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Spring 2002 CAPE Events

The Issue of Reparations: Are African-Americans Owed Monetary Compensation for Past Enslavement?

Monday February 11th, 3:00PM-5:00 PM, Wismer Theatre (PAC 135)

Are African-Americans owed compensation for past injustices? Would offering African-Americans reparations be an efficient, or even workable, solution to our former enslavement of them over a hundred years ago? If not, what might constitute an alternative form of restitution? The call for reparations is an opportunity for careful examination of slavery in Africa and America, the European-initiated slave trade, and the current state of scholarship on this topic in terms of its rise, expansion and demise. Each of the speakers below will address the issue of reparations from various perspectives in light of their distinctive educational background and in light of their experiences growing up in different parts of the world.

Hassan Sisay, History
Charles Cambridge, Business Management
Charles Geshekter, History
Joe Wills, Public Affairs (moderator)

Responding Ethically to Bio-Terrorism

Thursday, February 28th, 7:00 PM, Laxson Auditorium

William Murray, Ph.D. Associate Professor, San Jose State University and Adjunct Lecturer, Stanford University
While the use of infectious agents as instruments of war is not new, their use against civilian populations on a large scale for religious or cultural reasons is. Vast improvements in delivery technology and genetic alterations of pathogen virulence coupled with the fanatical zeal of some groups to use them puts our nation in a precarious and vulnerable position. Coming at a time when public health resources of every sort are at an all time low, bio-terrorism represents a murky and profoundly frightening political phenomenon by the public - and one that may force a fundamental shift in our perspectives regarding individual rights vs. the public good. Public ignorance and lack of integrated countermeasures will compound the difficulties of effectively dealing with the consequences of such an attack. As recent events have shown, the outcome of using biological weapons is poorly understood by those who must guard against such weapons, as well as by those who would use them. Nonetheless, our response to this threat will surely result in profound changes in our ethical sensibilities by altering our notions of public health and individual patient rights.

Home School versus Public School: Is Democracy At Risk?

Wednesday, March 6th, 4:30 PM, Modoc 114

Public schools. How quaint. The great gathering place for our young citizens. E Pluribus Unum and all that. But with more parents choosing to private school or even home school their children, is all this at risk? Can public schools be a force for fostering democracy?

Mark Keegan, Education (facilitating)
Anthony Graybosch, Philosophy
Donna Nichols, Paradise Unified School District
Sarah Pike, Religious Studies

How Reliable is the Credibility of Preschoolers in Child Molestation Cases?

Thursday, March 14th, 7:00 PM, PAC 134

To what extent can we trust the testimony of allegedly molested children against their offenders in court? How do we understand and morally evaluate children's perceptions of adults' actions? How does the questioning of children influence their perceptions? What is real or imaginary to a preschooler? Following a 25- minute video from a 20/20 episode in which the issue of pre-schooler testimony is explored, panelists will collectively address the above questions.

Anthony Graybosch, Philosophy (moderator)
Brad Glanville-Child Development
Celeste Jones-Social Work
Andy Dick-Criminal Justice
Judy Bordin-Child Development

Two Part Series on Hate Speech and Hate Crime

I. What are the Characteristics of Hate Crime Perpetrators?
Thursday, March 7th, 7:30 PM, Wismer Theatre (PAC 135)

Ed Dunbar, Ph.D., clinical psychologist, Department of Psychology, UCLA

Edward Dunbar is a practicing psychologist in metropolitan Los Angeles. His clinical activities include treatment of workplace harassment, crime victimization, psychological trauma, and violence risk assessment. Dr. Dunbar currently consults with the Los Angeles Police Department, the Los Angeles Unified School District, and the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center in the areas hate crime offender evaluation and violence prevention in the schools. He has developed and implemented a training program for school mental health staff in the intervention with victims of bias crimes and hate incidents. In his talk, Dr. Dunbar will address the factors that lead to hate crimes and discuss the nature the persons that commit them. Throughout his talk, he will make reference to actual crimes that have been committed in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, and, based on the benefit of his own experience, will raise some constructive suggestions for how we, as a society, might go about dealing with them.

II. Racial Hate Speech and Its Proscription
Thursday, April 11th, 7:00 PM, PAC 134

Dr. Lucas Swaine, Assistant Professor of Government, Dartmouth University
Ought we to be free in this country to utter hateful things under any circumstances? Does the liberty of free speech come at the expense of cultural diversity and personal dignity? The First amendment guarantees that people have a right to voice their point of view, no matter how controversial or offensive the content of their message. Yet, many Americans continue to find themselves as targets of a form of hatred intended to degrade them and make them feel unwelcome in their schools, workplaces and even in their homes. What can we do about this pervasive problem in our society without setting a precedent that would overturn the First Amendment? Hate speech on college campuses presents a particularly difficult manifestation of this debate. Colleges and universities are supposed to be a haven for the pursuit of truth, which entails the privilege of free inquiry and permissive speech. Yet, so ought they also to promote cultural diversity, dignity, respect for all individuals, and the protection of those struggling to voice an opinion through the course of their educational development. Dr. Swaine will discuss these and other issues in his talk on 4/11.

Will We Let Children Change The World?

Wednesday, April 24th, 4:30 PM, Modoc 114

Most adults view schools as a place where children learn to fit into society as it is. And to make one's way in the marketplace. But Jean Piaget said young people want to astound their elders by changing the world -- hopefully for the better. Are we encouraging idealism, or thwarting it? What kind of world would young people like to build?

Mark Keegan, with local area high school teachers and students

The Nature and Discourse of Evil

Thursday, May 9th, 7:00 PM PAC 134

What is "evil"? What accounts for its existence? Are "ordinary" people capable of committing evil, or does evil primarily occur at the hands of moral monsters, psychopaths thought to be fundamentally different than the normal human being? To what extent can we, through free will, avoid evil? Is evil distinguishably identifiable from the good, or is our identification of evil ultimately a matter of our own particular perspective? Does evil seduce? Is evil an "objective" state of reality or is it more accurately depicted as an absence of the good? Finally, to what extent are we served (or disserved) by the utilization of the rhetoric that identifies "evildoers," namely, those in society whom we are quick to identify as a dangerous "them" (especially in times of war) in contrast to the non-evil-doing "us"?

Anthony Graybosch, Philosophy (On the nature and existence of evil)
Sarah Pike, Religious Studies (evil in the context of Columbine)
Rob Burton, English (Evil in the context of September 11th)
Joe Wills, Public Affairs (On the use and rhetoric of the term "evil")
Andrew Flescher, Religious Studies (moderator)