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Peter Dreier: What would Michael Harrington make of Occupy?

Peter Dreier, the E.P. Clapp Distinguished Professor of Politics, Director of the Urban and Environmental Policy Program at Occidental College and author of "The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame," recalls how he was inspired by Michael Harrington and considers what Harrington would have thought of the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Later, he is joined by fellow conference presenters Maurice Isserman, Michael Kazin, David O'Brien, Thomas Sugrue, and Alan Wolfe for their responses and a question and answer period.

The discussion was part of a two-day conference, organized by Holy Cross and held March 22-23, 2012, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the publication "The Other America," by Michael Harrington '47. The conference convened renowned scholars and activists to revisit Harrington's ideas on poverty and to take on some of the defining issues of poverty today.