Fighting Back

Since Donald Trump’s reelection, universities have found themselves caught between principle and self-preservation. Should they stand up and risk getting cut down, or stay low and hope to escape the crossfire? For Professor Claudia Polsky, it was never a question. Determined to confront the administration’s assault on higher education, she spearheaded a class action suit that has, so far, restored nearly a billion dollars in research funding to UC scientists and scholars. The litigation is ongoing. Join California editor Pat Joseph in conversation with Professor Polsky about the ongoing threats to American science and research, the rule of law, and what it means to fight back. CLAUDIA POLSKY Claudia Polsky is a clinical professor at Berkeley Law and the founding director of its Environmental Law Clinic. A former Deputy Attorney General at the California Department of Justice and litigator at Earthjustice and Public Citizen, she spent eighteen years in public-interest environmental law and has litigated cases up to the U.S. Supreme Court. She has testified before Congress, and her clinic's victories include successful litigation against the federal government.

ABOUT CALIFORNIA LIVE! The California Live! series presents some of Berkeley’s most distinguished faculty and alumni discussing today’s most pressing issues. In partnership with BAMPFA, the Cal Alumni Association and its award-winning California magazine invite you to join us for our next episode. Tickets to this event include free access to the galleries at BAMPFA and a wine reception. COME EARLY Enjoy free access to the galleries at BAMPFA. Check-in begins at 6:00 p.m. WINE RECEPTION A wine reception with Claudia Polsky will follow the program. ACCESSIBILITY If you require an accommodation for effective communication or information about campus mobility access features in order to fully participate in this event, please call 510.900.8225 with as much advance notice as possible and at least 7–10 days in advance of the event.