Program date: Sept. 6, 2024
Air date: Sept. 9, 2024
From the City Club of Eugene:
There are anti-democratic trends around the world, and the United States is not exempt. Recent waves of voter suppression laws across the country put minorities and other vulnerable populations at particular risk. In addition, the online ecosystem, rife with misinformation and disinformation, continues to sow distrust among our citizenry and threaten many of our democratic institutions.
In 1835, Alexis de Tocqueville, in his work Democracy in America, warned about the tyranny of the majority. Should we now be more concerned about the tyranny of the minority? In this program, former US Representative Peter DeFazio describes the nature and extent of threats to democracy and some of the institutions that make it harder for the will of the majority to prevail.
Speaker:
Peter DeFazio was a member of the US House of Representatives, representing Oregon’s 4th Congressional District from 1987 to 2023.
At the start of the 116th Congress, DeFazio was appointed Chair of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The Oregonian called DeFazio “a powerful voice in transportation and infrastructure issues,” and at that time indicated he intended to pursue a $500 billion transportation plan as chair of the committee.
DeFazio was born in Needham, Massachusetts. He earned a BA from Tufts University and an MA in gerontology from the University of Oregon. He was a member of the United States Air Force Reserve from 1967 to 1971. He worked as an aide to U.S. Representative Jim Weaver before being elected to the Lane County Board of Commissioners, where he served until being elected to the US Congress.
About the City Club of Eugene:
The mission of the City Club of Eugene is to build community vision through open inquiry. The Club explores a wide range of significant local, state, and national issues and helps to formulate new approaches and solutions to problems. Membership is open to all, and Club members have a direct influence on public policy by discussing issues of concern with elected officials and other policy makers. The City Club’s mailing address is PO Box 12084, Eugene, OR 97440, and its website is cityclubofeugene.org.
Video and Broadcast
This program will be live streamed, and the videotape will be made available on the City Club of Eugene’s Facebook page and You Tube Channel, in addition to our website. It will be broadcast on Monday, Sept. 9, at 7:00 p.m., on KLCC 89.7 FM.
Contact: For more information, visit CityClubOfEugene.org.