March 23, 2021
In response to the need for a more civil and informative public dialogue about the fundamental issues dividing Americans, Oakland University’s Center for Civic Engagement will hold a series of timely discussions entitled, “Toward A More Perfect Union.”
The first panel discussion, “Defy the Divide: A Path to Civility,” features U.S. Representatives Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly), Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn) and Fred Upton (R-Kalamazoo), members of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Problem Solvers Caucus, an evenly divided group of lawmakers who work to create bipartisan solutions to important policy issues.
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| Rep. Elissa Slotkin |
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| Rep. Debbie Dingell |
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| Rep. Fred Upton |
“As members of the U.S. House of Representatives Problem Solvers Caucus, Representatives Slotkin, Dingell and Upton are at the forefront of efforts to work across today’s partisan divide to propose common sense solutions to important problems facing the nation,” said David Dulio, professor of political science and director of the Center for Civic Engagement.
The discussion will focus on how to find common ground in a time of highly charged partisan politics.
Journalists Stephen Henderson and Nolan Finley will moderate the panel, which will be held from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, April 6. To register, visit http://ou-cce.eventbrite.com.
Henderson and Finley, who are among Michigan’s most respected news commentators, founded the Civility Project, a non-partisan initiative to restore civility in politics in southeast Michigan.
In upcoming months, “A More Perfect Union” will explore issues at the heart of building stronger communities and a stronger America. These issues include race in America, the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, free speech and the First Amendment, and pressing economic issues.
“Few other times in our nation’s history has there been as pressing a need for public discussion about civility in our national discourse as there is today,” Dulio said. “Given the Center for Civic Engagement’s role as a ‘convener of conversations’ about issues of public importance, we are poised to respond to this need for quality public dialogue.”
For more information, contact David Dulio at [email protected].