Authors@UF
Authors@UF : A Conversation with Richard Scher
Why is it So Hard to Vote in America?
Are you voting in November?
Are you sure?
Many people think that going to the polls is all that's needed to vote. Richard Scher disagrees. Drawing from his award-winning new book, The Politics of Disenfranchisement, Scher discusses the tradition of restricting or denying voting rights to large numbers of Americans.
Scher will engage his audience in a conversation on historical voting barriers, like literacy tests and poll taxes, and more current obstacles, like the recent wave of state laws--including here in Florida--that restrict voting without a photo ID. A stimulating and informative hour on a controversial topic at the heart of American democracy and the 2012 elections.
Event Details
Date: October 16, 2012 at 5:30 p.m.Location: Smathers Library (East) Room 1A
Sponsored by the Smathers Libraries Campus Conversations
Biography
Dr. Richard K. Scher is currently a Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Florida.
Dr. Scher is the author of dozens of scholarly articles and book chapters, and five books: Florida's Gubernatorial Politics in the Twentieth Century (Co-authored with David R. Colburn, 1980); Politics in the New South: Republicanism, Race and leadership in the Twentieth Century (1992); Voting Rights and Democracy: The Law and Politics of Districting (Co-authored with John L. Mills and John J. Hotaling, 1996); The Modern Political Campaign: Mudslinging, Bombast and the Vitality of American Politics (1997); and The Politics of Disenfranchisement: Why is it So Hard to Vote in America? (2011). The Politics of Disenfranchisement was named a 2011 Outstanding Academic Title by Choice Reviews Online.
Library Program Planning Group:
David Schwieder, Principal
Shelley Arlen, American History Library Liaison
Cindy Craig, Sociology Library Liaison
Jim Cusick, Florida History Library Liaison
Richard Freeman, Anthropology Library Liaison
Barbara Hood, PR Coordinator
Rebecca Jefferson, Coordinator and Jewish Studies Library Liaison
Jana Ronan, Humanities Library Liaison
Isabel Silver, Coordinator
Jenny Wondracek, Law Librarian
