HAC Dialogue Groups

About the Dialogue Project

Two kinds of dialogue groups are offered (on zoom): VRG dialogues and themed dialogues.

The VRG Dialogue group follows VRG readings and meets on Mondays at 1 p.m. EST/EDT. Two groups, Arendt & Feminism and Israel-Palestine are ongoing and meet monthly. Additional themed groups, scheduled intermittently, are led by VRG members, and meet for a limited number of sessions. The purpose of the dialogue groups is to further explore Arendt’s work, and to address additional questions that reading Arendt raises:

What are others taking away from the readings?
How do they apply what they are reading?
Have their perspectives changed?
Does reading Arendt impact their actions?

Dialogue groups supplement the VRG by providing a space where everyone is given an opportunity to speak and be heard. The dialogue groups are considered public space—confidentiality is not applicable. Speaking and being heard aligns with Arendt’s notion of appearance in public as an exercise of the most basic human right, and can be seen, despite the small numbers, as an experience in plurality.

Participants are expected to observe the “good will” practices for group
engagement as described in the dialogue materials:

How to Join a HAC Dialogue Group

Participants will be connected to others by e-mail to determine initial meeting time.
Questions about or requests for support regarding logistical and/or process issues that arise in the groups can be directed to Susan Oberman. Contact her at: [email protected] or 434-806-4116.

VRG Dialogue Group

Every Monday at 1 p.m. EDT

HAC Dialogue Groups meet on Zoom to further explore themes inspired by what we're reading in our Virtual Reading Group (VRG), and to address thematic questions around reading Arendt today. They supplement the VRG by providing more space to speak and be heard.
Israel-Palestine Dialogue

1st Wednesdays, 12-1:30 p.m. EDT

The purpose of the dialogue is to hear from as many voices as possible, and to think together "what we are doing." Group participants will take
turns presenting the readings. As readers of Arendt we are bringing in Arendt's concepts to examine, as well as help, in understanding the issues.
Arendt & Feminism Dialogue

3rd Sundays, 11-12:30 p.m. EDT

This is an ongoing group that focuses on a different reading each month, presented by one of the participants, to explore Arendt's concepts vis-à-vis
feminism.
Understanding Tribalism and Cosmopolitanism
with Stephen Jones

Thursday January 30, 2025, 1-2:30 p.m. EST

This single-session dialogue is an informal follow-up to the Tribalism and Cosmopolitanism conference held at the HAC in October 2024. The aim is to bring into play what we may have gleaned from the conference sessions, what we know from our own experience, and what we see as key issues and concerns.
Dialogue on Novo Ordo Seclorum (A New Order of the Ages) Part II: Cracks
in the Foundation with Ken Winnick and Susan Oberman

3rd Wednesdays, 1-2:30pm EST: February 19; March 19; April 16; May 21; June 18

The motto Novus Ordo Seclorum (A New Order of the Ages) accompanied by an image, was designed by Charles Thompson in 1776 and appears on the US dollar bill. Thompson was commissioned by the newly formed government to create a great seal. On the reverse side of the Great Seal is the image of an unfinished pyramid with the eye of Providence in its zenith, and a triangle around the eye. Taken from a Masonic image of the "All Seeing Eye," it represents The Great Architect of the Universe. As many of us currently fear the threats to our democratic system, others question the reality of “American ideals” that for many have never been realized. In this 5-session dialogue we will ask whether the US is an extension of the old world (rather than Novo Ordo Seclorum), that relegated the enslaved, immigrants, dispossessed, and indigenous to being outsiders.

About Susan Oberman

Susan Oberman has been a member of the Hannah Arendt Center and the Virtual Reading Group for the past 8 years. Having studied and engaged in dialogue for over 50 years both professionally and personally, she is a proponent of dialogue as a means to hear from those less likely to speak up in discussions, and as a method for addressing conflict.

Susan Oberman was certified as a mediator in New York in 1987 and in Virginia in 1995. She established Common Ground Negotiation Services in 1999. Her approach to mediation, group facilitation, and negotiation coaching is based on the Sustainable Knowledge Model of Norm- Educating Mediation. Taken from the research on sustainable development, this model is grounded in the concept that passing down of knowledge is the key to sustaining communities. Susan brings over 30 years’ experience and scholarship to her work with individuals, families, and community groups. She offers professional workshops for mediators, and a variety of interactive workshops for those dealing with conflict in everyday life. She sees conflict as an opportunity—to find clarity about the issues and to determine what values are at stake--rather than something to be avoided. For more information see www.commongroundnegotiation.com

What is "Leaderless Dialogue?"

A leaderless dialogue group necessitates use of a model that requires each participant to take responsibility.

The model used here is rooted in the concept of good will: “to reveal and to listen as the primary condition for all human intercourse…” cited by Arendt as the core of Jaspers’ work. Participants engage in the dialogue based on a determination that good will is present, and with the agreement to raise the issue and ask the group to address it, if anyone feels it is not.

The purpose of the group is to further explore Arendt’s work and provide space for group members to share Arendt’s impact on their thinking and actions.
Participants would adhere to the concept of good will as the underpinning of dialogue:
- Speak your truth and respect others
- Stand your ground and stay open to the influence of others
- Speak to be understood and listen to understand
Each group chooses its meeting times and topics