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Tue 6

February 6, 2024 @ 7:00 pm8:30 pm CST

After COVID, Can We Have Accountability Without Retribution?

Location: Online

Francis Collins went viral recently.

The former director of the National Institutes of Health, he admitted at the 2023 Braver Angels Convention that public health leaders made mistakes when developing COVID policies, while still defending their overall response. When these videos recently surfaced on Twitter, his acknowledgment of mistakes got the public’s attention.

But do such admissions amount to anything?

Many critics of how public health leaders handled COVID are skeptical. “Too little, too late,” some said on Twitter. Some believe that leaders like Anthony Fauci and Collins should be in prison.

However, other critics of how public health leaders handled COVID believe that a promising path to accountability is developing. Some are even intrigued by the idea of a COVID Truth and Reconciliation process.

In this We The People’s Forum, we want to hear from our fellow Americans on the issue, and wrestle with the argument.

Our first speakers are all everyday Americans who have been critical of how public health leaders handled COVID, but have different perspectives on what should be done about it. During the open audience time, we invite our fellow Americans on all sides of the issue to weigh in.

Our first speakers include:

  • Kevin Bass is a scientist with a long-standing interest in misinformation. He was recently dismissed from his third year in medical school for his COVID-19 advocacy.
  • Travis Tripodi is an active Braver Angel’s volunteer from New Hampshire. He owns and operates his own consulting firm, Tripodi Quality Consulting, specializing in quality and management consulting in the health technology field.
  • Wilk Wilkinson is the host of Derate the Hate podcast, and the co-leader with Francis Collins of the Truth and Trust Project at Braver Angels. His podcast guests have included everyone from Francis Collins to Jay Bhattacharya.
  • More first speakers are being confirmed.

We The People’s Forums are an opportunity for the people who make this country function everyday–the important people who are not politicians, or talking heads on screens, or opinion writers in the big newspapers–- to make their voices heard.

Here’s how it works:

First part: our first speakers talk about their experiences and perspectives, their concerns about their own positions, and what they see in common.

Second part: it’s Q and E time: anyone may ask a question, and anyone with direct experience on the issue is encouraged to weigh in.

This event is open to the general public.

About Braver Angels and We The People’s Forum

Braver Angels is a citizen’s organization that brings Americans together to bridge the partisan divide and strengthen our democratic republic. We The People’s Forum is a Braver Angels event where everyday Americans get time at the podium. We hear from people who are often spoken of, but rarely spoken with, on the most important issues of the day. Learn more at www.braverangels.org/wpp

Questions? Contact David Lapp at dlapp@braverangels.org

** This event is open to the media upon approval. Media contact: Ciaran O’Connor, ciaran@braverangels.org

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