STATE COLLEGE — Constitution Day Centre Inc. will host its “Making Our Voices Heard Roundtables” in honor of Constitution Day on Saturday, Sept. 14, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
The discussion on immigration will be hosted at the Nittany American Legion Post 245 in State College and is free and open to the public.
“Civility, and our ability to hear and appreciate other perspectives, is at the heart of a successful democracy,” David Hutchinson, CDC president, shared. “It not only governs the way we speak with one another, but it also provides us the capacity to work together to address our common problems. The goal of the Democracy Roundtables is to listen to each other, understand what each of us sees as important, and to seek common ground so that our communities and our country can succeed and thrive.
Through a set of guidelines and with moderators, the discussion will focus on three main questions: Who do we welcome? Can we balance fairness and security? How do we strengthen our common bonds?
At the end of the discussion, groups at the event will present highlights from their conversations to the larger group. Once the event is over, a summary of the group’s findings, discussions and highlights will be shared with local officials, media and the general public.
Also during the event, the annual Madison Award for Civility in the Community, an award which honors residents or organizations for going above and beyond in community leadership, will be presented.
“Democracy has been described as a small core of common agreement, surrounded by a rich variety of individual differences,” Hutchinson said. “Yet we cannot have truly equal participation and equal opportunities unless we treat each other with the respect we deserve as fellow human beings.”
Constitution Day Centre Inc. has hosted an annual event to recognize Constitution Day since 2017. The nonprofit looks to promote civil conversations among people of all beliefs and political parties and has received support from the Proud to Be an American Fund and Centre Care.
Although the roundtable discussions will be held on Saturday, Sept. 14, Constitution Day itself is held each year on Sept. 17. With ties to Pennsylvania, the day observes the signing of the Constitution by the delegates at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787.
To participate in the event, guests are asked to register by emailing info@constitutiondaycenter.org by Monday, Sept. 9.
