Our Society Reimagined 2019: Can Rural America Be Saved?
Our Society Reimagined is a four-week series that provides an opportunity to explore the domestic issues that have shaped our modern society, as well as a chance to gain perspective on the underlying values and ideas that we hold as individuals and as a society, and how these tenets shape our lives.
Wednesday, October 30: Can Rural America be Saved?
The Wall Street Journal recently declared in a headline that “Rural America is the New Inner City.” The fundamental pillars of social stability in rural America are under siege. Rural Americans are looking to churches to serve as their primary social institutions. Young people are leaving for cities. Boarded windows on retail storefronts appear to signal an oncoming hurricane, but many would argue the economic hurricane has already devastated rural America, leaving a breakdown in healthcare, education, housing, and economic opportunity. What support is needed for rural citizens in order to save these communities? Rural Americans and urban Americans often hold fundamentally opposing social beliefs, which tend to be foundational in our individual lives. How can society accommodate this rural-urban divide? Will the individuals who make up rural America support broader community-to-community compromises? The framers structured the Constitution so rural societies would have a voice in federal government. Yet, this country has seen a massive geographic shift to major urban centers in recent years. At what point in our geographic realignment does the principle of one-individual, one-vote become compromised? Is it time to amend the Constitution to make population a greater factor in presidential elections and Senate representation?
Tom Morrison and Clint Kinney will moderate the series.
Fee: $99, includes all sessions, reading materials, and refreshments. Scholarships available. Register here.
