2008 Woodie Awards
'Conscience at the Ballot Box' forums thought-provoking
Bobby Guerrero, and Jimmy Sengenberger, Staff Reporters
Issue date: 10/13/08 Section: News
Last week, Oct.7-8, in an effort to help the Regis community make sense of election issues, several faculty members participated in three "Conscience and the Ballot Box" forums.
"We just thought we'd offer chances for students and others on campus (faculty and staff) to have a little more thoughtful conversations," said Dr. Tom Reynolds, vice-president for Mission, "than we get out of the usual ads we see about the elections, and frankly, unfortunately, not even the debates are incredibly thoughtful."
The forum featured several faculty panelists: Dr. Tom Hooyman, who specializes in healthcare ethics; Dr. Tom Leininger, associate professor of Religious Studies; Dr. Mary Beth Callie, assistant professor of Communication; and Diversity Coordinator Saj Kabadi.
Dr. Reynolds informed attendees about the "Blue Book," a booklet provided by the Colorado General Assembly with information on the 18 statewide ballot measures. It includes an analysis of arguments in favor of and opposed to each measure, the actual text of the initiatives, and recommendations on judge retention.
Amendment 46, discussed by Dr. Hooyman, would outlaw affirmative action in public institutions, such as in schools, jobs and government contracts. The amendment will make illegal the action of giving preferential treatment to a particular race or gender.
This opens the door to a conscience issue, Dr. Hooyman explained, over whether or not we should give preferential treatment to struggling minorities. The Catholic Church in Michigan has explicitly come out against a very similar amendment, expressing support for affirmative action out of its belief in having a preferential option for the poor. In a perfect world, he pointed out, everyone would be on equal ground; yet the world is not perfect, and minorities still need help.
"It's bringing out some important arguments such as one you might hear in a sociology class, that some of what happens in discrimination is economic; that's part of the problem," Leininger added. "You could consider that, but you couldn't specifically consider race."
"We just thought we'd offer chances for students and others on campus (faculty and staff) to have a little more thoughtful conversations," said Dr. Tom Reynolds, vice-president for Mission, "than we get out of the usual ads we see about the elections, and frankly, unfortunately, not even the debates are incredibly thoughtful."
The forum featured several faculty panelists: Dr. Tom Hooyman, who specializes in healthcare ethics; Dr. Tom Leininger, associate professor of Religious Studies; Dr. Mary Beth Callie, assistant professor of Communication; and Diversity Coordinator Saj Kabadi.
Dr. Reynolds informed attendees about the "Blue Book," a booklet provided by the Colorado General Assembly with information on the 18 statewide ballot measures. It includes an analysis of arguments in favor of and opposed to each measure, the actual text of the initiatives, and recommendations on judge retention.
Amendment 46, discussed by Dr. Hooyman, would outlaw affirmative action in public institutions, such as in schools, jobs and government contracts. The amendment will make illegal the action of giving preferential treatment to a particular race or gender.
This opens the door to a conscience issue, Dr. Hooyman explained, over whether or not we should give preferential treatment to struggling minorities. The Catholic Church in Michigan has explicitly come out against a very similar amendment, expressing support for affirmative action out of its belief in having a preferential option for the poor. In a perfect world, he pointed out, everyone would be on equal ground; yet the world is not perfect, and minorities still need help.
"It's bringing out some important arguments such as one you might hear in a sociology class, that some of what happens in discrimination is economic; that's part of the problem," Leininger added. "You could consider that, but you couldn't specifically consider race."
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