In 1970, nearly half of all Black individuals in the U.S. resided in a large city. Over the past 50 years, that number has fallen to merely 25 percent, while the share living in the suburbs of large cities rose from 16 to 36 percent.

This demographic shift is as large as the post-World War II wave of the , according to economists Evan Mast of the University of 91�Թ� and of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Mast and Bartik thought that for the size of this trend, there had been remarkably little recent research on it, especially in economics. “This seemed like an area that no one had really examined with an economics lens before,” Mast said of his and his co-author’s work.

“What we really wanted to know was whether suburbanization affected Black households’ neighborhood quality, schools, public services and intergenerational mobility,” they wrote.

Their in The Review of Economics and Statistics journal found that while Black population growth has been rapid and widespread across various types and locations of suburban neighborhoods, Black population has also drastically declined in city neighborhoods that were initially predominantly Black and lower income. For example, census data indicated that majority-Black neighborhoods with a poverty rate above 20 percent in 1970 have since lost 60 percent of their Black population and 40 percent of their total population.

“That really high concentration of Black families in those central cities has been unwinding since 1970 and we’re seeing people spread out to the suburbs — including to higher income suburban neighborhoods and more mixed race suburban neighborhoods,” said Mast, an urban economist who studies public finance, housing markets and place-based policies in 91�Թ�’s .

The researchers examined the reasons behind this shift and found evidence that individuals and families have been drawn to the suburbs by improved amenities and better quality of life as well as falling housing prices and decreased housing discrimination. The study relied on a panel of census tract characteristics spanning 1970 to 2016 to show that changes in relative suburban amenities accounted for 60 percent of Black suburbanization, while housing prices explained 30 percent.

Less influential were the effects of suburban decline, gentrification of Black city neighborhoods and rising levels of income and education. Increased educational attainment and regional reallocation together accounted for only 10 percent of suburbanization.

“One outcome is that the suburbs look a little bit more diverse and are more representative of the country than they used to be,” Mast said.

But the study also indicated that suburbanization plays a role in creating disparities within the Black population itself in regard to household location and income. “We see a growing divergence in neighborhood quality of Black suburbanites and city dwellers — where conditions are improving in the suburbs while stagnating in the cities,” the co-authors explained.

Suburbanization has highlighted a divergence in income as well. The median income of the average Black individual living in the suburbs modestly improved from 61 to 66 percent of the average white individual’s income, while the figure for Black city dwellers has fallen from 58 to 50 percent.

The economists argued that both a lack of low-cost suburban housing and relatively low white flight have played important roles in generating this stratification between Black households in cities and suburbs.

Unlike the Great Migration, where Black families moved from the rural South to the urban North between 1910 and 1970 and ensuing white flight caused housing prices to fall and racial segregation to increase, this current demographic shift looks quite different.

“We show that white flight is significantly lower in our context,” the co-authors wrote. “This reduces downward pressure on housing prices, preventing suburban neighborhoods from becoming affordable for lower-income Black households and helping to sustain income segregation.”

Similarly, the authors found large differences in the cost of living in the cities and suburbs throughout their sample period — particularly at the lower end of the price spectrum — likely making it easier for Black households with more resources to move to the suburbs than it was for households with fewer resources.

“One outcome is that the suburbs look a little bit more diverse and are more representative of the country than they used to be.”

And it’s not just that initial generation growing up in the 1970s who is making these migration choices and moving out, according to the co-authors. The number of Black children living in cities has shrunk particularly rapidly, with their numbers falling by 30 percent since 2000.

“Now it tends to be the young people who are settling down in the suburbs, rather than in the city where they might have grown up,” said Mast. “So the trend is also about the next generation making different decisions about where to start.”

Sharp population decline can create policy concerns, the co-authors pointed out, as they can increase the chances for school closures, reduce retail or grocery options and jeopardize tax revenue.

The economists acknowledged that there is room for further research related to Black suburbanization. One question they feel could be explored is how suburbanization affects the economic and social outcomes of Black individuals.

Furthermore, they feel that there could be financial and political impacts from these shifts. For example, it would be helpful to understand whether changing racial composition in suburban jurisdictions and electoral districts has any impact on municipal finances and political representation.

This research is indicative of the type of work being conducted through the , a data-focused research effort fostering and advancing multidisciplinary work on a wide range of pressing demographic issues facing society. Mast is a faculty affiliate of ND Pop, which is facilitated by a partnership between the University’s and the .

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

Graduating senior knows her facts. “Fewer than 60 percent of students in the United States who enroll full-time at a four-year school will graduate with a bachelor’s degree within six years,” she said, “and the challenge is even greater for low-income students.”

from 91�Թ�’s , where Romero served as a research operations intern, only 26 percent of students in the lowest quarter of incomes will complete their bachelor’s degree within six years.

“How do we help increase that number, especially for first-generation, low-income students of color?” Romero asked.

The question is something that Romero, a first-generation student herself and daughter of parents who immigrated to Chicago from Guadalajara, Mexico, holds near and dear to her heart.

“My parents have always instilled in me that education is your way out of poverty,” Romero said. “It’s the only way to break the generational cycle.”

This belief led her to major in economics and minor in accountancy and data science. From there, Romero worked with LEO on a variety of projects, including a nonprofit organization in California called , which helps low-income students find scholarships and the necessary tools to complete their bachelor’s degrees.

During the summer between her junior and senior years, Romero became a , a student formation program through the that allows students from all academic disciplines to participate in anti-poverty work.

This particular work resonated with her own experience growing up and solidified her desire to explore developmental economics and data science to better understand how poverty occurs and how to mitigate it, especially through policy impact.

Romero, who grew up on the Northwest Side of Chicago, transferred out of her neighborhood school system to a different elementary school in second grade and eventually moved to a college preparatory school — both in a farther-away part of the city — in order to gain access to better educational opportunities. These decisions required commitment and sacrifice on Romero’s part, meaning long daily commutes by bus and train and even longer days, but proved to make all the difference in her educational trajectory.

“This story is common in schools within low-income neighborhoods, with limited resources, high student-teacher ratios, lack of enrichment programs, etc., and is a stark example of the socioeconomic disparities in public school education within large cities like Chicago,” Romero said.

“I wanted to get out of my neighborhood to find the best education I could in the city, and I don’t know if I would have made it into 91�Թ� without that extra rigor, motivation and competition. It definitely prepared me for what I was going to experience here.”

In addition to being selected for two cohort-based programs, the and the , Romero is a , a and a match.

But Romero’s 91�Թ� career was not all number-crunching and data analytics — she spent many memorable moments on stage performing with several campus dance troupes. She started dancing at age 4 in various styles including ballet, pointe, tap, jazz, Mexican folklórico, hip-hop, pom and others, and she continued this passion through , and .

“I love that 91�Թ� has given me this space to keep pursuing the hobbies that’ve been a part of my whole life,” she said, “especially being able to tap into my cultural roots with Mexican folklore and Latin dancing and to be able to showcase that aspect.”

After graduation, Romero plans to work at a boutique wealth management firm back in Chicago. She said what matters most to her for the future is to find a career that aligns with her values and allows her to help the same community from where she came.

“I always have in the back of my mind — how will my career fulfill me and how will it help other people?” Romero said.

“This institution has provided me with so many opportunities that I don’t think I would have received anywhere else,” Romero said. “The University’s mission is to be a force for good — and 91�Թ� really wants to do that for its students of low income and students of color.

“I hope others can see from my example that they are not limited by their resources or their beginnings — that they can go to a good college, have a great job and be successful.”

In the United States, to the novelty of how dads, in particular, were getting much more time to participate in the daily, often mundane and yet intimate tasks of child-rearing. that the change would persist, allowing dads more time and flexibility in the long term — ultimately reshaping how we view fatherhood in general.

However, from anthropologist and fatherhood expert Lee Gettler of the University of 91�Թ�, those fathering benefits have not outlasted the pandemic itself.

“COVID didn’t really lead to a large-scale uptick in this new vision for fathering on the part of dads across the board,” said , the Rev. John A. O’Brien College Professor of Anthropology and chair of the , as well as an affiliated faculty at the and the .

“I think what’s been missing from many of those initial reports was a wider perspective on what the realities are for families and fathers in the United States and around the world following the pandemic,” he said, “especially as we think about common jobs for men, precarity in the workplace and economic inequality.”

To address those gaps in understanding, Gettler and his team, which included co-author and postdoctoral research associate , relied on 15 years of longitudinal data to compare fathers’ pre-COVID to post-COVID behaviors. The researchers looked at this data from a non-Euro-American perspective in a major metropolitan area in the Philippines.

What they found was that fathering behaviors, for the most part, did not change much before COVID began versus shortly after the pandemic ended.

“There was this idea out there that a meaningful percentage of dads were spending more time with their kids during the lockdown periods, even if they were still working, and that the dynamics of COVID would lead to this long-term effect on what and how much dads were doing within their families,” Gettler said. “And we just didn’t see that prevailing change.”

The research team drew on a large sample of men who were around 25 years old at the start of the study and followed them for the next 15 years as part of a larger set of research in Cebu, Philippines. Gettler and his team have been studying and the “” as part of this project for close to 20 years, and have found that fathers in Cebu have become , mirroring father involvement in the United States.

During the pandemic, the Philippines also had one of the longest lockdown periods in the world, according to Gettler, with some of the most strict, government-mandated quarantine guidelines in place, making this an appropriate site to test for the effects of the stay-at-home orders on fathering.

