This event has passed
Peter Sagal’s Constitution Sessions - Supremacy
Past event
Featured Book
I'll Take the Fire
Q: If your house was burning down, what would you take with you?
A: I’d take the fire.
–Jean Cocteau
Mia Daoud yearns to be free. Growing up in socially conservative Morocco, her imagination fired by her banker father’s charisma and political idealism, her doctor mother’s feminist example and social conscience, and the boundless possibilities suggested by her favorite authors, she learns to go after what she wants, even if it means jumping through fire to get it. Determined to be true to her sexuality and to differentiate herself from her adoring younger sister, she sets out in search of her place in the world, from Casablanca to Paris to London, and against the backdrop of era-defining events like the fall of the Berlin Wall and 9/11, guided by a preternatural sense of justice and an unerring instinct for what makes her feel most alive. Combining vigorous poetry and unflinching bravery, Leila Slimani’s autobiographical novel is a rousing ode to living a life of purpose and consequence.
This book will be available for purchase at the event.
About This Event
For over a century, Americans have accepted a basic premise: that nine justices, not the people, get the final word on what the Constitution means. In Supremacy: How Rule by the Court Replaced Government by the People, legal scholar Daphna Renan argues that "judicial supremacy" was never required by the Constitution — it was seized, after Reconstruction, to weaken democracy rather than protect it. Renan joins NPR's Peter Sagal for an urgent conversation on how the Court took this power, and what it would take for Americans to reclaim it.
Featured Author
Daphna Renan
Daphna Renan is the Peter B. Munroe and Mary J. Munroe Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. She is a leading scholar of constitutional democracy and presidential power. She is the author with Nikolas Bowie of the forthcoming book Supremacy: How Rule by the Court Replaced Government by the People (W.W. Norton 2026). Her academic work has appeared in numerous publications including the Harvard Law Review, the Stanford Law Review, and the Yale Law Journal, and it has been cited around the world. She is a sought-after media commentator whose writing has appeared in the New York Times and the Atlantic among other outlets. She clerked for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and served in the U.S. Department of Justice under President Obama.
In Conversation With
Peter Sagal
Peter Sagal is or has been an author, journalist, playwright, columnist, foreign correspondent, podcaster, and, for the last 28 years, the host of the NPR news quiz Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me!, produced here in Chicago in collaboration with WBEZ. In 2013, he hosted Constitution USA with Peter Sagal, a four-part PBS documentary exploring how Americans live with and under the Constitution today. In the documentary, he traveled around the country on a patriotically painted motorcycle, talking to lawyers, plaintiffs, academics, immigrants and citizens, both born and newly minted, exploring how this nearly 250-year-old document still steers our nation and our democracy. Since then, Constitution USA has become a standard part of civics education in schools around the country, and Sagal has regularly lectured on the Constitution as an amateur Constitutional scholar and student. In 2008, Sagal accepted a Peabody Award on behalf of the panelists, crew, and producers of Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me! He's also won the Kurt Vonnegut Award for Humor from the Kurt Vonnegut Library. He's the author of The Book of Vice: Naughty Things and How To Do Them and The Incomplete Book of Running, a memoir about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and other adventures while running long distances. He's also contributed essays and reporting to The Atlantic, The New York Times, Chicago Magazine, Opera News, Saveur, Finesse, and for a decade was the "Road Scholar" columnist for Runner's World.
About the Venue
Northwestern University - Lutkin Hall
Presented by Chicago Humanities
Presented with Seminary Co-Op Bookstore
700 University Pl
Evanston, IL 60208
More at Seminary Co-Op Bookstore
SIMPLE TOO - An Evening with Yotam Ottolenghi
Join Yotam Ottolenghi for an intimate and energizing evening celebrating his forthcoming Fall 2026 cookbook, SIMPLE TOO, the long-awaited follow-up to his bestselling Ottolenghi Simple. Eight years after redefining “flavor without fuss,” Ottolenghi returns to explore what “simple” means now — in a world of endless notifications, long commutes, and minds split between podcasts, WhatsApp groups, and homework help. In conversation, he’ll share how SIMPLE TOO was born from real life: recipes that work with you, not against you — dishes you can begin with half a plan and still end with a deeply satisfying meal. Expect laughter, honesty, and that signature Ottolenghi spark as he declares, “The lemon is back!” and explains why bold flavor remains at the heart of simplicity. Drawing from the book’s vibrant themes, Ottolenghi will dive into the ingredients and techniques that quietly shape this new collection: beans simply dressed, black chickpeas, sesame in generous handfuls, sweet-and-spicy balances, pasta cooked directly in its sauce, and whole meals roasted start-to-finish in a single tray (with far less washing up). He’ll also introduce the new “Fundamentals” chapter — fifteen fridge-ready flavor builders like spring onion oil, green salsa, za’atar oil, confit tomatoes, and chili crisp — the small things that make big differences on the busiest weeknights. Through stories from the writing process with co-author Verena Lochmuller, practical tips, and reflections on finding pleasure in cooking even when you’re already tired, Ottolenghi will reveal how SIMPLE TOO is less about doing less — and more about making everyday cooking feel generous, achievable, and full of joy.
60 Years on the Front Lines of History - A Conversation with David Hume Kennerly
Join us for a conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist David Hume Kennerly, whose lens has captured six decades of defining moments in world history. From the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy to the burning Pentagon on 9/11, from the Ford White House to election nights with presidents and candidates across half a century, Kennerly has stood where few have ever been allowed to stand — and brought the rest of us with him. He'll take us behind his images to what it felt like to be present as history unfolded. This event celebrates the publication of his magnum opus, In the Room: 60 Years on the Front Lines of History, released as the nation marks its 250th birthday.
Daniel Kraus - Angel Down
Daniel Kraus is the bestselling author of Whalefall, Angel Down, and The Sixth Nik. Daniel is based in Chicago and joins us to discuss his prolific career as a writer of novels, TV, and film. His novel Angel Down was awarded the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and is the first horror novel to win the prize since 2007. But it isn’t just a horror novel. It’s a war novel that blends magical realism, science fiction, and allegory, plunging you into the heart of World War I. Join us for a conversation with Kraus on writing as a craft, what it takes to write a novel in one sentence (like Angel Down), and how screenwriting opens up new possibilities for storytelling.