Students, professors and community members gathered in the Ferguson Center Theater Friday to witness the student debate held in honor of Constitution Day.

The College of Arts and Sciences, political science department and the Student Government Association sponsored the debate, called “Is the Defense of Marriage Act Constitutional?”

Constitution Day celebrates the historic signing of the U.S. Constitution on Sept.17, 1787.

Before the debate began, moderators reminded the audience of the occasion for the event by quizzing audience members on Constitutional facts. Participants who correctly answered questions such as “Who is the father of the Constitution?” and “How many individuals actually signed the document?” were awarded Student Government Association T-shirts and other prizes. Five $50 book scholarships from Transportation Services, four $50 book scholarships from Judicial Affairs and one $150 book from the SUPe Store were also awarded to participants in a raffle drawing.

Joseph Smith, associate professor of political science and moderator of the debate, took the stage to briefly outline the Defense of Marriage Act for the audience.

“This debate is about the authority of the national government to define marriage and then to tell the states how they have to administer programs that involve federal money.”

The debate, constructed as a Supreme Court-style hearing, consisted of students from Smith’s Constitutional Law 1 class and members of the University Mock Trial Team. Associate justices of the SGA Judicial Branch sat in as judges.

The debate was modeled after a case titled Massachusetts v. United States Health and Human Services Department. Smith said a federal judge over the case declared Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional this past summer. Section 3 of the act defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife.

While the Defense of Marriage Act might be seen as a controversial topic, Smith hopes its somewhat divisive nature would prove positive for the debate.

“I chose Section 3 of DOMA because I thought it would generate a lot of interest in the student body,” Smith said.

The University’s Mock Trial team began the debate, arguing the national government’s defense of Section 3. The rebuttal from the University’s Mock Trial team followed, presenting the perspectives of Massachusetts to argue the unconstitutionality of Section 3 of DOMA.

Each team was given 20 minutes to present their argument.  Both teams cycled through their members, giving each an opportunity to speak, as a PowerPoint presentation was displayed in the background to supplement their cases.

Smith concluded the arguments by asking follow-up questions to both teams before the judges were asked to briefly exit the theater to discuss their decision on the winner. On their return, the Constitution Law 1 class was named the debate winner.

While the judges were conferring, the floor was opened up for an audience question and answer session. Chris Brummond, a freshman majoring in political science, was one of the audience members who participated in the Q&A.

“I thought it was a very relevant topic, and felt both sides argued their sides well,” Brummond said after the debate’s conclusion.

Josh Burford, an employee at the Division of Student Affairs, agreed.

“I thought it was very well prepared. Both arguments were pretty fair.”

Note:

In the Sept. 20 issue of The Crimson White, an article titled “Debate held for Constitution Day” incorrectly reported that the SUPe store awarded 10 book scholarships to participants in a raffle. Instead, five $50 book scholarships were awarded from Transportation Services, four $50 book scholarships were awarded from Judicial Affairs and one $150 book scholarship was awarded from the SUPe store.

It was also incorrectly stated that Joseph Smith’s Constitutional Law 1 class began the debate; however, the University’s Mock Trial team were the initiators. The Constitutional Law 1 class won the debate, not the Mock Trial team.

The article also failed to mention that the Student Government Association co-sponsored the debate, along with the College of Arts and Science and the department of political science.

The Crimson White regrets these errors and is happy to set the record straight.