“There are questions remaining about how we can continue to encourage dads in dual-parent families to pull their weight, be a supportive partner or to balance the responsibilities of what it takes to run a household and take care of young children. COVID exposed or habituated more dads to what that can look like, but now we need to enable them to continue that behavior.”

The researchers used waves of socio-demographic and fathers’ caregiving data collected prior to the pandemic (2009 and 2014) and after the pandemic (2022-23). The main analyses focused on caregiving changes over time for fathers who had young children at home both pre- and post-pandemic, looking at how involved they were with routine, hands-on care for babies and young children, recreational play and activities, and educational caregiving tasks.

“What we found is that COVID — and the time dads spent at home with their children during that period — did not change fathering in any lasting way,” Gettler said. “As soon as life gets back to normal, we see that dads are continuing to do the same thing they were doing before COVID.”

With one exception, Gettler noted.

For the group of fathers who found themselves going from employed to either unemployed or underemployed because of the pandemic, their involvement with their children’s educational care shot up noticeably, and the change persisted.

“We see this link with employment status and fathers’ ability to spend more time helping kids with school work and homework,” Gettler said. “But that’s the only hint that the conditions surrounding COVID may have contributed to some sort of change in what dads are doing at home.”

At the end of the day, dad’s employment status is the primary predictor for how much care he is providing, Gettler said. He believes that policy changes within the workplace — such as paid paternity leave and widespread flexibility on working from home or setting working hours — might lead to a more lasting change in fatherhood behavior. These structural changes could support permanent shifts in expectations and norms for men as caregivers, and open up more opportunities for dads to get — and stay — involved.

Gettler argued that society needs to recognize how it can better support dads and give them the chance to be more available at home, without the caveat of having to become unemployed or underemployed in order to enjoy such chances to be with their families.

“There are questions remaining about how we can continue to encourage dads in dual-parent families to pull their weight, be a supportive partner or to balance the responsibilities of what it takes to run a household and take care of young children,” Gettler said. “COVID exposed or habituated more dads to what that can look like, but now we need to enable them to continue that behavior.”

Gettler, who is also director of the , works with collaborators at multiple global sites and is an, including the psychobiology of motherhood and fatherhood and parents’ physical and mental health, as well as child growth, development and physiology. Presently, Gettler works on research projects related to these interests in the United States, the Philippines and the Republic of the Congo.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

According to a recent study from the University of 91�Թ�, voters who are comfortable living in the middle — neither agreeing nor disagreeing when asked about substantive issues relevant to upholding democracy — might be the largest group to blame for democratic decline in the United States.

These “democratic neutrals” are what the study’s co-authors consider some of the most dangerous voters in the current political environment.

Neutrality as leverage in democratic backsliding

Using three surveys of more than 45,000 voting-age Americans, the researchers found that about half of the U.S. population expresses an attitude of democratic neutrality — or an “unwillingness to support or oppose policies or practices that undermine democracy,” explained , lead author of in the journal Nature Human Behaviour.

“Neutrality towards democracy, rather than outright opposition, has enabled democratic backsliding among various Western democracies as elected officials leverage citizens’ neutral attitudes to pursue antidemocratic outcomes,” Hall and his two co-authors wrote in their study.

The danger in this “neither support nor oppose” mentality lies in its lukewarm approach to what matters and to which lines should or should not be crossed when it comes to protecting our democracy. And that, Hall said, is problematic because if the public isn’t willing to hold its leaders accountable, then there’s nothing to stop them from behaving in ways that undermine democracy.

Neutrality on both sides of the aisle

Hall, who is the David A. Potenziani Memorial College Professor of Constitutional Studies in 91�Թ�’s and the director of the , conducted the research with , research fellow at the Rooney Democracy Institute, and , the Thomas A. and James J. Bruder Assistant Professor of Administrative Leadership in the .

Relying on data from two surveys they conducted in the summers of 2024 and 2025, and a third, larger survey sent weekly through the between 2022 and 2023, the researchers asked participants about their attitudes toward undemocratic practices. The questions included whether they agreed, disagreed or felt neutral when asked about their support for four examples of undemocratic practices: reducing outparty polling stations, ignoring outparty court decisions, remaining loyal to the party over the Constitution, and censoring partisan media.

Roughly 50 percent of participants checked the neutral category for at least one question. In contrast, outright agreement with undemocratic practices was much less common. But, between the two segments, up to two-thirds of respondents did not actively oppose undemocratic practices on the part of government officials, political candidates and leaders.

“Not actively opposing undemocratic practices is different than actively supporting democracy,” Hall said.

Neutrality, the researchers noted, is especially concerning because it can be associated with authoritarianism, tolerance of norm violations, extremism, distrust and obscuring antidemocratic views.

Another, equally critical point, Hall said, is that this neutrality exists at similar rates on both sides of the aisle, among Republicans and Democrats, as well as nonpartisans.

Why voters remain neutral

The researchers identified several reasons that voters choose the “neither agree nor disagree” category. Hall explained that some Americans tolerate politicians undermining democracy on a conditional basis if it means those entities enact policies they favor, but then they don’t like those same undemocratic decisions when made by leaders in the other party. They vote according to the mantra, “It depends.”

Some voters are just uncertain about which direction to lean, or believe they don’t have the knowledge or understanding to vote appropriately. Other voters are simply indifferent or apathetic — they simply do not care about politics. Another group of neutrals are ambivalent toward the survey questions because they care strongly in two conflicting directions and feel indecisive. A fifth group actually supports antidemocratic policies but feels social pressure to say they don’t, so they feign neutrality.

“Regardless of why Americans express neutrality, those who do so are just as likely to vote for authoritarian politicians as the relatively small number of Americans (less than one in five) who explicitly support undemocratic practices,” Hall said.

Potential solutions ahead of the 2026 midterms

Hall and his co-authors said that neutrality is not only a big problem, but it’s also a problem that will take a novel approach to fix.

“The problem is the people sitting on the sidelines, not paying attention or prioritizing short-term issues over the long-term stability of this country,” Hall said. “This will require a completely different approach with regard to persuasion strategy when you realize that’s the group we — as proponents of American democracy — need to be focusing on. Promoting democracy is going to look a little different than we thought.”

What does that promotion look like then? Hall and his co-authors see the primaries for the approaching 2026 midterm elections as the next opportunity to encourage Americans to vote for candidates who will support and protect American democracy. Messaging will need to encourage voters to “vote against candidates who undermine American democracy — even (and especially) if they are candidates from their own party,” emphasizing that staying neutral will no longer suffice.

“American politics have really been shaken in this last decade, particularly with regard to partisanship and polarization,” Hall said.

“The elites have lost control of the throttle and the mass public is driving — and that’s not necessarily a bad thing if the mass public values democracy. But if they don’t value democracy, then we will spin out.”

This research aligns with the , which aims to establish 91�Թ� as a leader in the study of democracy both in the United States and worldwide, as a convenor for conversations about and actions to preserve democracy, and as a model for the formation of civically engaged citizens and public servants. The initiative also bridges research, education and policy work across multidisciplinary units.

The research was supported by the , which is dedicated to promoting scholarship, knowledge and dialogue on American democracy.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

About one quarter of inmates have a serious mental illness and 63 percent struggle with drug dependence or abuse, often coinciding with behavioral problems. Those awaiting trial for serious offenses may tend toward violence, making jail time dangerous for both inmates and jail employees. In addition, the county jail system, which is often viewed as a short-term, transitional time period for inmates, is typically overlooked for providing meaningful therapy opportunities and other interventions.

A new study by University of 91�Թ� researchers shows that introducing a unique and low-cost cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) program for longer-term jail inmates teaches lifelong skills and reduces violent behavior — making the jail safer in the long run.

“Despite the fact that most people are in jail for a short time, many spend months serving a sentence or even years awaiting trial,” said , an assistant research professor in the who works in 91�Թ�’s .

“These inmates often come into the jail system with traumatic pasts and with much higher rates of mental illness and substance use disorders than the general population,” she said. “Violence is an issue in jails, as are behavioral problems, with suicide and homicide rates much higher than you’d think, considering that this population is confined and surveilled.”

In their working paper, Batistich’s research team reported that inmates who participate in CBT programs experience a 49 percent drop in behavioral incidents and a 50 percent drop in physical assaults on other inmates or officers.

Batistich, along with co-authors , the Keough-Hesburgh Professor of Economics at 91�Թ� and co-founder of LEO, Tyler Giles of Wellesley College and Rebecca Margolit-Chan of Cornell University, examined , a CBT program administered to inmates at the Lubbock County Detention Center in Lubbock, Texas. Designed for individuals with violent backgrounds or tendencies, the program uses a combination of group classes, one-on-one counseling and a structured workbook to help participants recognize and manage emotions.

Through a self-paced 14- to 21-week curriculum, participants learn how to identify their emotions and the physical sensations that accompany them. The goal is for the inmates to learn to recognize their emotions and change their way of thinking — from making negative behavioral choices to adopting rational and constructive behaviors — as a way to peacefully resolve conflict.

“The underlying philosophy of the program is that although individuals experience negative events (such as an unpleasant confrontation with another person), it is one’s interpretation of the event, rather than the event itself, that leads to negative reactions such as anger and violence,” the researchers wrote.

Typically within a jail system, authorities will respond to more serious behavioral infractions by placing the inmate in solitary confinement, where it is estimated that about 4.4 percent of the incarcerated population is held at any point in time, according to the study.

“There's been research suggesting that solitary confinement can actually be very harmful to the individual, both psychologically and physically,” Batistich said. “This form of discipline may not even be making the institutions any safer. What we're doing in this paper is offering an alternative by promoting therapy over punitive measures.”

