UT to Explore and Celebrate Human Rights April 27

How many human rights are there? Is there a human right to democracy or economic development? Does the death penalty violate human rights? These and other questions will be explored during The University of Tampa’s second annual Human Rights Day Conference on Saturday, April 27.

The conference investigates and celebrates human rights through panels, presentations and creative works from UT faculty and students as well as outside speakers. The event will run from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the 9th floor of the Vaughn Center and is free and open to the public.

Joyce Hamilton Henry, mid-Florida director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), will deliver the keynote address on “U.S. Voter Disenfranchisement and the Human Right to Vote.” Henry’s talk begins at 10:05 a.m.

Other scheduled events include:

Student Panel on Human Rights Theory: “How many human rights are there? The Case for Minimalism, Maximalism and the UDHR Model,” students from UT’s Philosophy 350 Human Rights course, 11 a.m.
Address on Social and Economic Human Rights: “Political and Economic Rights, Transnational Narratives and Sustainable Reconciliation: An Exploratory Analysis of Sara Terry’s Fambul Tok,” Arthur Hollist, associate professor of English, Noon
Debate on Human Rights and the Death Penalty: “Does the death penalty violate human rights?,” David E. Krahl, assistant professor of criminology, and Marcus Arvan, assistant professor of philosophy, 2 p.m.
Perspectives on Human Rights: Faith Values and Spirituality, Gina Firth, associate dean of wellness, 3 p.m.
UNICEF on Human Rights, 3:30 p.m.
People for People on Food as a Human Right: Ben McDonald ’13, 4 p.m.
Rape and Sexual Battery in War: Alexis Bourdeau ’14, 4:30 p.m.
Closing Address: “Human Rights: Lessons from Science,” Bruce Freisen, associate professor of sociology, 5 p.m.

The conference is organized by UT’s Human Rights Think Tank. For more information, contact Bruce Friesen at bfriesen@ut.edu or (813) 257-3464, or Marcus Arvan at marvan@ut.edu or (813) 257-3674.