X-Men and the Realities of Human Mutation

Emory University Center for Ethics Director, Dr. Paul Root Wolpe, explores questions raised by upcoming film X-Men: First Class.  Image www.x-menfirstclassmovie.com/#/downloads/

Although scientists can’t yet create sudden super-human mutations comparable to the X-Men, our bio-technological pursuits have made certain mutations possible. What are the useful functions and potentially negative impacts of these mutations? Dr. Paul Root Wolpe sheds light on these questions by describing how humans can develop biological mutations that could add memory, attention, strength or even the ability to glow in the dark. Combining these advances with technological devices, the sky is the limit. Dr. Root Wolpe charges us to think about the implications of creating a ‘reviled’ mutated group that is feared and how to resist mutation when it could be used for reasons that are ‘less than lifesaving.’ -Cate Powell 
(Cate has completed study programs in Religion, Conflict Resolution, and International Affairs, traveled to 28 countries, and collaborated with various non-profit organizations.)

 JOIN THE CONVERSATION:  What types of boundaries should be imposed on human mutation and advances with technological devices? 

2011 Freedom Rides Come to Atlanta

The Georgia Humanities Council, in partnership with the PBS series American Experience, Morehouse College, the Emory University Center for Ethics and 15 other Atlanta area organizations were pleased welcome the forty 2011 Student Freedom Riders for Freedom Riders – Atlanta.
Freedom Riders – Atlanta is a film screening, luncheon, and afternoon of dialogue pertaining to the 1961 Freedom Rides. This event took place at the Leadership Center at Morehouse College from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

The 2011 Freedom Riders are forty college students from across the nation, selected from approximately 1000 applicants. From May 6 – 16, 2011, they will retrace the route of the original rides from Washington D.C. to New Orleans, with stops in Augusta and Atlanta. Two Georgia students were selected for this trip: sophomore JoyEllen Freeman from the University of Georgia and Kaitlyn Whiteside, a senior at Georgia Institute of Technology.

* The day began with a one-hour sneak peek screening of Freedom Riders, a new documentary by award-winning filmmaker Stanley Nelson (Wounded Knee, The Murder of Emmett Till). The film will premiere nationally on the PBS series American Experience on May 16, 2011, in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the original Rides. The acclaimed film tells the inspirational and powerful story of the more than 400 black and white men and women who, using non-violent tactics, risked their lives to challenge segregated facilities in the South in 1961.

* Lunch and a talk by Ray Arsenault, historian and author of the book Freedom Riders (upon with the movie is based). The talk provided context and prepared guests for an afternoon of small group dialogue on the rides, personal perspectives on civic engagement, and civic engagement in metro-Atlanta.

Ray Arsenault at 2011 Freedom Rides - Atlanta.  Photo by Carlton Mackey

2011 Freedom Rider JoyEllen Freeman, Freedom Rider Dr. Benard Lafayette, Co-Convenor Carlton Mackey, 2011 Freedom Rider Zilong Wang, and Facilitator Jamila Mindingal dialouge about Freedoom Rides and civic engagement.

Proudly Welcome Original Freedom Riders:
Other special guests include 1961 Freedom Riders Mrs. Julia Aaron,  Dr. Bernard Lafayette, Charles Person, Joan Mulholland, Ernest “Rip” Patton, Helen and Robert Singleton

Freedom Riders Julia Aaron and David Dennis on Interstate Bus from Montgomery, AL to Jackson, MS 

by Paul Schutzer

Joan Trumpauer Mulholland was a freshman at Duke in the spring of 1960, and was actively involved in the local sit-in movement, something that she hadn’t shared with her parents until the university’s Dean of Women got involved.  www.breachofpeace.com

Joan Mulholland speaks at 2011 Freedom Rides Atlanta.  Photo by Carlton Mackey

1961 Freedom Riders Honored at 2011 Freedom Rides - Atlanta

Conveners:
Freedom Riders Atlanta is brought to you by: ARC Media, Anti-Defamation League, Asian Pacific American Historical Society, Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education, Atlanta Office – American Jewish Committee, Atlanta Regional Commission, Auburn Avenue Research Library for African American History and Culture, Civic League for Regional Atlanta, Collective Deliberation Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, Emory University Center for Ethics, Emory University – Transforming Community Project, Georgia Humanities Council, Georgia Public Broadcasting, Georgia State University, Morehouse College- Rabin King Initiative, Morehouse College – Martin Luther King Jr. Collection, National Center for Civil and Human Rights, PBS-American Experience. Sponsors for Freedom Riders Atlanta include the Georgia Humanities Council, Morehouse College, National Endowment for the Humanities and American Experience.



About the Council:
Freedom Riders – Atlanta is the last of a series of film screenings in Georgia sponsored by the Georgia Humanities Council in partnership with the PBS series American Experience. Other screenings took place at Emory University and in Albany, Kennesaw, and Savannah.
The Georgia Humanities Council (www.georgiahumanities.org) is a statewide nonprofit organization working to ensure that humanities and culture remain an integral part of the lives of all Georgians. The Council serves the state of Georgia through its grant program and projects, and increases awareness about the history, stories, and ideas that inform our lives, so that we can make better decisions for the future.
(Article adapted from original press release)

Congratulations to the Class of 2011

The Center for Ethics Congratulates Noor Najafi

Noor Najafi recites poem at the 2010 Free Speech Art Cafe sponsored by the Center for Ethics.  Photo by Carlton Mackey.

Emory University senior Noor Najafi is the recipient of the 2011 Lucius Lamar McMullan Award, one of Emory's highest student honors which also comes with $20,000 — no strings attached. The McMullan Award, endowed by Emory alumnus William L. Matheson in honor of his uncle, is given to a graduating senior who exhibits "outstanding citizenship, exceptional leadership and rare potential for service to his or her community, the nation and the world."

Najafi was cited by several nominators as an exceptionally innovative and creative leader and scholar. He is graduating with a religion major (and a near-perfect 3.9 GPA) in the Emory College of Arts and Sciences, and has taken part in undergraduate research with religion professor Richard Martin, and Emory Law professor Martha Duncan. He is the recipient of the Robert Woodruff Scholarship, Emory’s highest merit award, and has been inducted into Phi Beta Kappa and other honor societies.
(taken from original article by Beverly Clark | Read complete article at
http://shared.web.emory.edu/emory/news/releases/2011/05/2011-mcmullan-winner-noor-najafi.html )