can now unilaterally amend the country’s constitution and continue its destruction of Hungarian democracy. In fact, Hungary is now what diplomats and other international relations experts call a “soft” or “competitive” autocracy where elections are held but are not truly free or fair. For more about Hungary, click the button below.
In addition to Hungary, Poland has also been headed down an anti-democratic path. This spring, those two nations could well be joined by France in the event that Marie LePen and her far-right National Rally (formerly National Front) party win that nation’s April 24 Presidential run-off election. For more about France, click the button below.
Michael Montgomery who curates American Democracy content for The War Memorial is a former-US diplomat who, when not working with us, teaches at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.
Inspired Thoughts is a collection of highly curated content that embraces the spirit and purpose of The War Memorial: arts and culture, community enrichment, leadership, and patriotism.
Derived from the notion that learning from others is the key to success, Inspired Thoughts is meant to shine a light on those making a difference in the world around them. This collection features artists, poets, writers, architects, and every thought leader in-between. Inspired Thoughts is the strongest reflection of what The War Memorial stands for, and what we aim to be.
The content featured on Inspired Thoughts is curated by War Memorial leadership — we also look forward to featuring special guest curators in the near future. If you are interested in providing content for Inspired Thoughts, please email our Communications team at dmurphy@warmemorial.org.