And this alternative is not only replicable on a national scale, but cost effective as well, according to the researchers.

“There is a real intersection between the criminal justice system and poverty, homelessness, mental illness and substance use disorders. Incarcerated individuals are often dealing with several of these issues and also tend to be overlooked and underserved. These are the people in most need of our care and attention.”

The cost of implementing the Step Up program — including supplies, curriculum books and personnel — is an average of $618 per participant. Leveraging existing jail space and staff capacity, along with instruction by graduate students at nearby Texas Tech University, have made it possible to keep costs down.

The researchers concluded that therapy designed to reduce violent behavior in jails works well when implemented during incarceration, while participants are kept to a consistent and intensive treatment regimen as they await trial or extended incarceration. Such treatment can “improve one’s behavior in the near term, increase safety within institutions and potentially benefit public safety as well,” they wrote.

“There is a real intersection between the criminal justice system and poverty, homelessness, mental illness and substance use disorders,” Batistich added. “Incarcerated individuals are often dealing with several of these issues and also tend to be overlooked and underserved. These are the people in most need of our care and attention.”

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

During pregnancy, maternal and fetal cells migrate back and forth across the placenta, with fetal cells entering the mother’s bloodstream and tissues. They can settle in maternal organs such as the thyroid, liver, lungs, brain and heart — and can persist there for decades. Conversely, maternal cells can enter the fetus and be passed down to future generations, essentially creating a lifelong connection between mothers, their offspring and their descendants.

In other words, we all carry little pieces of our family with us.

This phenomenon, called microchimerism, is often characterized by cells of different genetic origin that circulate within the body and can occur either naturally through pregnancy or artificially through organ transplantation and blood transfusions. Microchimeric cells can be transferred from a fetus to its mother, from the mother to her children and even back and forth between multiples within the womb.

What microchimeric cells do

Microchimeric cells can play complex roles in a person’s body, often beneficial as well as harmful. They can help heal wounds, repair tissue and regulate the immune system, but they have also been linked to pregnancy complications as well as autoimmune diseases such as scleroderma and rheumatoid arthritis, and certain cancers like leukemia.

Microchimerism is not new. Its existence has been well documented since its discovery in the late 19th century, but it has in popular mainstream media.

However, what microchimeric cells do, how they move between bodies and what their role is in health outcomes remain largely unknown.

“These cells are extremely rare, making up less than 1 percent of the total cells in our body, and are difficult to detect,” said a biological anthropologist in the University of 91�Թ�’s . Her work focuses on the social and biological factors that affect pregnancies and pregnant mothers.

According to Chua, “Maternal and fetal cells have similar DNA because they come from the same source genetically. The challenge lies in detecting them and isolating them independently.”

The Microchimerism, Human Health & Evolution Project

Their rarity has fueled skepticism within the scientific community, with researchers questioning whether these cells matter or have any meaningful impact on human health. Despite these critiques, microchimerism researchers have continued to examine and learn about them, synthesizing their efforts in a recent co-led by Chua in the journal Advanced Science.

It is the first publication by the , a multidisciplinary microchimerism consortium, that sought to identify the field’s most pressing questions to advance microchimerism research. The project team surveyed 29 leading experts in the field of microchimerism and found that, as a community, they need to define what these cells are, examine why they exist and persist, set protocols for how to collect and detect them in the lab, and analyze their function and role in health and disease.

Potential benefits of microchimeric cells

With the development of more advanced modern technologies, experts are more confident that they may circumvent previous difficulties in research design or execution to better understand what microchimeric cells do. Doing so can bring researchers one step closer to developing diagnostic and therapeutic tools.

For example, the experts noted the potential to harness the stem cell-like properties of microchimeric cells, which could allow these cells to morph into organ-specific cells that could be used restoratively in patients with thyroid or liver damage.

“They could also be used as a biomarker for those who are at risk for certain pregnancy complications such as pre-eclampsia, spontaneous abortion and placental dysfunction,” Chua explained. “Based on the quantity of these cells or their phenotype, it is possible that these cells have real implications for how we look at maternal health and intervention.”

Microchimeric cells can also explain the intergenerational health of a family — how and where particular diseases and health deficiencies are passed along, especially immune-related disorders. “If we can better understand how diseases start in a person’s body, perhaps that could inform how we prevent some of these complications, potentially leading to better health,” Chua suggested.

“If we can better understand how diseases start in a person’s body, perhaps that could inform how we prevent some of these complications, potentially leading to better health.” 

The future of the research

In addition to certain methodological constraints, the authors noted additional challenges that appear to be relevant to all scientists studying reproductive biology and pregnancy. These include ethical constraints related to biosample collection from pregnant individuals, concerns over formal consent and addressing these concerns on a global scale. They also called for more research priorities to shift toward pregnancy and women’s health, more broadly, along with a more developed research community to advance the field.

They hope that by assembling this consortium of scientists, they will be able to establish new and innovative collaborations, train future researchers in standardized methods for studying microchimerism and create pipelines to allow for the sharing of ideas — all in an effort to continue growing the microchimerism community.

Chua said she hopes more anthropologists will join her to further the study of microchimerism and its role in pregnancy and intergenerational health.

“We know that pregnancy outcomes are not just a product of our biology, but also of our social environment,” she said. “Together, they shape how the body reacts to being pregnant and giving birth. We cannot forget about the social environment — it is a component that requires more attention in microchimerism research.”

Funding support is provided from the John Templeton Foundation and the Intramural Research Program of the National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

The gift will enable UPBI, housed within the University’s , to expand its network of partner organizations across the United States and into Canada, including cities that will host the . The games will take place from June 11 to July 19, 2026.

Inspired by the upcoming FIFA World Cup 26, Coca-Cola is supporting community groups, colleges and youth leadership programs across the country to help drive economic growth and inclusion, help the next generation of leaders unlock their potential, and make positive and long-lasting contributions to local communities that extend beyond the tournament.

“We are thankful to Coca-Cola for this gift, which will allow us to grow the Urban Poverty and Business Initiative network and significantly increase the number of disadvantaged entrepreneurs we serve,” said , the Marilyn Keough Dean and professor of global affairs at the Keough School. “This program is at the heart of the Keough School and 91�Թ�’s mission to foster human dignity through economic empowerment. By expanding into new cities, we are not only supporting entrepreneurs, but also strengthening local economies and communities.”

UPBI currently serves more than 3,000 business owners per year, many of whom are facing adverse circumstances or economic hardship. With support from Coca-Cola, the program was able to broaden its scope to include 13 additional cities — 11 in the United States and two in Canada — and will now serve more than 55 cities. This expansion will include the host locations of Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, Seattle and San Francisco, as well as Toronto and Vancouver. Together, the partnership will support at least 50 business owners annually in each of the new partner locations, training and equipping another 2,400 entrepreneurs over the next three years.

“Through Coca-Cola’s support, we will be able to provide a turnkey training system of business skills and best practices to new partners, which can then be shared with small business owners in their own communities,” said , professor of the practice who specializes in entrepreneurship and social innovation. Morris holds a faculty appointment within the Keough School’s and is the creator of the UPBI program.

“And when individuals start business ventures, and they can access programs such as UPBI as well as other elements of local entrepreneurial ecosystems, their ability to share in the economic boost provided by global events such as the next year’s tournament can be considerably enhanced,” Morris added.

The UPBI program equips partner organizations in each city with the model, structure, curriculum, content, tools and guidance to effectively create and launch their own entrepreneurship programs. Partner cities are also supported with a comprehensive resource website, regular partner meetings and site visits.

Using an activity-based approach that centers on 80 steps to a sustainable business, the program is modeled on the belief that for every step it can help an entrepreneur take, he or she will be enabled to take two or three more on their own. To achieve such success, the program employs a six-stage intervention process that unfolds over an 11-month period and includes training, mentoring, consulting, networking events to connect entrepreneurs to the larger community, a pathway to microcredit financing, and a database to track progress in these ventures over a three-year period.

Coca-Cola’s gift will enable 91�Թ� to establish relationships with new key individuals and organizations in host cities, receive commitments from lead partners in each city to join the UPBI partnership and implement its model, and ensure each city implements all components of the UPBI approach.

The Coca-Cola Foundation, the company’s philanthropic arm, has already provided support to the UPBI network in the form of microgrants for entrepreneurs who complete benchmarked steps while they are enrolled in the program. “Hence, we are rewarding progress in moving their business ventures forward,” Morris explained. “The Coca-Cola Company’s gift would provide additional support as part of an enhanced microgrant program in the tournament host cities.”

91�Թ�’s McKenna Center seeks to better understand the critical role of global business in reducing poverty, underemployment and inequality by striving to stimulate economic growth and develop markets in communities struggling with those issues. They do so by fostering collaboration between the private sector, universities, nonprofit organizations and governmental entities to build and reinforce corporate cultures that epitomize responsible stewardship and exemplify the transformative power of entrepreneurship as a tool for social and economic inclusion. These ideas are consistent with the tenets of both

“Our experience is that entrepreneurship can truly provide a pathway out of poverty, which can be empowering for both individuals and communities alike,” Morris said.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

According to Scott Appleby, the Keough-Hesburgh Professor of Global Affairs at 91�Թ�’s , “Dilexi Te” is a “radical document” that conveys a tone of urgency by Pope Leo that is striking and worth noting.

“‘Dilexi Te’ is radical in that it goes to the very roots of Christian teaching,” Appleby said, “that compassion for and solidarity with the poor is the most direct path to communion with Jesus Christ, who ‘identified himself with the lowest ranks of society’ and thereby ‘confirm[ed] the dignity of every human being.’”

