IMPORTANT! READ ABOUT HOW TO GET THE ZOOM LINKS FOR THE LECTURES
If you are not already on the list to receive Winter Lecture Series (WLS) reminders, CLICK HERE to sign up for that email list to receive reminders. We will be sending reminder emails 24 - 48 hours before each lecture.
Global Perspectives: The Winter Lecture Series, 2026
America First - Then and Now
Access: Hybrid, in person and livestream, at the Unitarian Church Sunday afternoons at 3:00 PM
Dates: February 8 & 15, March 1 & 8
Format: Lecture of about 45 minutes followed by a Q&A.
Availability: Recorded lectures and Q & A sessions will be posted on this YouTube channel.
Series Description and Schedule:
In the United States in the past there was an American First Committee, highly active before the Second World War. It was popular especially in the interior of the country. Its two major themes were isolationism, or commitment to fortress America, and anti-Semitism, or anti-foreign sentiment especially focused on Jews who were seen as un-American. As Donald J. Trump moved from the business world to that of politics, he resurrected the slogan of America First. Many of his supporters seemed to be isolationists or something similar. They seemed to particularly dislike “forever wars” in Vietnam and Afghanistan, as well as foreign aid and entangling alliances. Likewise, many of his followers appeared to be nativists (prioritizing the native born, especially White Christians) and critical of the growing number of foreigners seeking entry to the United States. The question of anti-Semitism and Donald Trump is a much more complex topic than anti-Semitism in the days of the American First Committee involving Charles Lindbergh and Henry Ford. This series examines the similarities and differences in the America First movements, then and now. It also considers relevant linked issues such as increased tariffs in trade, arguably designed to prioritize American economic interests.
Sunday, February 8
LIVESTREAM LINK
3:00 – 4:30 PM
Sean Trundle, UNL associate professor of practice, History, will give a historical introduction to the topic.
Sunday, February 15
LIVESTREAM LINK
3:00 – 4:30 PM
Uche Jarrett, UNL associate professor of practice, Economics, will analyze the leading economic issues today for the US concerning national growth, trade, and tariffs in historical perspective.
Sunday, March 1
LIVESTREAM LINK
3:00 – 4:30 PM
Emira Ibrahimpasic, UNL associate professor of practice in Global Studies, and Julia Reilly, UNL assistant professor of practice in Global Studies and Human Rights, will address the leading social issues stemming from the America First theme, especially immigration and deportations.
Sunday, March 8
LIVESTREAM LINK
3:00 – 4:30 PM
David Forsythe, UNL emeritus professor of Political Science, will discuss Trump’s foreign policy in historical perspective, including isolationism, unilateralism, and Israel.
Lecturers and Participants:
Sean Trundle, UNL History, has his Ph.D. from the U. of Hawaii-Manoa. His primary focus is US cultural history. Among his particular interests are digital developments and most other aspects of modern American history post-civil war.
Uchechukwu Jarrett, UNL Economics, has his Ph.D. from the U. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His primary interests are US economic growth, development, and trade. He has special interests in energy and environmental economics. Risk and trade is a special focus.
Emira Ibrahimpasic has her Ph.D. from the U. of New Mexico. Trained in Anthropology, she has broad interests including women’s studies, global studies, and colonialism and its aftermath, including attention to the Islamic world. Her current interests focus on refugees.
Julia Reilly has her Ph.D. from UNL. With an orientation toward politics and human rights, she is especially interested in accountability for human rights violations, with special attention to both the end of civil wars and genocide. She is currently interested in refugee resettlement in the American Midwest.
David Forsythe has his Ph.D. from Princeton. He is a long-time analyst of international human rights and humanitarian affairs. His recent interests focus on the role of the International Red Cross in conflicts like Gaza and Ukraine.
History of the Winter Lecture Series
The Winter Lecture Series began at Vine Congregation Church in 1985. The first year the topic of the Series was Central America. That topic set the early trend of the Series focusing each year on a single country or a region of the world. In 2001 the Unitarian Church inherited the Winter Lecture Series. With that change, besides focusing on single countries or regions, sometimes our annual topics were cross-cutting issues such as human rights, or poverty, or environmental issues.
Our goal is to provide unbiased information to our attendees—information provided by experts from local or distant Universities and organizations such as the US State Department. Although bringing experts from other states and countries is expensive, our lectures are always free and open to the public, and no registration is required.
Support for our lectures has been provided each year by grants from Humanities Nebraska (formally the Nebraska Humanities Council), UNL OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute), and the Social Justice Committee of the Unitarian Church of Lincoln.
HISTORY OF WINTER LECTURE SERIES - includes topics and speakers. (Updated June 2025)
You are invited to attend any and all lectures of the Winter Lecture Series. Each year we inform the people on our email list of the year’s topic and schedule. If you would like to be informed of upcoming lecture series, or you need additional information, please email a note to [email protected] with “Winter” entered in the subject line. Your email address will not be shared with any other entities.
