CPU Newsletter

November 28, 2004

CPU EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1. Lecture and Discussion with Rachel Wolkenstein, Former Lead
Counsel for Mumia Abu-Jamal (12/7)

2. Cosponsored Event with the Foundation for the Defense of
Democracies: A Nuclear Iran: Contingencies and Consequences, a
discussion with Dr. Andrew Apostolou (11/29)

3. Issue Primer: The Debate over Stem Cell Research

4. Request a Speaker!

OTHER EVENTS:

5. Staying Involved After The Election: a student discussion
moderated by Associate Provost Flora Davidson, director of
Barnard's Civic Engagement Program (12/1)

6. Political Science Student Association Party (12/1)

7. Post-Election Analysis Panel: a student moderated panel with
Professors Kathleen Knight, Randall Balmber, Bridget Nakos and
others (12/8)

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CPU EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1. Lecture and Discussion with Rachel Wolkenstein, Former Lead
Counsel for Mumia Abu-Jamal

Tuesday, 12/7 at 8 pm
Location TBA

In 1982, a Philadelphia court sentenced Mumia Abu-Jamal to death for
the 1981 murder of a Philadelphia police officer. Despite repeated
appeals to the Pennsylvania and United States Supreme Courts, Mr.
Abu-Jamal, a onetime radio reporter and former Black Panther,
remains on death row. His case has fueled a passionate public
debate about the moral and legal implications of racism and capital
punishment. Ms. Wolkestein will speak about her experience with
these and other issues as a lead counsel to Mr. Abu-Jamal.

Ms. Wolkenstein graduated cum laude from State University of New
York at Buffalo in 1970 and earned her JD degree from SUNY/Buffalo
Law School in 1973. While in law school, she interned with the
James Madison Institute of Constitutional Law and worked on Roe v.
Wade, the case which established the constitutional right for women
to obtain abortions; she practiced criminal law under Harold
Fahringher and Gerald Lefcourt until beginning her own practice in
1980 concentrating on criminal law and litigation in civil rights
and civil liberties. As staff counsel for the Partisan Defense
Committee, Ms. Wolkenstein has assisted in its work publicizing and
protesting the cases of, among others, striking workers arrested
while on their picket line; former Black Panther Party members
including Geronimo ji jaga (Pratt); MOVE members; Palestinian
activist Farouk Abdel-Muhti; and anarchist youth
Sherman Austi.

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2. A Nuclear Iran: Contingencies and Consequences, a discussion
with Dr. Andrew Apostolou

Monday, 11/29 at 7:30 pm
Room 517, Hamilton Hall

Come to a discussion about the geopolitical and strategic
implications of Iran obtaining nuclear weapons, with Dr. Andrew
Apostolou, Vice President of Research at the Foundation for the
Defense of Democracies.

Sponsored by the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, Netzach
Yisrael, the Columbia College Republicans, Students United for
America, and the Columbia Political Union.

Email djr2012@columbia.edu for more information.

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3. COLUMBIA POLITICAL UNION presents:

THE DEBATE OVER STEM CELL RESEARCH

In the November election, California voters decided to bypass the
strict federal restrictions on stem cell research and approved
Proposition 71, the California Stem Cell Research and Cures
Initiative, a plan that allocates three billion dollars to stem
cell research in the next decade. The sudden flood of funding will,
by most accounts, make California the world center for stem cell
research. The vote in California was just one of many recent
developments in the stem cell dispute. The presidential campaign
and the recent death of stem cell research advocate actor
Christopher Reeve have brought the issue to the forefront of
political debate.

WHAT IS STEM CELL RESEARCH?

The term “stem cell” applies to two forms of research. One type,
somatic or “adult” stem cell research, involves harvesting
undifferentiated* cells from various post-natal tissues present in
both grown adults and infants. The other type, embryonic stem cell
research, uses blastocysts, which are cells drawn from a
multicellular three to five day old embryo. While research on
adult cells has generated much less controversy, most scientists
believe it offers fewer medical possibilities.

According to specialists Mehmet Oz and Abeel Mangi, “from a purely
scientific standpoint, embryonic stem cells offer us greater
opportunities than adult stem cells do. These include the chance to
study development of organisms and the processes that lie behind
appropriate growth, maturation, and senescence.**” The premise
upon which all stem cell research rests is the idea that certain
cells have the capability to develop into other types of cells.
Experts predict that embryonic stem cells may have
the capability to grow into multiple specialized cell types, while
adult stem cells can only become up to several other types of
cells, depending on the organ they came from. Thus, there is much
to be gained by pursuing embryonic cell research, as it would allow
scientists to rebuild damaged organs that do not repair naturally.
Stem cell research may also further the understanding of cell
differentiation, human genes, and genetic diseases. However,
scientists do not yet know all of the possibilities that may
present themselves in further study. The National Institutes of
Health reports that there are no clinical trials in progress
involving human embryonic stem cells, while scientists have
undergone several hundred clinical trials with adult stem cells
since the early 1970s.

THE ISSUE DEBATE

The core of the controversy over embryonic stem cell research is
that the process of extracting stem cells destroys an embryo that
would have the potential for human life. Those who oppose stem cell
research believe that it is ethically wrong to destroy anything that
has become human. Proponents argue that the benefits of stem cell
research actually support human life by helping cure illness. Stem
cells have become one of the most politicized issues in the U.S.
today—discussed in all three presidential debates. Much of the
public controversy surrounds whether or not the federal government
should pay for stem cell research.