Pope Leo describes “the many faces of the poor and of poverty” to include “the poverty of those who lack material means of subsistence, the poverty of those who are socially marginalized and lack the means to give voice to their dignity and abilities, moral and spiritual poverty, cultural poverty, the poverty of those who find themselves in a condition of personal or social weakness or fragility, the poverty of those who have no rights, no space, no freedom.”

Poverty affects all those around it and in different ways, Appleby noted. “The so-called rich can themselves suffer from the soul-crushing indifference — or even open hostility toward — the rapidly growing local, national and global population of weak, vulnerable, economically and socially marginalized people, displaced by policies and ‘criteria for orienting life and politics that are marked by numerous inequalities,’” he said.

Appleby said the pope’s words take on a “striking tone of urgency” when he recounts society’s alarming obsession with what Leo calls “the accumulation of wealth and social success at all costs, even at the expense of others.”

“This culture of hostility to the poor ‘discards others without even realizing it and tolerates with indifference that millions of people die of hunger or survive in conditions unfit for human beings,’” Appleby said, paraphrasing the apostolic exhortation.

Appleby noted that Pope Leo underscores the plight of women in his teaching as those who are “doubly poor,” reflecting that the Church often says one thing but does another when it comes to women. “Societies worldwide are still far from reflecting clearly that women possess the same dignity and identical rights as men, the pope teaches,” Appleby said.

Appleby added that the pope’s words indicate a longing for looking beyond numbers and data to see the reality of poverty’s true effects on human development throughout the world, and finding ways to heal the problems at their deepest roots.

“There is no shortage of theories attempting to justify the present state of affairs or to explain that economic thinking requires us to wait for invisible market forces to resolve everything,” Appleby said.

“Nevertheless, urges the pope, ‘the dignity of every human person must be respected today, not tomorrow, and the extreme poverty of all those to whom this dignity is denied should constantly weigh upon our consciences.’”

“Pope Leo emphasizes that every person deserves the dignity of opportunity and the chance to flourish,” Sullivan said.

In his exhortation, Pope Leo writes: “All the members of the People of God have a duty to make their voices heard, albeit in different ways, in order to point out and denounce such structural issues, even at the cost of appearing foolish or naïve.”

Sullivan sees this as a reminder that “love for the poor must move us to act — and to act wisely.”

As the director of , Sullivan sees this exhortation as an opportunity to put words into action on a practical level through the work and research conducted at 91�Թ�. “‘Dilexi Te’ reminds us that those in poverty are not merely recipients of care or study, but participants and teachers,” Sullivan said.

The researchers at LEO take this calling seriously. “We conduct research with communities, not to them,” Sullivan said. “Each partnership formed is an opportunity to not only analyze, but listen, and the evidence built is a powerful tool illuminating the inherent dignity of every person.”

Here at 91�Թ�, Sullivan continued, we are called to cultivate “a disciplined sensibility to the poverty, injustice and oppression that burden the lives of so many.” And, as a research university, one of the ways we fulfill that calling is by “working to create a world intolerant of poverty by expanding knowledge about how to solve it,” he said.

But this work demands great courage and an enormous amount of discipline and collaboration, he added. “And we do it that way because those we serve are worthy of our best efforts.”

As “Dilexi Te” affirms, Sullivan pointed out, “the care of the poor is not peripheral to the Church, but central to her life.”

“We share in that mission by forming students who see poverty in all its complexity and are equipped to address it with both intellect and compassion. Our students are among 91�Թ�’s most powerful means of impact in the world. They are the next generation of leaders who will carry forward this call — to recognize the poor as part of our own family and to build a world where dignity, justice and hope flourish for all.”

Most parents can think back to the first ultrasound image they saw of their unborn child, and may even be able to remember what impression that image had on them. Would their child be an active toddler, a tad bit ornery or stubborn, sweet and cuddly, fiercely independent, or shy and cooperative? New research suggests these initial perceptions may have been formed, at least in part, in response to how the health care provider described the baby during the exam.

These prenatal care experiences play a large role in shaping how parents see their babies and, consequently, affect how parents relate to their children later on and how those children behave in return, according to new research from the University of 91�Թ�.

“The ultrasound experience is such a salient, emotional part of the pregnancy overall, legitimizing the pregnancy itself and creating an opportunity for brand-new memories with the baby,” said , assistant professor in 91�Թ�’s and lead author of the , a Nature journal.

“The words used in these conversations with ultrasound technicians or obstetric sonographers — whom we consider experts on fetal development — get absorbed and influence who you think your child is before they’re even born,” Hill said. “Our research suggests the descriptions offered by prenatal care providers stick with parents. When we asked prospective parents to describe their baby, 70 percent of them indicated their perception was related to a prenatal care visit.”

The statements made by health care providers to expecting parents about their baby may have unintended consequences and “may play a role in influencing a child’s future,” the researchers wrote.

Prior research has found that if a parent views a child positively during pregnancy, the parent is more likely to engage in more positive parenting behaviors after the baby is born. For example, babies described with more positive words experience higher levels of sensitivity, warmth and engagement from parents. Those described with more negative words receive less.

Hill said her study is the first to show “these first impressions prospectively relate to childhood behavior as well, and not only parenting practices.”

The study, broken into two segments, first observed 320 pregnant mothers between 11 and 38 weeks’ gestation who provided a description of their babies, followed by a report on their children's behavioral and emotional difficulties at 18 months old. Those parents who described their unborn children more positively observed that their child had fewer difficulties as a toddler. However, negative descriptions were associated with greater difficulties in the child’s behavior and in regulating their emotions.

Problem behaviors in the children included being emotionally reactive, experiencing anxiety or depression, having trouble paying attention, acting withdrawn, having trouble sleeping, acting aggressively and even complaining of various physical symptoms.

The researchers learned that descriptor words specifically attributed to the ultrasound experience tended to have a more negative emotional tone than those related to any other experience — such as talking about your baby with your spouse, family and friends, or comparing family characteristics between your baby and certain relatives.

“These interactions between prospective parents and prenatal care providers seem small,” Hill said. “Can single words really impact how parents perceive their unborn child to be?”

While this first segment of the study demonstrated differences in the tone of words attributable to prenatal care visits versus other sources, the second segment tested the researchers’ hypothesis that negative comments made during ultrasound exams actually lead to more negative parental perceptions.

They asked 161 participants to report on the personality of a baby following an imagined prenatal care visit in which they were randomly assigned to different exam conditions. In each instance, the ultrasound technician indicated that they were unable to capture the necessary images, but with three different explanations as to why. Some participants were told it was the baby’s fault for not cooperating during the ultrasound, others learned that technical issues caused the disruption, and the last group were simply told that they would get another chance to see their baby at a subsequent appointment.

Participants who were told that they would get to return for a follow-up appointment were much more likely to use positive words to describe the baby than participants in the other two conditions. Those who were told the failed image captures were because the baby was uncooperative used more negative words to describe the baby than participants in the other two conditions.

“These interactions between prospective parents and prenatal care providers seem small. Can single words really impact how parents perceive their unborn child to be?”

Evaluating the language used by health care professionals during these prenatal encounters is crucial in fostering positive parent-child relationships, according to the study’s findings, as well as educating medical and mental health professionals about the importance of prenatal and early childhood experiences. Equally critical is providing more support for both parents and children during the perinatal period (the time from pregnancy through the first year after childbirth).

“Of course we want to help support parents,” Hill said, “and this research suggests a first step may be to talk with health care providers, to highlight the importance of these seemingly small differences in word choice during salient moments with pregnant patients.”

Hill is an affiliate of 91�Թ�’s and the director of the , which focuses on familial dynamics and mental health. She sees this study as one small, yet key, component of the whole picture of what makes for a healthy family. “Depression affects the entire family, and not just one person,” Hill said.

“One of the highest risk periods for depression is the perinatal period, where individuals are experiencing changes across so many levels of functioning — physical, psychological and social,” she said. “If an ultrasound experience is impacting how an individual sees their child, that could potentially influence aspects of the caregiving relationship, which is really important for both parent and child outcomes over time.”

Hill conducted the research in conjunction with Abigail Blum, Regan Carell and Kathryn Humphreys, all of Vanderbilt University, with funding provided in part by the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, among others.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

To address such challenges, the University of 91�Թ� is hosting the and to dialogue with a cross-partisan group of leaders about the next several years of governance on social media and technology, particularly as it relates to improving democratic outcomes. The goal is to create a path forward for a social media infrastructure that supports, rather than subverts, democracy.

Led by 91�Թ�’s , this National Convening on Social Media and Democracy will gather May 27-29 at 91�Թ� and will bring together leaders and scholars around misinformation, technology, social media and democracy to collaborate and discuss policy changes that set a serious national agenda. Such changes can potentially redirect social media to foster healthy civic engagement, improve understanding of political issues, build trust in public institutions, bridge divided viewpoints and transform polarizing social media conversations — ultimately helping individuals find common ground and enabling democratic processes.

“Through this convening, 91�Թ� brings together leading scholars and practitioners to tackle one of the most serious structural threats to democracy and our civic health,” said , director of 91�Թ�’s Democracy Initiative and the Packey J. Dee Professor of American Democracy in the .

“The exchange of ideas and perspectives happening over this convening demonstrates that 91�Թ� is a foundational and trusted partner for nonpartisan, evidence-based solutions to problems facing democracy,” Campbell said. “Our experts at 91�Թ� are leading the way with crucial conversations about how to protect kids online, defend the information ecosystem from misinformation and put guardrails on social media to limit the harms of conspiracy theories, lies and harassment.”

