MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University’s annual Constitution Day program on Thursday, Sept. 17 — which featured a panel discussion with nationally recognized legal scholar and Georgetown University law professor Sheryll Cashin — opened with a special tribute to the late MTSU First Lady Elizabeth “Liz” McPhee.

A part of MTSU’s Constitution Week programming, the panel discussion inside Tucker Theatre was presented by the university’s American Democracy Project and revolved around the theme, “What would the Founding Fathers think of today’s Supreme Court?”

“Professor Cashin is, of course, an expert in Constitutional law and in this semiquincentennial year, we used the title of the lecture as an entry point for thinking and talking about how the Supreme Court’s role in the Constitutional balance of powers has changed and evolved across the last 200-plus years,” explained Amy Sayward, history professor in the Honors College and director of MTSU’s American Democracy Project, which was a co-sponsor of the event.

Although separated by many miles, McPhee and Cashin did share similarities, as both women have been heavily involved in their communities as educators and with various charitable causes. Albeit unplanned at the time Cashin was asked to speak, the pairing of the two women for the event seemed serendipitous, Sayward said.

A loving tribute

MTSU Board of Trustees student representative RJ Ware introduced McPhee’s longtime friend and fellow Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority sister, Phyllis Washington, who kicked off the Constitution Day event with a loving tribute to the late educator and philanthropist in the wake of her unexpected death in January following a brief illness.

Wearing a flamboyant hat and colorful scarf gifted by McPhee, Washington described her friend as “an awesome lady of many hats,” a nod to her penchant for elegant headwear. Washington highlighted McPhee’s 40 years as an educator, her extensive community involvement and commitment to raising money for charities.

Washington recalled the first lady’s art camps, numerous educational and cultural trips to China, youth programs through Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. and fundraising efforts that benefited charitable organizations throughout Rutherford County.

She also remembered McPhee’s love of cooking and entertaining, noting that she often welcomed family, friends, students and community members through a variety of events she hosted at the presidential home on campus she shared with MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee, who attended the event along with their daughter, Seneca.

“All of her hats were adorned with generosity,” Washington said. “Liz eagerly and freely gave of her means, her talents and her time to make this a better community and a better world in which to live.”

Panel discussion: Voting, civil rights, DEI

Following the tribute to McPhee, Cashin took the stage for a panel discussion alongside four student moderators, including Marcus Rosario, a social justice journalism major from Nashville and president of the MTSU American Democracy Project; ADP social media manager DeAsia Powell, an entertainment journalism major from East Ridge and fellow AKA member; Truvell Haddox, Student Government Association senator and finance major from Franklin; and Morgan Kirkpatrick, a political science major from Manchester and Kappa Delta sorority member.

Rosario kicked off the discussion with a question about voting rules and current disputes over mail-in ballots, followed by questions from the other panelists on voting rights, the Civil Rights Movement and DEI.

What does this period tell us about the balance between protecting access to elections and giving states authority over how elections are administered? 

“The Constitution explicitly gives states primacy in overseeing elections. But at the same time, the 14th and 15th Amendment guaranteed to all persons equal protection of the law, including in voting, protection against discrimination,” said Cashin, the Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Law, Civil Rights and Social Justice at Georgetown Law and faculty director of the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality.

“So this system is being stress tested now.  The beauty of our Constitution is ‘we the people’ are supposed to be in charge. The representatives are supposed to be accountable to we the people. The most important role of the people is to show up on election (day?) and vote and assert sovereignty that way.”

How did growing up in the Civil Rights Movement shape your career?

Cashin shared stories of her childhood in Huntsville, Alabama, including her mother’s arrest with her as a 4-month-old during a protest against segregation, and her father was an “agitator by avocation.” Growing up as an “integration pioneer” and seeing her parents work to improve life for others ultimately led her from engineering to law and, eventually, teaching and scholarship.

What has the weakening of the Voting Rights Act meant for voting protections?

Cashin discussed the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder, which struck down the Voting Rights Act’s preclearance formula, and the court’s refusal to review partisan gerrymandering claims. Cashin argued that these developments have reduced some of the federal safeguards against discriminatory election practices.

Can courts actually create social change?

Cashin said courts can bring about dramatic change, but major legal shifts often follow years of organizing, litigation and political activity. She pointed to Thurgood Marshall, the nation’s first Black Supreme Court justice, and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund’s incremental challenges to Jim Crow laws — state and local statutes that legalized racial segregation — as an example of how legal victories can build over time.

How should constitutional rights apply to artificial intelligence, or AI?

Cashin said AI raises questions involving constitutional protections such as due process, equal protection and privacy under the Fourth Amendment. She highlighted concerns about facial recognition technology and argued that, because the technology is developing so quickly, lawmakers and the public will play an important role in establishing safeguards.

After the panel discussion ended, Cashin took questions from the audience, followed by a reception.

In addition to the panel, Constitution Day events included readings of the U.S. Constitution across campus and voter registration spearheaded by the League of Women Voters of Murfreesboro/Rutherford Couty.

To learn more about the American Democracy Project, visit https://amerdem.mtsu.edu/.

— Nancy DeGennaro ([email protected])