SUMMARY:
Gerhard Glomm (IU Economics Department) hosted a community forum in Bloomington featuring three speakers: Matt Pierce (State Rep. D-HD61), Sydney Zulich (D-Bloomington City Council), and Brookelyn Lambright (IU student, journalism and American studies). Speaking as private citizens and not as representatives of Indiana University, the three addressed the 250th anniversary of American founding, the imperative of each generation to advance toward a more perfect union, and the role of local community action in sustaining democracy. The event concluded with brief presentations from representatives of four Bloomington-area community organizations — Hoosier Action, the League of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County, AUHI (Advocates for University Housing Insecurity), and Canopy — followed by a Singing Resistance demonstration.
WHAT’S INSIDE:
00:00:00 Introduction
- Glomm opens by acknowledging the grief and anger many feel about the current state of the country
- He frames the moment as one calling for deeper love and more active commitment to democracy
- Glomm introduces three speakers: Matt Pierce, Sydney Zulich, and Brookelyn Lambright
- Each speaker will address the theme of vision for America from their own perspective
00:03:53 Matt Pierce — A More Perfect Union
- Pierce grounds his remarks in the Preamble to the Constitution and Obama’s 2008 “A More Perfect Union” speech in Philadelphia
- He argues each generation must recognize the imperfections of its time and do the work to correct them
- Pierce identifies economic inequality as the core threat of this moment — a government unwilling to invest in its own people
- He calls for robust public investment in K-12 education, affordable higher education, childcare, healthcare, and housing as the foundation of a renewed democratic movement
00:20:10 Brookelyn Lambright — What Does Education Mean?
- Lambright describes growing up in a conservative Indiana town where education was defined almost entirely by employability
- A transformative American Studies course at IU opened her to a broader conception of learning — one rooted in critical thinking, civic identity, and community contribution
- She challenges the Indiana legislature’s HEA 1001 (2025), which forces elimination of low-enrollment degree programs, arguing it imposes an exclusively economic definition of education’s value
- Lambright advocates for the preservation of liberal arts programs, calling on the audience to protect higher education and make their voices heard
00:31:43 Sydney Zulich — Run for Office
- Zulich reflects on her experience as a 22-year-old elected to the Bloomington City Council in 2023
- She argues local community is where real power lives, and that joy — not just protest — is a form of political action
- Zulich calls on audience members to run for office, emphasizing there is no single template for who belongs in public service
- She closes with a Shirley Chisholm quote — “Service is the rent that we pay for the privilege of living on this earth” — and reminds the room that rent is due
00:39:12 Q&A
- Pierce responds to an audience question about education and democratic participation, arguing that investing in people’s everyday needs is what gives them a reason to vote and fight for democracy
- Lambright responds to an audience question about algorithms and journalism, emphasizing media literacy and the critical importance of local journalism in filling news deserts across Indiana
00:49:36 Community Organizations
- Representative from Hoosier Action (Jenny Bass) describes the organization’s work organizing small rural communities across Indiana and engaging independent voters
- Representative from the League of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County (Marian) describes voter registration outreach, candidate forums, and the challenge of getting both parties to participate
- Representative from AUHI describes the student-led group’s advocacy work on housing insecurity at IU and plans to deepen engagement with city government
- Representative from Canopy describes the nonprofit’s work building a sustainable and equitable urban forest in Bloomington, with tree plantings the following two Saturdays
- Representative from Singing Resistance introduces the organization — a movement rooted in the civil rights tradition of using song as political action — and leads the audience in a participatory song
