2008 Conference Program - Midwest Political Science Association

Friday, April 4-8:00 am
29-5 RACE AND LOCAL POLITICS
Room Salon 7 on the 3rd Floor, Fri at 8:00 am
Chair Boris Ricks, University of Missorui, Kansas City
ricks@umkc.edu
Paper The Impact of Minority-Majority Districts: Evidence From
Russia and Ukraine
We extend the work on minority-majority districts by examining
their effects in two post-communist states. We test whether
minority-majority districts increase voting turnout and minority
representation using county-level electoral and census data.
Robert G. Moser, University of Texas
rmoser@mail.la.utexas.edu
Marko Papic, University of Texas
marko.papic@mail.utexas.edu
Paper Policy Outsiders and Institutional Insiders: The Dual Nature of
Majority-Minority Voting Districts in the American States
We examine the political implications of Latino and Black Majority-
Minority Districts (MMDs) at the state legislative level. We provide
evidence for the dual nature of MMDs, as they create both policy
outsiders and institutional insiders.
Eric Gonzalez Juenke, University of Colorado, Boulder
juenke@colorado.edu
Robert Preuhs, Metropolitan State College, Denver
rpreuhs@mscd.edu
Paper Power, Race, and Change: Affecting Disparities at the Local
Level
Using pluralist power theory, an initiative by black leaders in a midsized
southern city to develop an office of multicultural affairs as
a mechanism for addressing racial disparities and inequality in the
city is analyzed.
Barbara C. Medley, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Barbara-Medley@utc.edu
Lisa K. Brown, University of Maryland, College Park
lkbrown@umd.edu
Disc. Boris Ricks, University of Missorui, Kansas City
ricks@umkc.edu
30-4 PLATO'S LAWS
Room Suite 15-150 on the 15th Floor, Fri at 8:00 am
Chair Joe Wilson, University of Scranton
wilsonj1@scranton.edu
Paper Plato's Contribution to the Philosophy of Law
In this paper I propose that we gain access to Plato's dialogue on
laws the Laws by using the medical metaphor. Once the theory of
law in the Laws is made clear, this paper asks the question what
contribution it makes to the philosophy of law.
Emma Cohen de Lara, University of Vermont/University of Notre
Dame
ecohende@uvm.edu
Disc. Joe Wilson, University of Scranton
wilsonj1@scranton.edu
32-6 IS DEMOCRACY TOO DEMANDING CAPACITIES
OF CITIZENS
Room Suite 14-150 on the 14th Floor, Fri at 8:00 am
Chair Evan Oxman, Princeton University
eoxman@princeton.edu
Paper Autonomy, Equality and Democracy in a World of Sub-
Standard Citizens
The paper addresses the appropriateness of generally accepted
concepts of autonomy and equality given that citizens fail to exhibit
the qualities presumed. These central concepts are redefined in the
attempt to better orient democratic theory
Shawn W. Rosenberg, University of California, Irvine
swr@uci.edu
Paper
Paper
Paper
Disc.
Small, But Not Yet Beautiful: Democracies in Post-Communist
Central Europe
The paper analyzes specific problems of post-communist Central
European democracies. The mismatch between limited institutional
capacity and the demands of democratic governance going beyond
elections has serious implications for democratic theory.
Marek Skovajsa, Iczech Academy of Sciences
marek.skovajsa@soc.cas.cz
Deliberating Conflict Democratically Mediators and
Participatory Impacts
What are the participatory impacts of democratic deliberation
Empirical study of community mediation suggests that the
role played by facilitators in changing participants' skills and
dispositions is in tension with the norm of self-determination.
Heather Pincock, Syracuse University
hpincock@syr.edu
The Public Sphere: Checking ID at the Door
This paper examines the place of youth in the public sphere, and
expands the Habermasian conception beyond the bourgeois. It
explores the obstacles to youth participation and the resources
available for negotiating their place in a democracy.
Nawojka Lesinski, University of Illinois, Chicago
nlesinski@rocketmail.com
Evan Oxman, Princeton University
eoxman@princeton.edu
Geoffrey Allan Plauche, Louisiana State University
gplauc1@lsu.edu
33-4 READING HANNAH ARENDT
Room PDR 9 on the 3rd Floor, Fri at 8:00 am
Chair Ashley Biser, University of Minnesota
bise0017@umn.edu
Paper October 2000 - Being a Minority in Israel - An Arendtian
Analysis
Applying Arendt's views on minorities, nationalism, Zionism, and
the Arab inhabitants of Palestine/Israel, this paper will examine the
consequences of the October 2000 events to Israel's Arab minority
and to its democratic and humane character.
Michal Biletzki, Boston University
biletzki@bu.edu
Paper ‘We Are Not Our Fathers’: Authority and the Foundation of
Democratic Politics
Do democracies need authority I turn to Arendt and Wolin to
address this question. I argue that an authority rooted in practices
of contestation may enhance democracy, dignity, and capacities for
human action, rather than diminish them.
Alisa Kessel, Wake Forest University
kesselas@wfu.edu
Paper Beginnings in Politics: The Rebirth of Augustine in Arendt's
Political Theory
This paper reveals the influence of Saint Augustine’s thought on the
political theory of Hannah Arendt. I argue that Arendt’s articulation
of natality with its foundational role for public speech and action
has its origins in the work of Augustine.
Sarah Elizabeth Spengeman, University of Notre Dame
sspengem@nd.edu
Paper What If I Die Here The Metaphysical Anxiety of Republican
Government
This paper examines the role metaphysical anxiety plays in politics
and what politics can do for the metaphysical anxiety of those who
participate in it by examining the debate Seyla Benhabib takes up
with Hannah Arendt on the topic.
Steven Douglas Maloney, Middle Tennessee State University
sdmalone@mtsu.edu
Disc. Ashley Biser, University of Minnesota
bise0017@umn.edu
165