In celebration of Benjamin Franklin’s 305th birthday, the Faculty Senate is welcoming the entire Penn community to the Founder’s Day Symposium “Human Rights: Contested Principles and Practices.”
Moderated by the Law School Dean Michael Fitts, the panel will gather at Levine Hall, composed of several Penn professors who specialize in a variety of fields, including law, race relations, philosophy and medicine.
Panelist Stephen Gluckman, a professor in the School of Medicine, said he looks forward to hearing the opinions of his colleagues, as the issue of human rights is “not straightforward.”
With his experience in global medicine and HIV research in mind, he said human rights are “fundamentally” an issue of economics and personal independence, noting access to care and reproductive rights as major issues he has encountered in his work.
Penn Law professor and panelist Sarah Paoletti plans to bring a “less academic” perspective on the issue, but instead wants to encourage others to consider how human rights ideals can be implemented on a practical level.
As part of the Symposium, Paoletti said she would like the panel and attendees to “challenge conceptions, consider what they mean” and think about everyday issues within a human rights framework.
Gluckman said he hopes the panel will allow professors and the Penn community to have an open discussion in order to raise people’s awareness about human rights. He also said he would like panelists themselves to take away a better understanding of the issue on a broader scale.
Penn President Amy Gutmann said the Symposium coincides well with honoring Penn’s founder Benjamin Franklin, who she called “path-breaking” in ensuring United State’s citizens’ independent rights.
She added that through the Symposium, “we can deal today with challenges that show great progress over what was the state of human rights in Benjamin Franklin’s time, but also signal the need to make more progress moving forward.”
