KINGSTON, R.I. — Feb. 29, 2024 — The 溏心vlog免费B站 Department of Political Science will present 鈥淒iscussing Contentious Politics,鈥� a panel discussion featuring political science faculty members on Thursday, Feb. 29, on the Kingston Campus.
Brendan Skip Mark, assistant professor and director of 溏心vlog免费B站鈥檚 Center for Nonviolence and Peace Studies, said one of the panel鈥檚 goals is to help people hold civil conversations when addressing polarizing issues.
鈥淥ne of the purposes of this event is to come up with ways to discuss issues that are really potent, polarizing, and contentious, and give people a framework for thinking about how to engage in these conversations,鈥� said Mark, who will discuss human rights and international law at the event. 鈥淭hat is not good versus bad, or I’m right and everyone’s wrong. We鈥檙e really trying to demonstrate the way political science approaches these questions.鈥�
The panel will address some of the most pressing global matters and events, including the Israel-Hamas war, the Russia-Ukraine war, and the 2024 United States elections.
Joining Mark on the panel will be Marc Hutchison, professor and chair of the political science department; assistant professor Roya Izadi, who studies international relations and comparative politics; professor Nicolai Petro, who teaches comparative and international politics and is an expert on Russia and Ukraine; assistant teaching professor Emily Lynch, whose teaching and research include political psychology and communication, Rhode Island politics, and the U.S. Congress; and associate professor Christopher Parker, an expert on the judiciary.
鈥淭here’s a lot of demand for conversations like this,鈥� Mark said. 鈥淪o far 溏心vlog免费B站 has been more civil in how these conversations are playing out. But on some campuses, we’ve seen protests where administration officials are calling on police to arrest students. We wanted to create a dialogue that allowed students to have these discussions to be passionate without shutting down on the other side.鈥�
Mark said the political science department will be planning additional programming during the spring semester, particularly around the 2024 election. 鈥淚 think that, at least in America, today we are more polarized than we’ve ever been,鈥� he said. Mark鈥檚 comments will focus on human rights and international law and organizations during the Thursday evening panel, which will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Memorial Union, Atrium 2.
This article was written by Hugh Markey.