Once a month, students and faculty convene at the International Café, a new venue for international interest and discussion at Drexel. The International Café was designed as a forum for faculty and students to debate international and global themes, to discuss global and contemporary issues, and to present scholarly research with an international component. The International Café provides an informal monthly discussion, led by a primary scholar concerning a contemporary global issue, and also provides an opportunity for Drexel faculty, students, and staff to meet in an informal setting and share ideas, experiences and a themed snack. The menu is chosen to coordinate as closely as possible with the topic.
Since January, the Café has taken off with diverse speakers and a growing audience. The International Café is sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences and International Area Studies
On June 7, 2007, Dr. Douglas Porpora, a professor of sociology, led a discussion entitled “The Attack on Iraq and the Moral Silence of the American Public Sphere.” According to Porpora, the American public sphere is made up of sites where individuals can come together as equals to debate public affairs. Porpora referred to it as the “steering mechanism of democracy.” It consists of opinion and editorial publications, social movement organizations, and Internet blogs.
The Café was held in 2020 MacAlister Hall and about 40 faculty and students attended.
Porpora has worked on, and is currently working on, books and articles about the Iraq war and the government.
“The Bush Administration has given me enough material to last me until my retirement,” Porpora joked. He has done extensive research on the subject to help develop his theories about the war and the American public sphere.
The discussion on June 7 focused on the period of time between August 15th 2002 and October 15th 2002. This is when the idea of marketing the war began. Porpora focused on prudential reasoning versus moral reasoning for the war in Iraq. Prudential reasoning for the war evaluates how it will benefit one’s self-interest. Moral reasoning identifies obligations independent of self-interest.
Porpora also discussed political realism, a concept adopted by the United States government. “Morality has no place in foreign affairs,” said Porpora. “Nations should act solely on self-interest.” However, considering that 90% of the U.S. population believes in some type of higher power, should morals be a reason for war?
Referring to a variety of different op-ed articles, Porpora showed that moral arguments only made up 5% of debates. Other debate topics included lives at risk, international law, and if the war was provoked.
“When people want to make a moral point, they have to disguise it as a prudential point,” Porpora explained.
Porpora opened the Café to discussion after raising a few thought provoking questions, such as whether the war should be legitimate or whether it should appear legitimate, and if the separation of church and state requires a separation of morality and state as well.
Faculty and students can propose topics by sending ideas to Dr. Mostov, mostovj@drexel.edu. International Café meets once a month, usually in 2020 MacAlister Hall. However, August's International Café will be on the 6th floor of MacAlister Hall in the Faculty Club. The Café topics and dates are posted on the IAS events calendar, on bulletin boards and in the Drexel Daily Digest e-mails.
Theodora Marcantonis is a sophomore majoring in Communications.