© 2024 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY · WNPR
WPKT · WRLI-FM · WEDW-FM · Public Files Contact
ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Cancer Answers is hosted by Dr. Anees Chagpar, Associate Professor of Surgical Oncology and Director of The Breast Center at Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven Hospital, and Dr. Francine Foss, Professor of Medical Oncology. The show features a guest cancer specialist who will share the most recent advances in cancer therapy and respond to listeners questions. Myths, facts and advances in cancer diagnosis and treatment are discussed, with a different focus eachweek. Nationally acclaimed specialists in various types of cancer research, diagnosis, and treatment discuss common misconceptions about the disease and respond to questions from the community.Listeners can submit questions to be answered on the program at canceranswers@yale.edu or by leaving a message at (888) 234-4YCC. As a resource, archived programs from 2006 through the present are available in both audio and written versions on the Yale Cancer Center website.

Yale's Islamic Law Center to Talk About Breaking the Law

Li Tsin Soon flickr.com/polytikus/
/
Flickr
Yale Law School, New Haven CT

The new Islamic law center at Yale University opened last fall, and it's beginning this year with a speaker from the University of Chicago, Ahmed El Shamsy.

El Shamsy is coming to Yale to talk about, well, breaking the law.

"The question of what do you have to do when you have a situation in which you actually have to break the law," he said.

Of course he's not talking about petty crimes. He's talking about moral and ethical dilemmas.

Take human shields, for example. Is okay for police or an army to kill a civilian who's being used as a human shield -- if it means saving many more lives? And who gets to make those decisions?

"This is not just about human shields. We have this about torture, or enhanced interrogations," El Shamsy said. "We have these discussions in the United States about targeted killings. Does one need to have a court decision on this, can the president make this decision on his own? So these kinds of discussions have a long history in western thought, they have a long history in Islamic thought."

These discussions are what the Islamic center hopes to bring to the Yale community, says law professor and center co-director Anthony Kronman.

"Many of the questions which are at the center of this field really are, or at least ought to be, of general interest to a much wider, general audience," he said. 

The center sparked controversywhen it opened late last year because the founding donor, Abdallah Kamel, is from Saudi Arabia, a country known for its strict interpretation of Islamic law. Kronman says he understands that concern, but

"Frankly, the only alternative is to stay out all together, which seems to me to disserve the ultimate objectives, of understanding and fair-minded judgment," Kronman said.  

El Shamsy said there are many interpretations of Islamic law because of its diverse history, while many non-Muslims only understand its most fundamentalist version.

El Shamsy is scheduled to speak at Yale on Tuesday, January 26.

David finds and tells stories about education and learning for WNPR radio and its website. He also teaches journalism and media literacy to high school students, and he starts the year with the lesson: “Conflicts of interest: Real or perceived? Both matter.” He thinks he has a sense of humor, and he also finds writing in the third person awkward, but he does it anyway.

Stand up for civility

This news story is funded in large part by Connecticut Public’s Members — listeners, viewers, and readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information.

We hope their support inspires you to donate so that we can continue telling stories that inform, educate, and inspire you and your neighbors. As a community-supported public media service, Connecticut Public has relied on donor support for more than 50 years.

Your donation today will allow us to continue this work on your behalf. Give today at any amount and join the 50,000 members who are building a better—and more civil—Connecticut to live, work, and play.

Related Content