OCTC hosting Constitution Day event

Karah Wilson, Messenger-Inquirer, Owensboro, Ky.
·2 min read

Sep. 9—Owensboro Community and Technical College will be hosting a Constitution Day event at 11 a.m. on Sept. 19 at the Chandler Conference Center (Room 107) in the Advanced Technology Center at the main campus at 4800 New Hartford Road.

Bill Conroy, a retired history and political science from Kentucky Wesleyan College, will be presenting a lecture titled "Should Secession be Made a Constitutional Option?" Conroy holds a Ph.D. in political science from Fordham University and taught at KWC for 28 years.

"I'm not in favor of secession, but empirical evidence shows we're moving into the direction of a civil war," he said. "In the south, a majority of Republicans favor secession."

Conroy said that there are 20 million semi-automatic riles in the country and if that enough people were mobilized, it could be worse than the Civil War that occurred between 1861 and 1865.

"I'm not saying it is inevitable because trying to predict the future is a fool's errand, but we seem to be moving in that direction," he said. "Secession is unconstitutional but it is not forbidden. I don't know if the present Supreme Court would uphold the precedent that secession is unconstitutional."

Part of Conroy's presentation is opening up a conversation about the consequences of not having an option for secession.

Angela Ash, professor of history at OCTC, said Conroy was selected to speak because he is "highly respected and regarded within the community."

OCTC is aiming to recognize the anniversary of the constitution and the efforts and responsibilities of all citizens in sustaining the constitution with the event.

"We hope that the topic of this Constitution Day encourages discussion and deliberation among the students, faculty and staff and that community members feel free to join us," said OCTC president Scott Williams.

On Aug. 2, 1956, Congress requested that the president proclaim the week beginning Sept. 17 and ending Sept. 23 of each year as "Constitution Week." Another change was made to the event when a federal law enacted in December 2004 designated Sept. 17 as "Constitution Day and Citizenship Day."

Ash said the college is federally mandated to host a Constitution Day event but the campus is "glad to do so."

"It is meant to commemorate the signing of the constitution, which took place on Sept. 17, 1787 in Philadelphia," she said. "We decided to host it on Sept. 19, which is on a Monday, so more students would be able to join."

This is the first face-to-face Constitution Day event that the college has had since COVID-19, and Ash said they are hoping to reach pre-COVID levels of attendance.

The event is free and open to the public and pizza will be served. A virtual option through Microsoft Teams will be available to those who are unable to attend in-person.

For more information about the event, email Bernie Hale at bernie.hale@kctcs.edu.