Want to watch a video from a past series? Winter Lecture Series videos are uploaded to our YouTube channel.
If you are not already on the list to receive Winter Lecture Series (WLS) reminders, CLICK HERE to sign up for that email list to receive reminders. We will be sending reminder emails 24 - 48 hours before each lecture.
Global Perspectives: The Winter Lecture Series, 2026
America First - Then and Now
Access: Hybrid, in person and livestream, at the Unitarian Church Sunday afternoons at 3:00 PM
Dates: February 8 & 15, March 1 & 8
Format: Lecture of about 45 minutes followed by a Q&A.
Availability: Recorded lectures and Q & A sessions will be posted on this YouTube channel.
Series Description and Schedule:
In the United States in the past there was an American First Committee, highly active before the Second World War. It was popular especially in the interior of the country. Its two major themes were isolationism, or commitment to fortress America, and anti-Semitism, or anti-foreign sentiment especially focused on Jews who were seen as un-American. As Donald J. Trump moved from the business world to that of politics, he resurrected the slogan of America First. Many of his supporters seemed to be isolationists or something similar. They seemed to particularly dislike “forever wars” in Vietnam and Afghanistan, as well as foreign aid and entangling alliances. Likewise, many of his followers appeared to be nativists (prioritizing the native born, especially White Christians) and critical of the growing number of foreigners seeking entry to the United States. The question of anti-Semitism and Donald Trump is a much more complex topic than anti-Semitism in the days of the American First Committee involving Charles Lindbergh and Henry Ford. This series examines the similarities and differences in the America First movements, then and now. It also considers relevant linked issues such as increased tariffs in trade, arguably designed to prioritize American economic interests.
Sunday, February 8
LIVESTREAM LINK
3:00 – 4:30 PM
Sean Trundle, UNL associate professor of practice, History, will give a historical introduction to the topic.
Sunday, February 15
LIVESTREAM LINK
3:00 – 4:30 PM
Uche Jarrett, UNL associate professor of practice, Economics, will analyze the leading economic issues today for the US concerning national growth, trade, and tariffs in historical perspective.
Sunday, March 1
LIVESTREAM LINK
3:00 – 4:30 PM
Emira Ibrahimpasic, UNL associate professor of practice in Global Studies, and Julia Reilly, UNL assistant professor of practice in Global Studies and Human Rights, will address the leading social issues stemming from the America First theme, especially immigration and deportations.
Sunday, March 8
LIVESTREAM LINK
3:00 – 4:30 PM
David Forsythe, UNL emeritus professor of Political Science, will discuss Trump’s foreign policy in historical perspective, including isolationism, unilateralism, and Israel.
Lecturers and Participants:
Sean Trundle, UNL History, has his Ph.D. from the U. of Hawaii-Manoa. His primary focus is US cultural history. Among his particular interests are digital developments and most other aspects of modern American history post-civil war.
Uchechukwu Jarrett, UNL Economics, has his Ph.D. from the U. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His primary interests are US economic growth, development, and trade. He has special interests in energy and environmental economics. Risk and trade is a special focus.
Emira Ibrahimpasic has her Ph.D. from the U. of New Mexico. Trained in Anthropology, she has broad interests including women’s studies, global studies, and colonialism and its aftermath, including attention to the Islamic world. Her current interests focus on refugees.
Julia Reilly has her Ph.D. from UNL. With an orientation toward politics and human rights, she is especially interested in accountability for human rights violations, with special attention to both the end of civil wars and genocide. She is currently interested in refugee resettlement in the American Midwest.
David Forsythe has his Ph.D. from Princeton. He is a long-time analyst of international human rights and humanitarian affairs. His recent interests focus on the role of the International Red Cross in conflicts like Gaza and Ukraine.
History of the Winter Lecture Series
The Winter Lecture Series began at Vine Congregation Church in 1985. The first year the topic of the Series was Central America. That topic set the early trend of the Series focusing each year on a single country or a region of the world. In 2001 the Unitarian Church inherited the Winter Lecture Series. With that change, besides focusing on single countries or regions, sometimes our annual topics were cross-cutting issues such as human rights, or poverty, or environmental issues.
Our goal is to provide unbiased information to our attendees—information provided by experts from local or distant Universities and organizations such as the US State Department. Although bringing experts from other states and countries is expensive, our lectures are always free and open to the public, and no registration is required.
Support for our lectures has been provided each year by grants from Humanities Nebraska (formally the Nebraska Humanities Council), UNL OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute), and the Social Justice Committee of the Unitarian Church of Lincoln.
HISTORY OF WINTER LECTURE SERIES - includes topics and speakers. (Updated June 2025)
You are invited to attend any and all lectures of the Winter Lecture Series. Each year we inform the people on our email list of the year’s topic and schedule. If you would like to be informed of upcoming lecture series, or you need additional information, please email a note to [email protected] with “Winter” entered in the subject line. Your email address will not be shared with any other entities.
Want to watch a video from a past series? Winter Lecture Series videos are uploaded to our YouTube channel.
