Visiting Fellow to address state of political discourse in U.S. at BenU
Have you looked at your ballot lately? Really looked?
What you will likely find is a vast number of uncontested races, making elections nothing more than bureaucratic appointments. But who can blame people for shirking civic duty when they run the risk of coming under a flurry of personal attacks? Or for concluding that we live in a world that values conflict over solutions and loud voices over wise ones?
The state of our public political discourse and its impact on our expectations and participation in civic life is the topic of a lecture, "The Inconsolable Voter," by Anita Perez Ferguson, Ph.D., at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 27, in the Goodwin Hall Auditorium on the campus of Benedictine University.
Perez Ferguson is director of the Hank Lacayo Institute for Workforce and Community Studies at California State University Channel Islands in Camarillo, Calif. She has served as president of the National Women's Political Caucus, White House liaison to the U.S. Department of Transportation and chair of the Inter-American Foundation.
Perez Ferguson has trained women in leadership and political skills in the United States, Latin America, Africa, Asia and Europe in conjunction with several international organizations. She was a weekly contributor to WAMC National Public Radio in New York from 1996-99, and has authored several books including "Women Seen and Heard: Lessons Learned from Successful Speakers" and "A Passion for Politics: Encouraging Women in Leadership."
Hispanic Business magazine named Perez Ferguson to its list of "The 100 Most Influential Hispanics in the United States."
Perez Ferguson's lecture is part of the Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellows program.
The Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellows program, which is administered by the Council of Independent Colleges in Washington, D.C., brings prominent artists, diplomats, journalists, business leaders and other professionals to campuses across the United States for a weeklong residential program of classes, seminars, workshops, lectures and informal discussions.
The lecture is free and open to the public.
For more information, contact (630) 829-6247 or visit ben.edu.