Munro Seminar for Civic Education: America 250: Lessons and Legacies of the American Revolution, Panels
Department
Friday, October 16
Preventing Unchecked Power: Legislatures and Liberty from the Founding to Today
1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m., Viking Union Multipurpose Room
In the wake of the Revolution, political leaders put Congress, the legislative branch, front and center as they sought to set up a limited government to promote individual liberty. How and why did they think the legislature, rather than other branches of government, was best suited to representing citizen interests and protecting individual liberty? How has this changed over time? And what challenges do members of Congress today face in living out this legacy?
Panelists Include: Jaime Herrera Beutler, former US Congressional Representative; Jennifer Victor, George Mason University; Craig Yirush, University of California Los Angeles
Subjects to Citizens: Civic Action and Social Change
3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m., Viking Union Multipurpose Room
The American Revolution was more than an independence movement. It transformed Americans' relationship with themselves. No longer subjects of a King, the people themselves were now responsible for creating the kind of society they wanted. This panel will examine how citizens across American history organized for social change and the impact they had on American democracy.
Panelists Include: Abigail Dym, Bowdoin College; Vicki Hsueh, Western Washington University; Reeve Huston, Duke University