Orcas Crossroads Lecture Series Presents Louis Wolcher: “What is Justice Today?”

Louis Wolcher, Crossroads speaker on "What is Justice Today?" this Sunday

The second lecture event of this year’s Orcas Crossroads Lecture Series is on Sunday, October 10, 2 p.m. at Orcas Center. The Crossroads Committee selects lecture topics of both local and global import and brings speakers with substantial expertise in those topics to Orcas.  The upcoming lecture is entitled “Justice:  What Is Justice Today?” and the speaker is Louis E. Wolcher, The Charles I. Stone Professor of Law at the University of Washington.

Professor Wolcher, who has been called “brilliant and concise” and “the thinker” in recent biographical pieces, received his Juris Doctor (magna cum laude) from Harvard Law School, where he was a member of the Board of Editors at Harvard Law Review. Since 1986 he has been teaching at the University of Washington, where he received the university’s highest honor for excellence in teaching, the Distinguished Teaching Award.

In discussion with Professor Wolcher, Crossroads Committee members have identified some aspects of the topic which will be addressed in the lecture, including:

“Since 9/11 it is apparent that as a nation we have real enemies who wish us harm.  It is also apparent that in response to these threats – both real and imagined – we have at times reconsidered our traditional vision of the Meaning of Justice.  Is it possible to protect our citizenry while maintaining our core values of law and justice?”

Professor Wolcher brings a range of interests to bear on this dilemma, including the philosophy of law, legal and political theory, the philosophy of language and human rights.  His writings extend beyond the strictly legal arena to include Heidegger, Wittgenstein and Zen Buddhism.  Professor Wolcher is widely published, and his most recent book is “The Tragic Circle of Law, Justice and Human Suffering.”

A question and answer period and public reception with the speaker will follow the lecture.  Tickets are available for $10 at Orcas Island Library, Darvill’s Bookstore and at the door.  Season tickets, which are available for $50 at the Library, Darvill’s and at www.orcascrossroads.org, guarantee admittance to all of the six remaining lectures in the series.

The Crossroads Lecture Series is supported by the Crossroads Associates Circle, the Friends of the Orcas Island Library in cooperation with the Orcas Island Public Library, the Daniel and Margaret Carper Foundation, the Orcas Center, and individual contributors.  It is also supported in part by a grant from Humanities Washington, a statewide organization dedicated to providing and supporting cultural education programs in local communities.