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Ione Bennion Teachers' Workshop |
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Programs Awards/Scholarships K-12
Teacher Resources Partners About
the MWC |
“Balancing Liberty and Security in U.S. Foreign Policy, Past and Present: Does the War on Terrorism Change Everything?” The workshop is designed for current middle school and high school education teachers and university students. The Bennion Workshop is based on the concept that all teachers and students should understand democratic principles B concepts upon which democracy is built, the conditions under which it flourishes, and the dangers that threaten its existence. Date: July 14-18, 2008 Purpose of this course: This workshop is designed to help students and teachers appreciate the underlying tensions that exist between security and civil liberties in the American democracy. A nation's first priority is to provide security for its citizens. This is the main reason governments were originally created. Nevertheless, as Thomas Jefferson stated in the Declaration of Independence, "all men are created equal and are endowed with certain inalienable rights, including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The United States government is responsible for providing citizens with life (security), liberty (freedoms and civil rights), and the pursuit of happiness (economic opportunities and the protection of private property). However, the inherent tension between security and liberty has made it very difficult at times to balance these responsibilities. Evan at America' s founding this tension was a topic of concern, with John Adams supporting the Alien and Sedition Acts and Thomas Jefferson opposing them. Particularly in wartime, the American citizenry is often receptive to limits on liberty in their effort to achieve security. Challenges to habeas corpus, free speech, free press, and the freedom of association occurred during the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and Cold War, and now during the War on Terror. The workshop will identify some of the limits on American freedom that have been launched in the past in efforts to increase national security during times of war. We will assess their results, both in terms of their actual effects on American security and in their short and long term consequences for legal rights in this country. In particular, the politics of fear and the challenges this approach to governance presents to civil liberties will be critically explored. Specifically, the course will place into historical context recent governmental actions in the War on Terror that encroach upon American civil rights and threaten to indefinitely curtail American liberties because this war has no foreseeable end. CO-ORGANIZERS Shannon Peterson is a lecturer in Political Science at Utah State University where she teaches courses in international relations and comparative politics. She received her Ph.D. from Ohio State University in 2003. Her research interests include transnational relations, international organizations, and U.S. foreign policy. Her current research focuses on understanding the decision-making process behind U.S. decisions of armed humanitarian intervention in the post-Cold War era. With Carolyn Rhodes, Shannon is currently editing a book U.S. Foreign Policy: Interest and Neglect . Although originally from Utah, Shannon has lived in Asia, Europe, and Central America. Shannon and her husband Mike Rigby love to travel and hope to resume their adventures abroad sometime in the near future with their two young daughters. Carolyn Rhodes is a professor of Political Science at Utah State University where she teaches courses in international and comparative politics. She received her Ph.D. from Brandeis University in 1987. Her research interests include international trade relations and bilateral negotiations within international institutional context. In particular, she has examined United States-European Union, United States-Canada, and United States-Japan relations within the context of the World Trade Organization. She is also interested in the development of the European Union and its role as an international actor. Her books include Reciprocity, U.S. Trade Relations and the CATT Regime (1993), The State of the European Union: Building a European Policy? (1995), The European Union in the World Community (1998), and Pivotal Decisions: Selected Cases in Twentieth-Century International Politics (2000). With Shannon Peterson, Carolyn is currently editing a book, U.S. Foreign Policy: Interest and Neglect . The workshop will include three to five special guest presenters in areas of specialized study and experience. Requirements: SCHEDULE: Tuesday, July 15, 2008 Wednesday, July 16, 2008 Thursday, July 17, 2008 Friday, July 18, 2008
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