91�Թ� and the Council for Responsible Social Media will work in tandem to address the negative civic impacts of social media in America, providing a co-created plan for governing social technology going forward. Following the convening, academic and practitioner contributors plan to draft a nonpartisan policy roadmap with legislative and regulatory agendas.

“Partnering with Issue One and the council is an important way that we will bridge from research to real world impact,” Campbell added.

Dick Gephardt, former House Majority Leader and co-chair of Issue One’s Council for Responsible Social Media, stated that social media has changed the world as we know it by redefining how we gather information and communicate. “And, in recent years, it has become increasingly clear that social media companies have deliberately prioritized their profits above being good stewards of society,” Gephardt said.

“Even though these companies are some of the most powerful in human history and their influence over our government is growing by the day, we must hold them accountable for the harms they’re causing to our democracy, national security and young people,” Gephardt said. “That’s why we must reign them in with commonsense guardrails that would create a healthier society and a more robust democracy.”

Faculty experts from 91�Թ�’s , the , the and the , part of the , will create an interdisciplinary and University-wide foundation for supporting this convening and sustaining the work beyond it.

“By convening the Council for Responsible Social Media at 91�Թ�, we’re hoping to recommit to being more than just a think tank, but rather an action tank that delivers meaningful results by uniting the millions of Democrats, Republicans and independents across the country who are concerned about the effects of social media and pushing members of Congress to do their jobs,” Gephardt said.

is a leading cross-partisan political reform group in Washington, uniting Republicans, Democrats and independents in the movement to fix a broken political system and build an inclusive democracy that works for everyone. The is a project of Issue One that comprises more than 50 government, industry and academic leaders to address the negative mental, civic and public health impacts of social media in America.

The National Convening on Social Media and Democracy is an invitation-only event. Learn more about 91�Թ� faculty experts and their research on social media and democracy here.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, Associate Director of Media Relations, tdestazi@nd.edu; 269-769-8804

This will be the first time 91�Թ�’s Army ROTC Fightin’ Irish Battalion has received the department’s Educational Institution Partnership Excellence Award, which recognizes the program’s achievements in recruiting, educating, training and commissioning leaders of character to be the next generation of military officers.

The prestigious award, established in 2020, is given out annually to outstanding ROTC units and host educational institutions from each military branch and highlights overall program performance, student-cadet achievements and university support. With this honor, the Fightin’ Irish Battalion now ranks first out of 274 Army ROTC programs nationwide.

“Our Army ROTC cadets and leaders make us proud in so many ways, through their efforts in the classroom, their engagement across campus and their dedication to serving our nation,” said University President “The Fightin’ Irish Battalion truly embodies the best of 91�Թ�, and I am delighted that their extraordinary efforts have been recognized with this prestigious award from the Department of Defense.”

Award builds on previous accomplishments

This national award follows the battalion’s receipt of the 7th Brigade General Douglas MacArthur Award for the 2023-24 academic year, which recognized the program’s high standing among 38 universities within the 7th Brigade (including ROTC programs in Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio), and allowed the unit to become eligible for the Department of Defense’s Excellence Award.

The MacArthur Award showcases the ideals of “duty, honor and country” and is based on the achievements of the school’s commissioning mission, its cadets’ performance and standing on the command’s National Order of Merit List, and a number of various quality performance metrics. This is the second year in a row that 91�Թ�’s Army ROTC unit has won this award, presented by Cadet Command and the Gen. Douglas MacArthur Foundation.

Among its accomplishments, the 91�Թ� Army ROTC unit produced 25 commissioned officers at the end of 2024, 11 of whom graduated with military distinction. Three were selected as Fulbright English Teaching Award finalists, with one winning the Fulbright Award to teach in the Czech Republic and another chosen to teach in France. The program maintained a 92 percent progression rate and a 38.6 percent STEM rate, with an overall battalion GPA of 3.59. Cadets representing 28 states across the U.S. comprise the 100-member unit, with 46 of those being female. This year’s unit included three pairs of siblings serving simultaneously, with 14 cadets having at least one parent who graduated from 91�Թ�’s ROTC program.

“The Fightin’ Irish Battalion’s success can be attributed to our deep sense of devotion to our people,” said , professor of military science and Army battalion commander at 91�Թ�. “We emphasize a team-first attitude, fostering a culture of excellence and accountability to get better. We seek to embrace the University’s motto of ‘God, Country, 91�Թ�’ each and every day.”

Kobbe the 2024 Professor of Military Science of the Year by the U.S. Army Cadet Command for his dedication and commitment as leader of the Fightin’ Irish Battalion. In this role, Kobbe is responsible for training and mentoring the cadets, preparing them to serve their nation and others as future Army officers.

This annual award is given to military science professors who exemplify outstanding performance, leadership and mission success, based on candidates’ physical fitness, commissioning mission success, training accomplishments and contributions to their respective programs.

Battalion excels in Ranger Challenge and Sandhurst Military Skills Competition

Not only are student-cadets of the Fightin’ Irish Battalion taught to be goal-oriented, dedicated and academically focused, but they are also rigorously trained for physical performance and endurance. In October, the battalion’s team won the 7th Brigade Ranger Challenge competition at Fort Knox, Kentucky, securing the top spot for the third straight year. This competition brings Army ROTC teams from more than 30 universities within the five-state brigade to face one another in feats of military skills, physical fitness, leadership and combat readiness.

Winning the 2024 Ranger Challenge title qualified the team to compete in the annual Sandhurst Military Skills Competition at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. Named after the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the United Kingdom, this competition is regarded as one of the toughest military skills events in the world and brings together teams from across the U.S. Army and various ROTC programs, as well as international military units.

The on May 2 and 3 and took home an impressive standing by placing 6th among all ROTC programs and 25th overall, securing its spot as one of the top programs in the country. Facing challenges in events such as fitness tests, land navigation (both day and night), ruck marches, one-rope bridge construction and weapons disassembly/assembly, among others, the 91�Թ� rangers proved their ability to consistently perform and exhibit teamwork under intense circumstances.

“It is inspiring to witness the commitment to leadership excellence from all of our cadets, faculty and staff, which has led to the Fightin’ Irish Battalion’s exceptional accomplishments,” said , director of 91�Թ�’s .

The OMVA is charged with supporting the University’s ROTC programs representing all three major branches of military service (Army, Air Force and Navy), as well as all military-affiliated individuals at the University.

“91�Թ� has a proud lineage of Army officers who have selflessly served our nation upon graduation and commissioning. The accomplishments of this group of future leaders ensure that this legacy will continue,” Heckel said.

About 91�Թ� Army ROTC

91�Թ�’s long history of military service and training can be traced back to the University’s founding by Rev. Edward Sorin, C.S.C., in 1842. Just 16 years later, in 1858, a student military company called the 91�Թ� Continental Cadets was formed. During the Civil War, many Congregation of Holy Cross priests and sisters served in varying capacities, with Rev. William Corby, C.S.C., 91�Թ�’s third president, being the most notable for his granting absolution to the Union Army’s Irish Brigade at the Battle of Gettysburg.

In 1941, 91�Թ� became one of the first universities to host all three military branches with an affiliated ROTC program, with former University President , signing official documentation in 1951 for the formal establishment of the Army ROTC program. Since then, thousands of men and women have been commissioned through the Army ROTC program and have served in every conflict where American forces have deployed.

In addition to serving abroad, members of the Army National Guard and Army Reserve support local and federal initiatives such as flood and natural disaster relief, Defense Support to Civil Authorities, and the operational ready reserve for the Active Duty component.

Esteemed graduates from 91�Թ�’s ROTC programs include , a 1987 Army ROTC graduate, U.S. Special Operations Commander and recipient of the , and , a 1984 Navy ROTC graduate, the vice chairman and acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and 91�Թ�’s 2025 Commencement speaker.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

“The Holy Father gave all humanity — indeed, all of the planet — a way to create a better world, helping us advance a vision of connectedness and community as being essential ingredients for discovering meaning and purpose,” Agrawal said.

But, added Agrawal, Pope Francis’ “vision about the inherent dignity of each and all humans is simultaneously a beacon for those who care for a just and sustainable future and a caution for those who see the world transactionally.”

Agrawal believes that the best available science and our innermost convictions tell us that transformative change for sustainability requires adjustments in thought, structure and action, but that these all must remain consistent with the guidance from Pope Francis.

“T����� at 91�Թ�, as imagined and elaborated by the University’s leadership, is deeply aligned with and inspired by Laudato Si’ and its vision of integral ecology,” Agrawal said.

Going forward, the initiative will seek to transform how students and faculty at 91�Թ� engage with sustainability research and practice, as well as alter the field of sustainability itself through high-impact research and knowledge creation, curricular innovations and global engagement.

“The letter’s exhortation to transform our relationship to nature and to one another by ‘heeding the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor’ is a clarion call to end wasteful habits and selfish practices that exploit our planet’s resources and leave the poor to pick up the tab,” Appleby said.

Appleby said the pope’s words inspire 91�Թ�’s work in poverty, peace, sustainability and environmental justice — all of which are key elements of the Keough School’s strategic focus.

Those important pillars, as well as the University’s new , are “directly inspired by Laudato si’ and by the teaching and example of Pope Francis,” he said.

, a professor in the , found that there was more to fertility rates than a simple economic or circumstantial explanation. According to her research, people are having fewer children due to cultural factors, with social norms playing a larger role than previously thought.