One major argument holds that most embryonic stem cell research
should not be publicly funded. Proponents of this view argue that
embryonic stem cell research is unethical. They contend that the
extraction of stem cells, which destroys the embryo, takes lives
and maintain that taxpayers should not have to spend their money on
science they find immoral. President Bush has expressed support for
this argument. He said on August 11, 2004, that in
his first term, he has worked toward “balancing the ethics and the
science [of stem cell research],” by allowing federal support for
roughly 70 embryonic stem cell lines*** (22 of which are active
today) that were produced before he was in office and banning
further funds.**** His administration has agreed to allocate money
for adult stem cell research because the moral implications
apparent in the use of embryonic cells are not present.
Supporters of stem cell research contend that President Bush’s plan
is not a balanced solution. They say that the 22 active embryonic
stem cell lines are poorly suited for extensive future research,
largely because the ban was not foreseen when the lines were
created and several of them have already become depleted or
non-viable. Some proponents have adopted the traditionally
conservative phrase, “pro-life,” arguing that supporting stem cell
research is supporting the lives that will be saved from such
technology. Advocates also state that the origins of most embryonic
cell lines come from excess embryos created as a result of in-vitro
fertilization that are intended to be discarded anyway, thereby
mitigating the ethical dilemma.

STEM CELL RESEARCH OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES

Controversy over stem cell research extends worldwide.
Internationally, over 128 embryonic stem cell research lines have
been created since August 9, 2004, some of better and some of worse
quality than the 22 available in the US, but scientists fully or
partially funded by the U.S. government are not permitted to use
them. Countries have shown different views on stem cell research.
The latest legal international development came from France, which
has reversed its ban on stem cell research. In August, the French
government allowed medical research on embryonic stem cells and in
October, it allowed importation of embryonic stem cells from abroad
to speed up development and increase research opportunities. Also,
several Australian companies have united to launch a newly developed
embryonic stem cell line, Mel-1, which will be available to
international scientists. However, many other countries, such as
Austria and Germany, have banned using stem cells in research
altogether.
The international debate has moved into the UN, as the organization
is currently working on a document on human cloning that will
include provisions on stem cells.***** It is expected that in
February 2005, the UN will release a non-binding declaration asking
member nations to ban reproductive cloning but will not explicitly
prohibit therapeutic cloning, such as that used for stem cell
research. As expressed by Anders Lidén, a representative to the UN
from Sweden (where stem cell use is allowed), for those considering
stem cell research, especially that which uses embryoicn cells, the
issue poses “questions involving ethics, values and human
dignity.******” The debate remains in determining how to balance
the potential for medical and scientific progress with methods that
make many question whether their tax payments will provide for a
process that violates their principles.

* Differentiation is used to define “specialization” of cells, i.e.
unlike stem cells, there are heart tissue, lung tissue cells, etc.
Stem cells are undifferentiated.
** Mehmet C. Oz and Abeel A Mangi. Demystifying Stem Cells. The
Saturday Evening Post
Indianapolis:Nov/Dec 2004. Vol. 276, Iss. 6: (58-61,83)
*** “lines” – defines cell cultures that can be grown indefinitely
in a laboratory. Cells from the lines can be purchased for
scientific research.
**** http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/08/20040811-6.html
*****Cloning is a major related issue. The controversial
relationship comes from the possibility to acquire stem cells by
cloning embryos. South Korean scientists were the first to
successfully clone an embryo, and derived its stem cell line in
this way.
****** http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/gal3258.doc.htm
____________

The above was written by CPU staff members Jason Bello and Mariya
Konovalova

Sources:
Ackerman, Todd. Support Growing For Embryonic Stem-Cell Research /
53% In Survey Approve; More Americans Found To Oppose Cloning:[3
Star Edition]. Houston Chronicle Houston, Tex.:Oct 13, 2004. P.
A.9

http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20041011/02/

http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20041123/02/

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/351/7/627

http://invest.vic.gov.au/Press+Room/News/StemCells.htm

Oz, Mehmet C and Abeel A Mangi. Demystifying Stem Cells. The
Saturday Evening Post Indianapolis:Nov/Dec 2004. Vol. 276, Iss.
6: (58-61,83)

http://www.religioustolerance .org/res_stem.htm

http://www.reuters.com/printerFriendlyPopup.jhtml?type=scienceNews&storyID=6870603

Sappenfield, Mark. California: New Leader In Stem Cells? ; Prop. 71
Would Award $3 Billion For Research, Trumping Bush's Go-Slow
Approach.:[All Edition] Christian Science Monitor. Boston,
Mass.:Oct 25, 2004. P. 01

http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/faqs.asp#wherefrom

Stem Cell Politics:[Final Edition] The Washington Post Washington,
D.C.:Oct 27, 2004. P. A.24

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/08/20040811-6.html

http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/gal3258.doc.htm

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4. Request a Speaker!

Who would you like to hear speak next semester? Email Events
Coordinator David Kim at djk2103@columbia.edu with your
suggestions.

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OTHER EVENTS:

5. Staying Involved After The Election: a student discussion
moderated by Associate Provost Flora Davidson, director of
Barnard's Civic Engagement Program.

Wednesday, 12/1 from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm
Room 237, Milbank Hall

The discussion will focus on the importance of staying involved
after the election, and how to encourage our peers to build on their
experiences participating in politics. Food will be available.

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6. Political Science Student Association Party

Come mingle with your Poli Sci Professors and enjoy food.

Wednesday, 12/1 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm
Lindsay Rodgers Room, 7th Floor International Affairs Building

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7. Post-Election Analysis Panel

Wednesday, 12/8 at 7:30 pm
Altschul Atrium

This will be a student moderated panel with Professors Kathleen
Knight, Randall Balmber, Bridget Nakos and others.

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