Tim Eyman to Discuss First Amendment Rights at CWU

February 6, 2007

ELLENSBURG, Wash. - The man dubbed "Washington's initiative king," Tim Eyman, and Shannon Sullivan, the mother who led the recall of Spokane Mayor Jim West will participate in a panel discussion on the First Amendment's right to petition as part of Central Washington University's yearlong First Amendment Festival. The free public forum, titled "Meet the Activists," is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 8, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Student Union and Recreation Center (SURC) Pit.

Dr. Mathew Manweller, CWU political science professor, will moderate the discussion.

"People in Washington live in one of the few states where laws can be adopted and ratified by the people as well as the legislature," Manweller says. "People need to have an understanding of the process, both its strengths and weakness."

Eyman is well versed in the process, having seen 12 of his initiatives placed on voter ballots, including the $30 car tab law I-695. A small business owner from Mukilteo, Eyman says his mission includes cutting state taxes and limiting the power of state government.

Sullivan is a high school graduate with no legal training. She was motivated to take action by her son, who was 9 years old when the Spokane Spokesman-Review newspaper reported that West had offered government jobs and appointments to young men he met on a gay Web site.

"He said, 'Somebody better do something,mom'" Sullivan recalls. So she went to the county courthouse looking for a petition to sign. When she didn't find one, Sullivan decided to lead the recall effort herself.

"I'm proof that one person can make a difference," she says. "I'm just a mom who got really mad."

Joining Eyman and Sullivan on the panel will be John Gastil, who has written three books on "direct democracy." An associate professor of communication at the University of Washington, Gastil is leading efforts to set up an independent commission, The Citizens Initiative Review (CIR), to provide guidance to voters so that they can make informed decisions on ballot initiatives.

This forum and a reception that will follow the discussion are the latest event in the university's 2006-07 First Amendment Festival.

Other festival events planned during winter quarter include an interdisciplinary forum on "The N Word," which will explore free speech, threatening speech and the importance of context on Monday, Feb. 26, at 7 p.m. in the SURC Theatre.

On Monday, March 5, at 7 p.m. in the SURC Theater, members of the CWU community will read excerpts of banned books in "Censored, Banned and Challenged OUT LOUD!"

And on March 8, "The First Amendment on Campus" will feature a public forum from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the SURC Pit along with workshops for high school and college faculty and administrators.

A CWU committee of faculty and students is organizing the festival, which continues throughout the academic year. It's receiving broad financial support through the Office of the Provost, College of Arts and Humanities, College of the Sciences, Diversity Education Center and Communication Department.

Numerous off-campus media outlets and organizations are also sponsors. They include the Daily Record, The Wenatchee World, Yakima Herald-Republic, Davis Wright Tremaine LLP and the Washington Journalism Education Association.

For more information about the festival visit www.cwu.edu/~firstamendment.

Contacts: Matt Manweller (509-963-2396/fax 509-963-1134/e-mail: manwellerm@cwu.edu)
Cynthia Mitchell (509-963-1063/fax 509-963-1060/e-mail: mitchelc@cwu.edu)