From ConsensusKC:
Can we stop the yelling? (And should we?)
In March, Americans protesting health-care legislation called Congressman Emanuel Cleaver a racial epithet as he walked into the Capitol. Around the same time, a USA TODAY poll reported that more than two-thirds said Americans “should be ashamed of the way elected officials acted” during the recent health care debate. The ugly clashes have brought a new focus to civility in public life. Does civility matter? Who wins and loses when the gloves come off? And when is incivility necessary?
Join KCPT’s Nick Haines at 2 p.m. on Sunday, October 3, in the Helzberg Auditorium of the Kansas City Central Library at 14 West 10th Street, for a spirited conversation about the dwindling American resource called civility. A reception will be held from 1:30 to 2 p.m. and there is free parking in the library lot. The event is free, however, please RSVP at http://civility.eventbrite.com.
And be sure to spread the word!
Panelists include:
• Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, who has partnered with Republican colleagues to promote decorum in the halls of Congress;
• Reed Chambers, chair of the Tea Party Missouri State Conference;
• Lana Oleen, former KS Senate Majority Leader; and
• Ronnie Metsker, chairman of the Johnson County Republican Party.
Consensus is sponsoring the event, and will report what local residents had to say about civility in a series of focus groups and an online poll. To take the poll, go to
http://surveymonkey.com/s/civility.Consensus is the nonprofit that puts the public in public policy. We provide information and processes that allow people to tackle even high-conflict public policy issues. For more information, see http://www.consensuskc.org/. To learn about c/three consulting, its social enterprise arm, go to www.cthreeconsult.com.
