The Strathmore Speakers Series returned from COVID-19 exile and launched a new partnership with Onondaga Free Library in November 2020! This partnership enables the Speaker Series and the Library to bring you the same great content you’ve come to expect… virtually!

This partnership kicked off with an event featuring journalist, professor, filmmaker, and longtime Syracuse and Strathmore resident, Michael Streissguth, as he discussed his most recent book City on the Edge: Hard Choices in the American Rust Belt. Following the stories of five Syracuse residents—a young survivor of the streets, a refugee from Cuba, an urban farmer, a community activist, and a city elder—City on the Edge offers insight into the reasons why individuals chose to remain in a struggling metropolis. In this lecture, professor Streissguth examined these motivations and took us on a deep dive into the social, political, and cultural challenges confronting Syracuse today.

This event was held on Thursday, November 12, 2020 on Zoom. Missed it? Watch the full video below.

About Michael Streissguth

Michael Streissguth is a professor in the Communications and Film Studies Department at Le Moyne College, where he teaches courses on Mass Media, Film, Writing and English Literature. His work has also been featured in numerous publications, including the Washington Post Magazine, Salon, Rolling Stone, and the Irish Times. He is the author of eight books, including Johnny Cash: The Biography, and the producer of two documentary films, Record Paradise and Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison (2008).