Hillel hosts third

Hillel at Tulane University tackles questions about how gentrification and economic development impact New Orleans culture with the third installment of its debate series on Thursday (June 6), “The Big Issue: Does Progress Destroy Culture?”

“As New Orleans continues to move to an increasingly revitalized and robust economy, we need to pay attention to the impact and healthy tensions that arise with progress," says Rabbi Yonah Schiller, executive director of Tulane Hillel. “New Orleans would be nothing without its people and culture, and the city would not have survived without its ingenuity, fueled by economic creativity and development. The combination of these two elements will define what New Orleans is becoming and the direction of our city.”

The moderator of a panel of speakers will be Nick Spitzer, professor of anthropology and American studies at Tulane, who is the producer and host of the “American Routes” public radio program.

The panel's speakers will be:

Shamarr Allen, a New Orleans–born trumpet player, who has performed with artists such as Patti LaBelle, Lenny Kravitz, Harry Connick Jr. and Branford Marsalis.

Richard Campanella, geographer and senior professor of practice in the Tulane School of Architecture, who is the author of six books on New Orleans.

Ellis Marsalis, regarded by many as the premier modern jazz pianist in New Orleans, who was the first holder of an endowed chair of jazz studies at the University of New Orleans.

Katy Reckdahl, a journalist who for many years has written about Mardi Gras Indians, second lines, school bands and attempts to regulate culture.

Mike Valentino, chief operating officer of Hotel Management of New Orleans and past president of the New Orleans Hotel & Lodging Association.

Doors at The Mintz Center, 912 Broadway, open at 7 p.m. and the event begins at 7:30 p.m.