2017 Ethics Symposium: The Ethics of Saying Things

Does the first amendment have any limitations on modern American college campuses? Tune in to Comcast 15 as we delve in to the ethics of stating our opinions at the 12th Annual Fall Ethics Symposium from California State University at Sacramento and Consumnes River College.

Abstract: In this talk, George Yancey will briefly point to the evidence of academic bias so that the audience understands what sort of discrepancies we might expect in scholarly work. Then he will use the theory of right-wing authoritarianism to show how scholarly work can become distorted when shaped by ideological filters. He will end the talk comparing two controversial studies — the Decety religious generosity study and the Regnerus same-sex parenting study to show what happens to research that does not match the political bias in academia.

Bio: George Yancey is Professor of Sociology at the University of North Texas. His research interests include Christian studies, science, knowledge, religion, race relations, interracial unions, and multicultural churches. He received his Ph.D from the University of Texas at Austin.

Abstract: In 2017 and over the last couple of years, there has been an alarming crackdown in colleges and universities on freedom of speech, to the extent. These developments challenge students and professors alike to resist protocols that stifle free speech.

There is arguably no better platform to discuss challenging issues, brainstorm ideologies and philosophies of life than in Colleges and Universities. These institutions have an unmatched ecology of diverse peoples that cut across race, sex and beliefs who interact on a daily basis, and the ability to openly speak about issues concerning their lives, environment and future is an undisputed weapon needed in the arsenal of future leaders to drive change and better the world as a whole. As such, the conversation for change happens here and it is only via free speech that the change can be positive and/or lead to optimal results for all agents involved.

Bio: Kaycea is an Associate Professor at Pierce College, teaching Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, and related Economic Theory courses, and Department Chair for a division housing the disciplines of Political Science, Economics, Administration of Justice, and Chicano Studies. She teaches economic courses at other colleges within the Los Angeles Community College District (Mission College and West Los Angeles College). She also serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Economics at the University of La Verne and Chapman University instructing both graduate and undergraduate students in Economics and Business courses.

Campbell earned a Ph.D.in Economics and Management from Claremont Graduate University in Pomona, Calif., as well as a Master of Arts in Economics from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor’s in Economics, Management Studies and Political Science from University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica.

Abstract: This will talk will take a deeper look at the philosophical foundations of free speech and open inquiry through the work of John Stuart Mill. The discussion will examine the underpinning reasons why free speech in a society is vital, and whether or not free speech should be suppressed by either government or societal entities.

Bio: Robert S. Taylor is a professor of political science at the University of California, Davis. He specializes in contemporary analytic political philosophy and the history of liberal political thought. He has written numerous articles on Kant, Mill, Rawls, autonomy, self-ownership, and commercial republicanism, and he published his first book, Reconstructing Rawls: The Kantian Foundations of Justice as Fairness, in 2011. His second book, entitled Exit Left: Markets and Mobility in Republican Thought, was published by Oxford University Press in March 2017.

For more from the Center for Practical and Professional Ethics: csus.edu/cppe/