(Satellite Location: Edinboro) Abortion and Personal Autonomy: A Discussion on How They are Changing in Post-Roe America
Abortion and Personal Autonomy: A Discussion on How They are Changing in Post-Roe America
In 2023, the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and opened the door to the criminalization of abortion and the reconsideration of other rights of personal autonomy. Discuss the shifting landscape of American reproductive politics with Jim Fisher, PennWest Professor of Politics and Legal Studies and Interim Dean, College of Social Sciences and Human Services, and Rhonda Matthews, PennWest Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, Political Science, and Law.
Location: Alexander Music Recital Hall (Edinboro University) – 110 Kiltie Rd. Edinboro, PA 16444.
Date/Time: Wednesday, March 29 at 6:00 p.m.
Admission: FREE
Parking: Academy Hall parking lot adjacent to the William P. Alexander Music Center "WA" on the campus map.
James Fisher, Ph.D., is a Professor of Politics and Legal Studies at Pennsylvania Western University. He has taught at the Edinboro campus since 2000 and is an alumnus of the school (with bachelor's degrees in political science and English). He holds a law degree from the College of William and Mary and a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He teaches courses in law and politics, political theory, and American politics. He is particularly interested in reproductive politics, civil liberties, and the United States Supreme Court. He regularly gives public lectures and participates in public forums discussing constitutional and legal issues. Professor Fisher trained as a community organizer with the Gamaliel Foundation and has served in leadership positions on the boards of several nonprofit organizations. At Edinboro, he has served as Interim Provost and Associate Provost and is currently the PennWest Interim Dean of the College of Social Sciences & Human Services. He has been nominated twice for Edinboro's Educator of the Year award.
Rhonda Matthews, Ph.D., is an associate professor of political science and women’s studies in the Department of Political Science and Criminal Justice at Edinboro University. Rhonda has been with the university since 2002 and served as the director of the Dr. Robert C. Weber Honors Program for three years. Prior to her work at Edinboro, she taught at several other institutions and worked in the fields of diversity affairs and residence life. Rhonda is dedicated to the advocacy and empowerment of women and children as a result of her previous work as a sexual assault survivor counselor. Using tenets of intersectional analysis, her primary areas of academic interest include gender & women’s studies, sociological theory, popular culture, and stratification. She is a long-time fan of science fiction, superheroes and comic books, is married and has one daughter.
