Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
This panel will explore whether Trump’s actions since re-election have created a constitutional crisis. Drawing on John Locke and the American Founders, the panelists will ask whether we still live in a republic or whether we have entered a new era in which we are governed by force rather than law. These questions get to the heart of what it means to live in a free society today.
The World Issues Forum series is free and open to the public. Talks are held at 12:00pm in Fairhaven College Auditorium, on the top floor of the Fairhaven College main building to the rear (east) side. If you enter from the west entrance (halfway between the second and third floor facing parking lot 12A), take the half-flight of stairs to the left and continue to east side of the building from there. You'll see the door to the auditorium a little to your left.
Join us at WWU or online on Zoom!
World Issues Forum updates are available online.
The views expressed in the World Issues Forum do not necessarily reflect those of Western Washington University.
Featuring:
Jamie Mayerfeld, PhD
Jamie Mayerfeld is Professor and Chair of Law, Societies & Justice, and Professor of Political Science at the University of Washington. His books include "The Promise of Human Rights" and "Suffering and Moral Responsibility." He has published articles on various topics in political theory and human rights.
Johann Neem, PhD
Johann Neem, Professor of History, Western Washington University, is a scholar of the early American republic. His work has appeared in the New Republic, Washington Post, USA Today, and LA Review of Books, among other venues. He is author of three books including What’s the Point of College? and Democracy’s Schools: The Rise of Public Education in America.
Brought to you by:
Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies, Center for Law, Diversity and Justice, The Ray Wolpow Institute, The Foundation for WWU & Alumni
This panel will explore whether Trump’s actions since re-election have created a constitutional crisis. Drawing on John Locke and the American Founders, the panelists will ask whether we still live in a republic or whether we have entered a new era in which we are governed by force rather than law. These questions get to the heart of what it means to live in a free society today.
The World Issues Forum series is free and open to the public. Talks are held at 12:00pm in Fairhaven College Auditorium, on the top floor of the Fairhaven College main building to the rear (east) side. If you enter from the west entrance (halfway between the second and third floor facing parking lot 12A), take the half-flight of stairs to the left and continue to east side of the building from there. You'll see the door to the auditorium a little to your left.
Join us at WWU or online on Zoom!
World Issues Forum updates are available online.
The views expressed in the World Issues Forum do not necessarily reflect those of Western Washington University.
Featuring:
Jamie Mayerfeld, PhD
Jamie Mayerfeld is Professor and Chair of Law, Societies & Justice, and Professor of Political Science at the University of Washington. His books include "The Promise of Human Rights" and "Suffering and Moral Responsibility." He has published articles on various topics in political theory and human rights.
Johann Neem, PhD
Johann Neem, Professor of History, Western Washington University, is a scholar of the early American republic. His work has appeared in the New Republic, Washington Post, USA Today, and LA Review of Books, among other venues. He is author of three books including What’s the Point of College? and Democracy’s Schools: The Rise of Public Education in America.
Brought to you by:
Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies, Center for Law, Diversity and Justice, The Ray Wolpow Institute, The Foundation for WWU & Alumni