Popular opinions regarding marriage, contraception and abortion directly impact fertility rates and therefore the demography of a region. This can be particularly true in regions that are predominantly Catholic and where the Church’s teachings have a stronger influence on an individual’s fertility decisions.

“Social norms truly matter when it comes to understanding demography,” said Iyer, who is also a professor of economics and global affairs at 91�Թ�’s and a faculty fellow at the school’s and . “And we are researching how changing the salience of specific norms is shaping fertility behavior.”

Iyer and her research team examined the impact of visits by Pope John Paul II throughout Latin America between 1979 and 1996. They found that in countries where he gave public speeches that reinforced Catholic social teaching, fertility rates were higher in the long term. Using Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data on 13 Latin American countries across 16 papal visits, the researchers found that although the pope’s speeches were not intentionally aimed at influencing fertility, his messaging heightened existing Catholic social norms that promote getting married and having families, causing a statistically significant increase in birth rates within those countries.

The findings, which were reported in the working paper indicated that in the two to five years following the papal visits, an additional 220,000 to 251,000 births occurred in the 13 countries analyzed in the study. Where the pope mentioned marriage or abortion and contraception in his public speech, birth rates jumped the greatest. Where he condemned premarital sex in his homilies, birth rates decreased. Where he spoke about the value of marriage, both marriage and fertility rates increased.

The researchers said the effects of the pope’s messages were felt most strongly by individuals who were not necessarily following the Church’s teachings on these topics; in this case, those in non-Catholic, wealthy and highly educated households.

“These results indicate that people are really listening to what the pope has to say,” Iyer said. “And the topics he addresses really matter.”

Iyer added that not only were the messages important in changing how the audiences viewed their relationship with marriage and family, but so was the fact that it was the pope himself delivering those messages.

“Who the messenger is matters,” Iyer said. “It needs to be someone who can reinforce what is important to the culture. You can change social norms by having a predominant leader remind people of what is considered good and acceptable behavior within that particular society.”

For Latin America at the time of Pope John Paul’s visits, these messages were crucial to help slow down the dramatic decline in birth rates, which went from an average of 5.9 births per woman in 1960 to 2.2 in 2010. For other countries experiencing similar below-replacement fertility rates, Iyer said this type of messaging can help induce people to want to have more children.

And those messages don’t have to be tied to a specific religion or to religious beliefs, Iyer added, but they do need to be relevant to the culture they are addressing and to the existing social norms — and having them delivered by a respected leader only adds to their saliency.

“Cultural ambassadors matter, but only in certain contexts,” Iyer explained. “They are the ones who can speak for those norms, reinforce them or make them more important to people.”

This study exemplifies the kind of population-level research that , a new research initiative at the University, seeks to foster. Many of the issues facing society are demographic — poverty, the aging population and declining fertility, disparities in educational outcomes, family instability and the decline in life expectancy brought about by the drug crises. ND Pop is leveraging the tools of data science to foster impactful research that can inform policy and practice. Iyer’s paper and other recent population study findings are available through ND Pop’s .

“Who the messenger is matters. It needs to be someone who can reinforce what is important to the culture.”

“Demography is really important to think about in terms of long-term economic or social change,” Iyer said. Aside from policies that promise monetary incentives or better access to child care for families, Iyer and her co-authors believe that a cultural component could also be considered. They acknowledge, however, that further research should be conducted to analyze the effects of other changes in social norms such as increased secularization or changing religious denominations in a country, as well as contrasting these with the effects of government policies and economic incentives.

Iyer conducted her research alongside co-authors Paloma Lopez de mesa Moyano of Emory University and Vivek Moorthy, who received his doctorate from 91�Թ� in 2022 and is now at the College of the Holy Cross.

The DHS surveys are nationally representative household surveys conducted in more than 90 countries since the mid-1980s. They collect detailed information from women of child-bearing age about their fertility histories, including a retrospective questionnaire on the month and year of all births. These fertility histories enabled the researchers to construct fertility time series for each woman using a consistent survey methodology and questionnaire across countries.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

And there are more tariff announcements still to come: The tariff pause with Mexico and Canada is set to expire on April 2, and the U.S. Department of Commerce is slated to announce its plan for “reciprocal tariffs” in early April.

To make sense of these policy changes, Robert Johnson, the Brian and Jeannelle Brady Associate Professor of Economics at the University of 91�Թ�, explained how tariffs affect global economies and what this means for U.S. engagement in global trade.

“There is currently a general reevaluation of the degree to which the U.S. engages in trade with the rest of the world,” Johnson said. “Much of that involves raising tariffs to essentially disengage the U.S. from the global economy, which is a huge and fundamental shift in our trade policy.”

At the same time, Johnson emphasized that the economic costs and benefits of tariffs are different now than in the past, due to the rise of global value chains. In a global value chain, various stages of production — from design and sourcing to manufacturing, marketing and distribution — are executed by different countries. This type of linked and integrated production occurs across borders in many industries, but the North American automobile industry stands out. Cars that are assembled in the U.S. contain large amounts of imported parts, components and materials; likewise, cars assembled in Mexico and imported by the U.S. contain parts and components produced by suppliers in the U.S. Many integral products even pass back and forth across borders multiple times and, if tariffs are in place, get taxed each time.

As a result, Johnson suggested that placing tariffs and sparking trade wars with our neighbors to the north and south can hurt all of us, markets and consumers included, because tariffs can disrupt supply chains, raise prices and threaten job security. The importance of global value chains and trade policy is explained in a authored by Johnson, Emily Blanchard of the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, and Chad Bown of the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

“The costs of raising tariffs are higher, and the benefits are lower, than they would have been if U.S. producers were not integrated in global value chains,” Johnson said.

Johnson highlighted three mechanisms by which tariffs hurt U.S. economic interests through these interconnected global trade networks.

Tariffs on imported parts that go into U.S. production

The main objective of tariffs is to get consumers to buy locally, supporting U.S. manufacturing, Johnson said. But from a U.S. producer’s perspective, many companies will still need to import items from either Mexico or Canada to be used in the production of U.S.-made goods. When a tariff is placed on those imported items, it raises the production costs, making them less competitive.

“That reduces the demands for their goods” both at home and abroad, Johnson said, because the companies have higher costs of production. “Tariffs placed on inputs are, writ large, bad for U.S. manufacturing.”

Tariffs on imported finished goods that contain foreign parts

When tariffs are placed on imported finished goods (cars, T-shirts, TVs, etc.), Johnson said, the goal is to shift consumer expenditure from imports to domestically produced goods. Even here, the existence of value chains has important hidden impacts.

While the goal of a tariff might be for consumers to buy more U.S.-assembled cars instead of cars assembled in Mexico, cars assembled in the U.S. use Mexican and Canadian parts, whereas cars assembled in Mexico contain U.S.-made parts. Because U.S. cars contain imported parts, some of the benefits of the tariff leak back to those foreign auto parts suppliers, explained Johnson. “This makes the shift in demand that occurs as a result of raising the tariff less attractive to the government,” he said, “because it’s losing some of the benefits of that tariff to foreign auto parts suppliers.”

Another way to look at it, Johnson said, is that when we raise tariffs on foreign imports in the hopes of increasing the number of cars being assembled in Michigan, some of the value of those assembled cars is actually Canadian. “In effect, we’re helping the Canadian auto parts suppliers. The more of the Canadian value that’s embedded in the Ford, for example, the more of the benefit of the tariff flows back to Canada.”

Using the same example of the auto industry, Johnson said that if a car is assembled in Mexico and there is a tax on imports from that country, then what happens if the Mexico-produced car is made from U.S.-manufactured parts and materials?

“There will be auto parts and engine firms in Ohio or Michigan that are going to be sending those parts and materials to Mexico where they will be used to assemble a car there, and then those cars are going to be re-exported into the U.S.,” Johnson said. “When we tax the car coming across the border from Mexico to the U.S., we’re implicitly taxing the supply of U.S. parts to that Mexican auto assembler firm. So, we’re essentially taxing ourselves.”

Tariffs on multinational firms that include U.S.-owned companies located abroad

The third example of how imposing tariffs can cause global pain is when U.S. firms own foreign companies. For example, Johnson said, if Ford or GM owns an auto assembly plant in Mexico, then it has engaged in foreign direct investment by building that plant. When the U.S. places tariffs on imports from Mexico, then we’re actually hurting GM and Ford because they take in profits from that assembly activity and are directly impacted by the tariff, he said.

“The more globalized the ownership structure is, and the more globalized the value chains are, the less attractive it becomes to raise tariffs,” Johnson said.

“Given that we are in this period of reevaluation, I think it is important to think broadly about how the U.S. should be engaged in the world...we ought to pause and reflect on how we have prospered through engagement with partners and allies around the world, before we tear that all up.”

Changing technologies affect trade decision-making

There have been tremendous increases in the amount of value chain activity across borders over the last several decades, according to Johnson. Countries weren’t as connected in the 1980s as they are today. Technological changes in communication and information sharing have increased connectivity, as it has become much easier to coordinate production and move goods across borders.

“That has helped to integrate value chains across countries even more deeply,” Johnson said. “And so we’re living in this world now where tariffs have these built-in costs as a result of global value chain integration that they might not have had in the past. The right thing to do in the 1980s would have been very different from what the right thing to do today might be.”

As the new administration grapples with how to leverage tariffs in the U.S.’s favor, Johnson said the current approach to working with Canada and Mexico — considered some of our closest partners — is “untested, to say the least,” and seems contrary to our long-standing interest in cooperation within North America.

