The Justice and Peace Studies Program at the University of St. Thomas
invites you to a Community Discussion of:
The Republican National Convention (RNC):
Civil Disobedience, Community Policing and Moral Courage
Tuesday, October 23, 2007 from 7 to 9 pm, in the main
Auditorium of the O’Shaughnessy Education Center (at the University of St. Thomas, on Cleveland Ave. near Summit Ave. in St. Paul, Minnesota, USA)
On September 1-4 of 2008, the Republican Party will hold its National Convention in St. Paul, with other venues scattered through the Twin Cities. Highly polarized national politics means that thousands of protestors and lobbyists of all stripes will also come to express their political views, concerns or interests on dozens of issues. Some will be extremely outraged by national policies that are unlikely to change between now and then. It happens that the St. Paul Police Department (SPPD) is about 2 generations ahead of many others in operationalizing and using a philosophy called “Community Policing.” That aims to create more trust than sometimes exists between police and the communities they work in, to better protect EVERYONE’s personal freedoms, safety and property. The visit by the RNC will provide a unique arena for guarding the free speech rights of both protestors and conventioneers, and protecting all citizens’ persons and property from harm when many thousands of outsiders visit our fair city.
Panelists:
Dick Bernard,
President, Minnesota Alliance of Peacemakers, a consortium of 68 peace groups in Minnesota. Responsible citizen of a democracy, human being.
Gerald Schlabach, Director, UST’s Justice and Peace Studies program and a Catholic / Mennonite, pacifist, peace worker. Responsible citizen of a democracy, human being.
Matt Bostrom, Assistant Chief of Homeland Security and Support Services for SPPD in charge of all RNC affairs for the St. Paul Police. Responsible citizen, human being.
Tom Smith, Assistant Chief, St. Paul Police Department, head of Operations Division for all St. Paul jurisdictions. Responsible citizen of a democracy, human being.
This event is free and open to the public.
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