Frieze Lecture Series

The Rock Island Public Library and Augustana College are pleased to present the 27th annual Frieze Lectures

Democracy in America

The Frieze Lectures, a free public lecture series created to celebrate the oldest library in Illinois founded under its Local Library Act of 1872, continues for its 27th year, from October 24 to November 14.

This year’s Frieze Lectures wrap around the November 5 general election, in which voters will elect the President, 34 US Senators, and all 435 Members of Congress.

All presentations begin at 2:00 p.m. at the downtown location of the Rock Island Public Library, 401 19th Street. All are open to the public, free of charge.

The 2024 schedule:
October 24: Transpacific Perspectives on American Democracy, presented by Dr. Liza Lawrence, assistant professor of history.
October 31: Teaching (and Living) Democracy on a College Campus, presented by Dr. Andrea Talentino, president of the College and professor of political science.
November 7: Unpacking the 2024 Election, presented by Dr. Paul Baumgardner, assistant professor of political science.
November 14: Abraham Lincoln and A House Divided, presented by Dr. Lendol Calder, professor of history.

The Rock Island Public Library is a non-partisan organization that supports free and open access to information and full participation in civic life.

The Frieze Lecture Series was created by the late Ruth Evelyn Katz, a library board member, to celebrate the library's 125th anniversary in 1998. The name comes from the architectural feature around the top of the historic downtown library building. The authors carved into the sandstone are Homer, Longfellow, Emerson, Virgil, Hugo, Shakespeare, Goethe, Burns, Hawthorne, Tegner, and Bancroft. Though not well known today, the names of Tegner, a Swedish poet, and Bancroft, a naval historian, would have been familiar to 1903 residents.

For additional information, please visit the Rock Island Public Library website at www.rockislandlibrary.org, or call 309-732-READ.