What is the Boynton Society?

Who Chairs the Boynton Society:

PROGRAM NOTE: Jeff and I were in the same class at LU, attended the Lawrence Campus in Boennigheim together, overlapped at Wisconsin Law, and lived to tell about it.

Who were the Boyntons and how did they relate to Lawrence University:

The Björklunden Tradition

Björklunden* vid Sjön, Swedish for “Birch Grove by the Lake” is a 425-acre estate on the Lake Michigan shore just south of Baileys Harbor in picturesque Door County. A place of great beauty and serenity, the property includes meadows, woods, and more than a mile of unspoiled waterfront.

Björklunden was bequeathed to Lawrence University in 1963 by Donald and Winifred Boynton of Highland Park, Illinois. The Boyntons made the gift with the understanding that Björklunden would be preserved in a way that would ensure its legacy as a place of peace and contemplation. Winifred Boynton captured the enduring spirit of Björklunden when she said of her beloved summer home: “Far removed from confusion and aggression, it offers a sanctuary for all.”

Since 1980, Lawrence has sponsored a series of adult continuing-education seminars at Björklunden, interrupted only by a 1993 fire that destroyed the estate’s main lodge. In 1996, construction was completed on a new and larger facility, and the Björklunden Seminars resumed. The magnificent lodge and idyllic setting create a peaceful learning environment. Seminars address topics in the arts, music, religion, history, drama, nature, and more. Seminar participants may enjoy a relaxing week’s stay at the lodge or are welcome to commute from the area.

Throughout the academic year, groups of Lawrence students and faculty come to Björklunden for weekend seminars and retreats. Each student at Lawrence has the opportunity to attend a student seminar at Björklunden at least once during their studies. Student seminars provide the opportunity to explore exciting themes and issues and the time and the environment in which to embrace those ideas and their consequences. The magic of a Björklunden weekend is in the connection between thought and reflection. Making that connection fulfills one ideal of a liberal education.

The two-story Björklunden lodge is a magnificent 37,000 square-foot structure containing a great room, muti-purpose and seminar rooms, dining room and kitchen, as well as 22 guest rooms. The lodge accommodates a wide variety of seminars, meetings, conferences, receptions, family gatherings, musical programs and other special events and is available for use throughout the year. In addition to the main building, the Björklunden estate also includes a small wooden chapel built in a late 12-century Norwegian stave church (stavkirke) style, handcrafted by the Boyntons between 1939 and 1947.

 

What does the hand-crafted Boynton chapel look like today:

What did I say in my Lecture:

NOTE:  This written version contains “bonus material” that was cut from the live presentaton in the interests of time.

“INTO THE MAELSTROM” — UNDERSTANDING AMERICAN IMMIGRATION IN THE AGE OF TRUMP

BOYNTON SOCIETY LECTURE

LAWRNCE UNIVERSITY, BJORKLUNDEN, CAMPUS

BAILEY’S HARBOR, WISCONSIN

August 10, 2019

Greetings, and thank you so much for coming out to listen this beautiful afternoon on a topic that has consumed my post-Lawrence professional life: American Immigration.

Whether you realize it or not, immigration shapes the lives of each of us in this room. It will also determine the future of our children, grandchildren, and following generations.  Will they continue to be part of a vibrant democratic republic, valuing human dignity and the rule of law?  Or, will they be swept into the maelstrom as our beloved nation disintegrates into a cruel, selfish, White Nationalist kleptocracy, mocking and trampling most of the principles that we as “liberal artists” grew up holding dear.

Many of you have thought about this before in some form or another. Indeed, that might be why you are here this afternoon, rather than outside frolicking in the sunlight. But, for any who don’t recognize the cosmic importance of migration in today’s society, in the words of noted scholar and country music superstar Toby Keith, “It’s me, baby, with your wake-up call.”

For, make no mistake about it, civilization is undergoing an existential crisis. Western liberal democracy, the rule of law, scientific truth, humanism, and our Constitutional guarantees of Due Process of law for all are under vicious attack. Evil leaders who revel in their anti-intellectualism and pseudo-science have shrewdly harnessed and channeled the powerful cross currents of hate, bias, xenophobia, fear, resentment, greed, selfishness, anti-intellectualism, racism, and knowingly false narratives to advance their vitriolic program of White Nationalist authoritarianism, targeting directly our cherished democratic institutions. And, their jaundiced and untruthful view of American immigration is leading the way toward their dark and perverted view of America’s future.

