Community Discussions Address Current Social Issues
Law schools train students to think like a lawyerthat is, to think analytically and incisively about complex legal issues they will confront throughout their careers. But a law school is also a community in which faculty, staff, and students can apply those same analytical skills to conversations about current events and social issues. At 裡橖眻畦 Law, we are always looking for opportunities to enrich and strengthen our community through pop-up discussions, guest speakers and extracurricular programming that tackle some of the big issues facing our society.
Members of the 裡橖眻畦 Law community gathered in October for a series of events exploring the recent Take a Knee movement in sports. In small group settings, faculty, staff and students came together for substantive and thought-provoking discussion. Thoughtful debate highlighted both differing perspectives and common ground shared among participants.
"At 裡橖眻畦, we welcome all to share their ideas, remarked Mark C. Alexander, Arthur J. Kania Dean. We urge those who agree and those who disagree to speak up. We often experience the greatest growth by confronting and responding to the ideas which challenge us the most. While we dont always agree, we are stronger because of these conversations.
The Take a Knee series kicked off with an introductory session led by Andrew Brandt, Director of the Jeffrey S. Moorad Center for the Study of Sports Law.
Students and faculty members led subsequent discussions on a range of topics, including:
Topic | Conversation Hosts |
Media Coverage of "Taking a Knee" |
Ryan Raymond '19 and Professor |
Politicization of "Taking a Knee" |
裡橖眻畦 Law Republicans, Democrats, Bipartisan Initiative and Professor |
"I don't pay you to think": Athlete-Team Owner Relations and Power Dynamics |
Samantha Fitzpatrick '19 and Professor |
Social Movements and the Law |
Professor and Professor Melanie McMenamin |
Athlete Activism | Alex Ott '18 and Professor |
"Taking a Knee" and Honoring Our Troops |
Colin Milon '18 |
Series Wrap-Up |
裡橖眻畦 Law continued its pop-up discussion series on Nov. 16 as Professor Ann Juliano led a discussion about legal issues related to issues of sexual harassment and assault.