June 3, 2010
Newsmakers
THE VALUE OF ETHNIC STUDIES: James Banks, professor of education and director of the UW Center for Multicultural Education, discussed the teaching of ethnic studies on a recent segment of National Public Radio’s Talk of the Nation series. Asked his reaction to Arizona’s new law that prohibits some types of African American and Mexican American studies in public high schools, Banks told host Neal Conan, “I was saddened, and I felt it was very unfortunate because it was actually based upon misconceptions about what ethnic studies was all about. It was based upon the assumption that ethnic studies was divisive and that ethnic studies promoted ethnic pride over unity and that ethnic studies — actually, I’m one of the founders of the movement in schools. Ethnic studies is really about bringing us together, bringing different groups together.” You can read a transcript and listen to the discussion online here.
IMMIGRATION DISCUSSION: The PBS News Hour held a spirited discussion on immigration reform in late May, after the visit of Mexican President Felipe Calderon’s visit to the White House and Capitol Hill. Luis Fraga, UW professor of political science and associate vice provost for faculty advancement, was one of two guests discussing the issue with host Ray Suarez. The other was Jan Ting, a former immigration office with the George H.W. Bush administration, who now teaches at Temple University’s Beasley School of Law.
The two were asked, did Calderon bring a different message this time? Fraga said, “I think, for the first time, this Mexican president actually clearly accepted the responsibility Mexico and its leadership has for reducing the incentives that Mexican citizens have to think of leaving their country and coming to the United States. It is rare for a Mexican president to be as open and as blunt in the need for social reform, public policy, health care reform, all sorts of changes, educational opportunity, needed in their country to be able to stem that flow. That was different.” He added, “What was not different was his criticism of actions taken in the United States, and in particular his criticism of the law, recent law in Arizona.” Read a transcript and listen to the discussion online here.
SEX, MORE OR LESS: Middle-aged Americans are more open to sex outside of marriage than they were a decade ago — but they’re also having less sex and are less satisfied with the sex they have, according to a new AARP study. And the economy is likely the reason. A May Associated Press story on the research quoted Pepper Schwartz, UW sociologist and AARP’s expert on relationships. “The economy has had an impact on these people,” Schwartz said. “They’re more liberal in their attitudes, yet they’re having sex less often. The only thing I see that’s changed in a negative direction is financial worries.” The survey also found that unmarried respondents with partners tended to have more sex, with more satisfaction, than married respondents. “These long-term married couples may get a little less interested. Older people in nonmarried relations work harder at it and enjoy it more,” she said. You can read the article here.
LIZARD LESSON: Sometimes scientists discover something they wish weren’t true. Such seems to be the case with recent research from biologist Barry Sinervo of the University of California, Santa Cruz, that indicates global warming is already causing “local” extinctions of many species of lizard. A National Public Radio story in mid-May reported on the research, and quoted Raymond Huey, UW biology professor and department chair, along the way. “It will be the subject of intense scrutiny from other biologists, because I think that most people who work with lizards will be surprised,” Huey said.” The article noted that the research seems counterintuitive since lizards are thought to thrive in warmer weather — but “all of the data point in the same direction,” Huey said. He added, “There are some times in science when one does something that one hopes is wrong. And I think all of us who study this problem hope that he’s wrong. We don’t want this to be true, because we like lizards.” Read and listen to the story online here.
