March 16, 2006
Contact:
Dr. Jim Johnson
Interim Vice President of Instruction
(209) 575-6056
johnsonj@mjc.edu
PRESS RELEASE –
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MJC offers panel discussion on Robert
Kennedy, Jr.’s book "Crimes Against Nature"
(Modesto, CA) – Modesto Junior
College will present a Panel Discussion on Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s book “Crimes
Against Nature” on Thursday, March 23 at 7 p.m., in Forum 110 on East Campus,
located at 435 College Avenue in Modesto. Panelists who represent a variety of
political, social and economic points of view will discuss and debate the major
issues raised by Kennedy’s book. The event is free and open to the public.
In his book, Crimes Against
Nature, Kennedy, criticizes many of the current policies and actions of
President George W. Bush and his administration as being detrimental to the
environment. Kennedy, an attorney, author and renowned environmental activist,
built his reputation as a resolute defender of the environment with a litany of
successful legal actions. Kennedy was named one of Time magazine’s “Heroes for
the Planet” for his success in helping Riverkeeper lead the fight to restore the
Hudson River. Copies of Kennedy’s Crimes Against Nature are available in
paperback in the MJC East Campus Pirate’s Bookstore.
The March 23rd panelists that will discuss
Kennedy’s book include:
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Dr. Gabriele Ludwig, Senior Manager of
Global, Technical & Regulatory Affairs at the Almond Board of California.
She received her BA in Biology from Wellesley College and her
Ph.D. in Plant Physiology from the University of California-Davis in 1996.
Taught a Conservation Biology course at Consumnes River College in 1996. Since
then, she has worked as a consultant in Washington, DC on regulatory issues
facing California agriculture including pesticide, food safety and
phytosanitary issues. More recently she has joined the Almond Board of
California where she continues to work on regulatory issues as well as work
with the Environmental Committee of ABC to find solutions to the environmental
issues facing the Central Valley.
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Greg Edwards, adjunct radio instructor
at MJC, is a 37 year veteran of radio broadcasting. He is a former news
director for radio and television in Fresno, and has been a talk radio host
for five and a half years in Modesto and Fresno. Edwards is a self-described
Christian Republican Conservative.
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John Flint, Modesto Bee
community columnist
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Brad Barker, a member of the Sierra Club
for 21 years and a member of the local Yokuts group for 19 years, is a Modesto
City Schools librarian at Mark Twain Junior High. Barker is also a community
columnist for the Modesto Bee.
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Dr. Lillian Vallee, professor of English
at MJC, is a poet, environmentalist and award winning writer. She was born in
Hamburg, Germany and immigrated to the United States as a young child. She
holds B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from UC Berkeley and taught Polish and
Russian part time there prior to joining the MJC faculty in 1991.
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Dr. Theron Westrope (Panel Moderator)
has been a professor of English at MJC since 1999. He was born in Modesto,
raised in nearby Los Banos, and earned both his B.A. and M.A. from University
of the Pacific. In l996 he began to pursue his doctorate at the University of
Louisiana at Lafayette, focusing on Latin American literature. In May of 2000,
he completed his dissertation “Mirrors, Memories, and (We) Others,” dealing
with multiculturalism in the works of the Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes.
The free
panel discussion was planned by MJC in preparation for Kennedy’s speech
on “Our Environmental Destiny” that will be given on Friday, March 31, at 7 p.m.
in the MJC Gymnasium. Tickets for Kennedy’s March 31 presentation are $10
general admission, $8 students and seniors and will be available for purchase at
the Panel Discussion. Tickets are also available Monday through Friday, 12 noon
to 5 p.m., at the MJC Gymnasium Box Office on East Campus. For information on
VIP tickets call the MJC Public Information Office at (209) 575-6866.