“Given that we are in this period of reevaluation, I think it is important to think broadly about how the U.S. should be engaged in the world,” Johnson said. “The U.S. derives enormous benefits from the global trading system, a system that we designed and built in service of U.S. economic and foreign policy interests. I think we ought to pause and reflect on how we have prospered through engagement with partners and allies around the world, before we tear that all up.”

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

Several distinguished experts from the University of 91�Թ� gathered Dec. 4 at the Eck Visitors Center Auditorium to discuss their personal and professional connections to the ongoing conflict in Israel and Palestine. This was the third event in the Israel-Palestine Series of the 2024-25 91�Թ� Forum on

This series, as well as a corresponding academic course for 91�Թ� students, is co-led by an Islamic studies scholar and the executive director of the in the , and the Abrams Jewish Thought and Culture Professor of Theology. Mirza formally opened the event, emphasizing the diverse backgrounds and voices of the panelists and centering them as 91�Թ� students, staff and faculty.

“They are humanitarians, scholars, citizens and soldiers, and they are connected to the reality on the ground in their own ways,” Mirza said, “but are situated differently with respect to the conflict by experience and by expertise.” He added that the conflict “is not just ‘over there,’ it is also here in our communities and in our politics and in our institutions.”

The presentation, titled included panelists , a Palestinian theologian and doctoral candidate in 91�Թ�’s ; teaching professor and director of undergraduate studies in the ; , director of undergraduate studies at ; , senior adviser to the dean of the Keough School of Global Affairs and director of the Keough School’s ; and , professor of religion, conflict and peace studies in the Keough School.

, the Packey J. Dee Professor of International Relations and the Brian and Jeannelle Brady Family Director of the , served as the panel’s moderator, introducing the panelists and inviting them to share their “on-the-ground” perspectives.

Omer, an Israeli Jew who grew up in Jerusalem, discussed the historical context of the current situation starting with the “nakba,” or “the catastrophe,” a forced mass displacement of Palestinians that occurred from 1947 to 1949 and continues to have a deep impact today. Omer cited her recent research, which focuses on American Jews unlearning the conflation of Judaism with Israel and the recent mobilization in the U.S. and Canada against Israeli policies. She emphasized the importance of framing the conversation and using the proper language to discuss the conflict, reminding the audience to be “very attuned to how the language is being deployed and what the language itself is normalizing.”

Offenheiser shared his personal journey of graduating from 91�Թ� to working and living as a laborer on a kibbutz in Israel to launching a career in international development. He recounted his 20 years of experience working with Oxfam, a humanitarian aid organization, and described the challenges faced by humanitarians working in conflict zones like Gaza, Lebanon and other regions. He emphasized the role of humanitarians in saving lives, meeting basic human needs and helping to reduce conflict — despite the dangers and risks they face.

Offenheiser noted that of the 13,000 U.N. aid workers in Gaza, most of them are Palestinian and almost 100 percent of them are now displaced. “These are people who, every day, are getting up to do humanitarian work and having to make a decision of whether to stay with their own families, who may be displaced, or continuing to do their jobs,” he said.

Bualuan, of Lebanese descent, spent the first 13 years of his life in Switzerland before moving to Lebanon for high school and college. The Lebanese civil war began shortly after he arrived in the country, and much of his reflection focused on his ongoing efforts to process and understand his experiences during that conflict and the one occurring now between Israel and Lebanon.

He noted that of utmost importance is hearing different viewpoints, and that his version of peace activism is demonstrated by his behavior — how he interacts with people and the respect he shows them. “I’m not a peace activist in my job, but I believe I am a peace activist in how I live my life,” he said.

As a 91�Թ� faculty member living in Jerusalem, Mitchell was in Israel on Oct. 7 when Hamas-led militants attacked the southern portion of the country. He, along with his family, endured hours spent in a bomb shelter, and he wrestled with the agonizing decisions around how to keep his own family safe as well as ensuring the safety of the 91�Թ� Jerusalem students and staff under his care. To further complicate the situation, as an Israeli citizen, Mitchell was then called up as a reservist to serve in the Israel Defense Forces, fulfilling his duty by patrolling in a tank unit along the border of Lebanon and Syria for five months.

Mitchell spoke of the transformation he underwent during his military service and the ongoing challenges of reconciling his dual identities as an American and an Israeli. He reflected on the enormous, collective trauma he witnessed and knows is ongoing for millions. While acknowledging the need for hope and action, Mitchell admitted, “I may not see a meaningful resolution for this conflict in my lifetime,” but noted that he can begin to focus on what he “can do in the long term — not just for myself, but for my family and for both peoples — in order to make tomorrow better than today.”

As a Palestinian Christian growing up in Bethlehem, Bannoura was able to speak firsthand regarding the direct impact of the war on his community, reflecting on the deaths of numerous friends and neighbors throughout the past 14 months. He referenced the ongoing dehumanization and marginalization of Palestinians and the importance of centering their suffering in the conversation surrounding the current conflict and addressing the injustices they face on a daily basis.

From the perspective of his Christian faith, Bannoura said he finds hope in Christ in order to move forward. “Christ is in the people, is with the people of Gaza,” he said. “Christ is with us, for us, and that’s what gives us hope.”

Following individual presentations, the panelists took turns answering questions posed by Desch, which included responses drawing parallels between the war in Gaza and other historical global events such as the attacks of Sept. 11 and the war on terror in Iraq and Afghanistan. Omer interjected that in such historical atrocities, a person cannot base their own safety and freedom on the removal of another person’s safety and freedom.

Mitchell summed up the diverse perspectives in the room when he said, “The idea that there is a singular view of the world is really put to the test in a place like Israel-Palestine. There is no one truth but the pursuit of truth itself.”

Questions from the audience centered on how the war has been fought in Gaza and the complications around adherence to international law. The conversation also touched on the complexities of memory and the generational trauma of war, the need for forgiveness and the value of continued dialogue and action for peace and justice.

To conclude, Novick thanked all panelists and attendees and invited them to stay engaged with future events that are part of the throughout the rest of the academic year. He encouraged the packed auditorium to continue the conversation. “Seek out each other, seek nuance," he said. “Try to understand precisely the perspective of the person you disagree with, not necessarily to end up agreeing with that person, but as a praxis of self-criticism.”

. To see other and future events related to the 91�Թ� Forum 2024-25, visit

Economists from the that global public debt would soon collectively catch up to the worldwide gross domestic product (GDP), likely matching it by 2030. New research from the University of 91�Թ� suggests that this could happen even sooner, thanks to countries’ hidden debts.

These hidden debts — debt that was already in a government’s books but had not been disclosed — are the result of malicious intent or corruption, fear of scrutiny by lenders or simple accounting errors. Too much debt prevents governments from investing in the things its citizens need most, including infrastructure, health care and education.

Monitoring a country’s debt level is also top of mind for investors and analysts who want to ensure the lendability and dependability of a borrower.

But revelations of hidden debt have dire consequences for those misreporting borrowers and those who lend to them.

According to a new study from an economist at the University of 91�Թ�, misreported debt can lead to higher interest rates for borrowers and lower recovery rates for lenders. These findings suggest indirect adverse effects on global financial stability and consumer welfare.

Cesar Sosa-Padilla, associate professor of economics and a faculty fellow at the , part of 91�Թ�’s , along with co-authors from the World Bank, the University of Hamburg and the University of Duisburg-Essen, authored a working paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research titled The researchers used the World Bank’s International Debt Statistics database to measure the accuracy of reported debt levels spanning more than 50 years for 146 developing and emerging market countries.

The researchers tracked revisions to the World Bank’s external-debt statistics database, which compiles reports from all countries that borrow from foreign lenders, from 1970 through 2022. Each revision showed discrepancies when compared to the previous year’s data, indicating an underreported or overreported debt amount. Their research method, which also included digitizing records that preceded online capabilities, revealed several facts regarding the size, timing and characteristics of hidden debt, according to Sosa-Padilla.

They found that public debt is consistently and pervasively underreported — by an average of 1 percent of each country’s GDP, totaling $1 trillion of hidden debt across all countries and years and equating to more than 12 percent of total foreign borrowing by all countries in the study sample.

“Hidden debt is large and common,” the researchers wrote, with 70 percent of all debt stocks reported to the World Bank requiring amendments at least once after their initial publication. And most of those revisions, Sosa-Padilla explained, involve an adjustment upward versus downward when reporting true public debt — indicating that underreporting occurs more often than not.

These hidden debts can only be counted when they are revealed through a revision, so it is likely that some countries’ debts are actually larger than they are willing to admit, he said.

“We find that public external debt is consistently underreported, and that this phenomenon is more prevalent in countries with weak institutions,” Sosa-Padilla said.

The reporting discrepancies were most often found during bad economic years, according to Sosa-Padilla. “The accumulation of debt that was not reported usually happened during boom years,” he said, “while the revelations of that hidden debt occurred during bad economic years.”

These hidden debt revelations typically occurred when the government’s books came under close scrutiny due to loan defaults or during audits from the IMF, a multilateral organization set up to assist countries on the brink of financial crisis. The United States is the largest shareholder in the IMF.

The researchers also found that hidden debt can have adverse implications for both creditors and borrowers. For creditors, it means larger creditor losses and a lower recovery rate on loans provided to a country that is further in debt than expected. In turn, having less chance to recoup funds during the renegotiation process leads creditors to pass along less-advantageous borrowing terms to those countries seeking loans.