As fellow members of the Boynton society, I assume that all of you are familiar with our beautiful chapel, painstakingly hand-constructed by Winifred Boynton and her husband Donald – a true labor of love, optimism, humanitarianism, and respect for future generations. Here are the words of Winifred Boynton:

During those years the chapel was in the building, the world was being torn apart by the hatred and fighting of a war and we realized the tremendous need for centers of peace and Christian love for our fellow man. . . . We found ourselves selecting moments of great joy for the large murals. And, the decision to dedicate the chapel to peace was the natural culmination. [Ruth Morton Miller, Faith Built a Chapel, Wisconsin Trails, Summer 1962, at 19, 21-22]

If Winifred were among us today, in body as well as spirit, she would approve of the learning, humane values, and concern for our fellow man fostered through our seminars this week and this program.

For those of you who weren’t able to join us this week, here are some of the “ripped from the headlines” items that we discussed in the American Immigration and Culture Seminar led by my good friend, the amazing Jennifer Esperanza, Professor of Cultural Anthropology at Beloit College, herself a first generation American whose family came from the Philippines, and me.    

From Sunday’s Wisconsin State Journal: “Trump’s stamp on immigration courts; recent trend in judges is former military and ICE attorneys” and “Swamped courts fast-tracking family cases: Speeding up hearings aims to prevent migrant families from setting down roots while they wait to find out whether they qualify for asylum.”

From Monday’s Los Angeles Times: “’As American as any child:” Defunct citizenship query may still lead to Latino undercount.”

From Wednesday’s El Paso Times: “Mr. President, the hatred of the El Paso shooting didn’t come from our city: When you visit today, you will see El Paso in the agony of our mourning.  You will also see El Paso at its finest.”

From Thursday’s New York Times: “Climate Change Threatens the World’s Food Supply, United Nations Warns.”

From Thursday’s Huffington Post: “Children Left without Parents, Communities ‘Scared to Death’ After Massive ICE Raids.”

From Friday’s Washington Post: “The poultry industry recruited them. Now ICE raids are devastating their communities: How immigrants established vibrant communities in the rural South over a quarter century.”

And, finally, check these out from today’s Washington Post: “When they filed their asylum claim, they were told to wait in Mexico – where they say they were kidnapped;” and “ICE raids target workers, but few firms are charged;” and “Pope Francis again warns against nationalism, says recent speeches sound like ‘Hitler in 1934.’”

Just before I came to deliver this lecture, I was on the phone with Christina Goldbaum of the New York Times who is writing an article on the Administration’s efforts to “break” the Immigration Judges’ union (of which I am a retired member) which will appear tomorrow.

Now, this is when, “in former lives,” I used to give my comprehensive disclaimer providing “plausible deniability” for everyone in the Immigration Court System if I happened to say anything inconvenient or controversial – in other words, if I spoke too much truth.  But, now that I’m retired, we can skip that part.

Nevertheless, I do want to hold Lawrence, the Boynton Society, Mark, Alex, Kim, Jeff & Joanie, you folks, and anyone else of any importance whatsoever, harmless for my remarks this afternoon, for which I take full responsibility. No party line, no bureaucratic doublespeak, no “namby-pamby” academic platitudes, no BS. Just the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, of course as I see it, which isn’t necessarily the way everyone sees it. But, “different strokes” is, and always has been, an integral part of the “liberal arts experience” here at Lawrence.

But, that’s not all folks! Because todayis Saturday, this is Bjorklunden, and youare such a great audience, I’m giving you my absolute, unconditional, money-back guarantee that thistalk will be completely freefrom computer-generated slides, power points, or any other type of distracting modern technology that might interfere with your total comprehension or listening enjoyment.  In other words, I am the “power point” of this presentation.

Executive Summary

I will provide an overview and critique of US immigration and asylum policies from the perspective of my 46 years as a lawyer, in both the public and private sectors, public servant, senior executive, trial and appellate judge, educator, and most recently, unapologetic “rabble rouser” defending Due Process and judicial independence.

I will offer a description of the US immigration system by positing different categories of membership: full members of the “club” (US citizens); “associate members” (lawful permanent residents, refugees and asylees); “friends” (non-immigrants and holders of temporary status); and, persons outside the club (the undocumented). I will describe the legal framework that applies to these distinct populations and recent developments in federal law and policy that relate to them. I will also mention some cross-cutting issues that affect these populations, including immigrant detention, immigration court backlogs, state and local immigration policies, and Constitutional rights that extend to non-citizens.

Click this link to continue with the full version of the speech:

BOYNTON SOCIETY LECTURE

“Made my day” moment:

Three members of the fantastic Lawrence undergraduate student staff who attended the lecture told me afterward “We’re joining your ‘New Due Process Army.’” Thus, the “Brjorklunden Brigade of the NDPA” is born!

What did the Society members do after the “serious stuff” was over?

Partied, of course:

Who runs Bjorklunden?

How can you join the Boynton Society or participate in future programs at Bjorklunden (you to not have to be a Lawrence University graduate, student, or otherwise affiliated with the University)?

Click here for further information:

https://www.lawrence.edu/s/bjorklunden/boynton_society

PWS

08-23-19