“Theoretically, when a country has a history of hiding its debt, it not only faces higher interest rates from foreign lenders, but it also has less ability to smooth out consumption or stabilize fluctuations in its economy,” Sosa-Padilla explained. “Essentially, it leads to a more volatile path of consumption levels, which can trickle down to affect consumer households.”

For American consumers in particular, Sosa-Padilla said that hidden debt revelations make investing in foreign bonds much riskier than originally thought. Also, as one of the IMF’s largest contributors, U.S. funders may take extra care when considering providing funds to countries that consistently misreport their economic health.

Bonds, which are publicly traded, and World Bank-provided loans have fewer incidents of misreporting as those debts are consistently disclosed. The largest revisions to yearly debt levels occur within less transparent markets, such as with borrowed funds coming from private lenders in the form of bank credit or from governments as bilateral loans.

On this point, and using a quantitative model of sovereign borrowing and default, the researchers took into account the amount of oversight and transparency that is required when it comes to monitoring each country’s forthrightness in debt reporting, saying that “only countries with strong fundamentals and low hidden debt levels benefit from increased transparency” while countries with high levels of hidden debt are “likely to find exposure to greater scrutiny to be costly.”

For that reason, the study’s findings suggest that transparency policies are best implemented during positive economic times versus times of financial crisis.

“Analysts in both asset pricing and country surveillance should take into account that debt statistics tend to increase after their initial publication, which makes default more likely,” Sosa-Padilla concluded.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

In an era of intense polarization, partisans have historically, and mistakenly, believed that members of the other party prioritize protecting certain types or victims of hate speech over others based on stereotypes or their affiliation with those potentially vulnerable groups.

New research from the University of 91�Թ�, however, revealed that Democrats and Republicans generally agree on what to censor when it comes to the target, source and severity of hate speech.

“Basically, partisans misunderstand the other party’s priorities,” said Matthew E.K. Hall, one of several co-authors of the study, published recently by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“And these misunderstandings over hate speech censorship might lead to even greater polarization because people misrepresent the values and preferences of the other party members, which, in an election year, can reduce cross-party voting,” said Hall, the director of 91�Թ�’s and the David A. Potenziani Memorial College Professor of Constitutional Studies.

The research was conducted by Hall and first author , the Thomas A. and James J. Bruder Assistant Professor of Administrative Leadership in 91�Թ�’s , along with co-authors , a doctoral student in the at 91�Թ�, and James N. Druckman, a professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Rochester.

Hall pointed out that one major disconnect is that Democrats overestimate and Republicans underestimate the other party’s willingness to censor speech that specifically targets white people. On the flip side, he said, both Republicans and Democrats are especially concerned about antisemitic hate speech and are more supportive of censoring anti-Black speech than any other form of hate speech.

In a survey conducted between Dec. 8 and 22, 2023, the researchers showed more than 3,357 participants a variety of social media profiles containing potentially objectionable speech and asked whether they would remove the post or deactivate the account. The researchers found that members of both parties chose to remove social media posts containing hate speech in the majority of profiles, regardless of the group being targeted. More than 60 percent of respondents recommended removing posts that targeted Black people and more than 58 percent wanted to remove posts targeting Jews. Majorities also chose to remove posts targeting Palestinians (54.8 percent) and white people (54.6 percent).

Some participants felt so strongly about the hate speech that they advocated for deactivating the social media accounts altogether, most commonly for posts targeting Black people (nearly 51 percent) and Jews (nearly 48 percent).

One unexpected finding for the researchers was that neither the source’s partisanship nor position within society affected the participants’ censorship decisions. The bottom line, the researchers wrote, is that “partisans agreed on hate speech censorship based on the source — largely in that the source does not matter.”

This finding was true with one exception: Democrats were more likely to deactivate accounts owned by elected officials versus private citizens.

“Debates on hate speech moderation should focus on understanding misperceptions of censorship preferences rather than on what or who should be censored,” Solomon reiterated.

Another factor considered in the study was the severity of the hate speech content — incitement to violence being the most severe. Partisans also tended to agree on censoring hate speech based on the harshness of the language, with increased support for censorship as severity increased.

While the U.S. Constitution protects the freedom of speech, including hate speech on principle, this constitutional guarantee does not allow unfettered hate speech. The government can regulate speech if it is viewed as inciting lawlessness, posing a true threat or breaching the peace, the researchers explained. Furthermore, private actors such as social media platforms can moderate content on their platforms as they deem necessary.

“I think the study’s findings show that social media companies can find consensus policies that can get broad support, even in this highly polarized era,” Hall said.

“Moreover, this research suggests that media framings around partisan debates — like those over free speech — are largely driven by misunderstandings,” Hall explained. “And we need to better educate the public about these misunderstandings.”

At a time when democracy is in crisis, Hall noted that it is important to focus on the country’s core and essential democratic principles, including free speech as well as voting rights and civic engagement.

“Free speech is an essential value in a democratic society, and disagreements over censorship are increasingly prominent in that realm. It’s important to think about how we build and maintain consensus around appropriate levels of censorship in order to preserve core free speech rights,” Hall said.

Hall added that this particular study only focused on antisemitism and anti-Palestinian hate speech given the ongoing war in Israel, as well as anti-Black and anti-white speech given their significance in American culture.

“Further research on hate speech censorship should include additional comparisons across hate speech targeting other social groups,” the researchers noted.

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu

Do we have a constitutional duty to protect one another’s rights?

What if each of us, as private citizens, were responsible for upholding the constitutional rights of our fellow citizens? For example, what if a landlord had a constitutional duty to provide safe and ample housing for his or her tenant, or a privately owned social media platform was expected to protect the freedom of speech of its users?

For Christina Bambrick, the Filip Family Assistant Professor of Political Science in the at the University of 91�Թ�, this is something she has pondered and studied for years. “I have always been interested in big questions about the legitimacy of government authority as well as limits on authority,” said Bambrick, who specializes in constitutional theory.

In new research, Bambrick explores the difference between our conventional understanding of rights protections in the U.S. Constitution — which directs responsibility vertically, obligating the government to protect citizens’ rights — versus a more horizontal approach, which extends that duty to private actors to protect each other’s rights. She examines constitutional politics across the globe to explore these different approaches to balancing rights and responsibilities in a democratic society.

Legal scholars and practitioners in the United States have generally understood the Constitution as obligating only the state or federal government with protecting constitutional rights, favoring a strict separation between the public and private sphere.

But now, Bambrick said, courts and constitution-makers are opening up the possibility that private actors — such as individuals, businesses, hospitals and private schools — have certain constitutional duties to one another. Her research delves into the theoretical potential of applying constitutional duties horizontally and explores the way in which we view the relationship between the public and private realms of society.

Bambrick’s book, (Cambridge University Press, November 2024), examines the differing approaches of constitutional orders across the globe and how they often depart from traditional understandings of the government’s lone role in upholding constitutional rights.

In addition to the United States, Bambrick studied a range of democracies, including India, Germany and South Africa, that have adopted this horizontal approach in different areas of governance.

“A judge or lawyer in the United States, for example, is unlikely to argue that a constitutional right creates a duty for a private actor,” Bambrick said.

From a global perspective, however, that understanding has shifted, according to Bambrick. She said courts in other countries increasingly view their constitutions as establishing potential obligations for private actors as well. In her research, Bambrick looked to constitutional debates, court cases, interviews and political histories to examine these horizontal duties.

“One way in which I do see these kinds of arguments permeating U.S. political discourse is when we talk about social media companies, who are private actors,” Bambrick said. “We often want to apply values like freedom of speech to these private companies, where we expect them to respect and protect an individual’s right to say what they want.”

But this points to a different way of thinking about rights, Bambrick explained.

“It’s as if we are now saying: ‘You have your rights as a private actor, as a citizen or even a big corporation, but you may have certain duties as well,’” Bambrick said. “Maybe you actually have some part to play in realizing others’ rights. The emphasis isn’t just on one’s own freedoms, but maybe you have to do something to allow others to exercise their freedoms, too.”

Bambrick said this conversation is not new. Historically, the debate about the separation of public and private spheres goes back to the time of the Civil War Amendments and, later, the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Questions that arose in those eras are relevant to these current discussions, Bambrick noted, and can inform and illuminate our contemporary debates.

“You do see in the American context episodes where there was some real wrestling with these questions, but they were typically shelved because Congress and the courts were hesitant to entertain the idea of constitutional duties for private actors,” Bambrick said.

She added that many experts see these types of horizontal interpretations as too heavily empowering the courts, which are often thought to be less democratic as institutions. “But others view this idea as a way for the Constitution to speak to the whole country more directly,” Bambrick said.

Bambrick agreed that the legal and political culture in the U.S. places a great emphasis on individualism and individual rights, as well as the sanctity of a robust private sphere where citizens enjoy wide personal freedom.

“The idea of horizontal rights does not mean there is no separation between the public and private spheres anymore. However, it does reinterpret what it means for the Constitution to be the supreme law of the land. To realize the will of the people more completely, this understanding suggests the Constitution should have influence across spheres,” she said.

But for such an idea to succeed and overcome common objections, she said, it would help to involve sectors and branches of government beyond the courts. “If we were ever going to regulate private spaces in this way in the U.S., it could help to have more connection to institutions like legislatures that are thought to have more democratic accountability,” Bambrick said.

The intent behind these nontraditional ideas speaks to a deeper, broader question about what we owe each other as fellow citizens. Bambrick said it begins with asking ourselves more generally, “What are our duties to each other, and how do we know what those duties are? Second, how do we take those duties seriously — within our relationships and our communities — and even within our own country?”

Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu