Scholars for Syria’s 2018 Spring Speaker Series continues on Thursday, March 1 with guest lecturers Shiyam Galyon and Sana Mustafa, Galyon is a Syrian-American writer and campaigner currently working on the Books Not Bombs campaign. Mustafa is co-author of We Are Syrians and a founding member of Network for Refugee Voices.
The lecture begins at 6:00 p.m. in Room 162 in the Schroeder School of Business Building at the University of Evansville. This event is free and open to the public. The audience will be invited to engage in conversation with Galyon, Mustafa, and UE Syrian students in attendance at the lecture.
Galyon and Mustafa’s topic will be “Under a Sky of Hell: Updates from Ghouta and Idlib.†Galyon will discuss the current political situation in Syria from global and local perspectives. Mustafa will add the perspective of someone directly out of Syria and whose father is one of Syria’s actual “disappeared” since 2013.
Books Not Bombs is a student-led campaign advocating for scholarships for Syrian students displaced by the conflict. Its mission is “to empower Syria’s next generation by helping them continue their education through scholarships and by defending their right to a safe education…to increase scholarship opportunities for Syrian students and renew America’s legacy of providing refuge to students displaced by conflict.â€
Network for Refugee Voices is a group of refugee and refugee-led organizations working to contribute to processes and commitments aimed at reforming the international refugee protection regime, including the UN Global Compact on Refugees and Compact for Migration.
Other lectures in the series include:
Missions of Mercy – Syrian American Medical Society
Thursday, March 15, 6:00 p.m., Room 162, Schroeder School of Business Building
Drs. Bashar Mourad and Hisham Allababidi, local physicians and members of the Syrian American Medical Society, will present photos from their missions and discuss the health care crisis inside and outside Syria and the current work to ensure health care development for refugees and displaced people. This is free and open to the public. The audience will be invited to engage in conversation with the speakers and UE Syrian students in attendance at the lecture. This presentation is co-sponsored by UE’s Health Professions Club, Scholars for Syria, and global citizenship.
Angel from Aleppo – Violinist Mariela Shaker accompanied by UE music professor Garnet Ungar
Thursday, March 22, 7:00 p.m., Wheeler Concert Hall
Violinist Mariela Shaker is from Aleppo, and she left Syria after receiving a scholarship to attend Monmouth College to study music performance. She earned her master’s in music performance at DePaul University. Her performance will be followed by a presentation on advocacy for refugees. This is free and open to the public and co-sponsored by the Friends of UE Music and Scholars for Syria.
Immigration and Syria: Foundations and Consequences of the American Ethnic Hierarchy – UE assistant professor of sociology Rob Shelby
Thursday, April 5, 6:00 p.m., Room 162, Schroeder School of Business Building
Shelby will present the idea that Syrian refugees, like many minority groups before, encounter prejudice and discrimination as widespread negative perceptions persist in American social consciousness. Shelby earned his PhD from the University of Louisville in applied sociology, his graduate degrees in sociology from Western Illinois University and communications from Trinity International University. He earned his undergraduate degree in youth ministry and biblical studies from Trinity International University. This event is free and open to the public. The audience will be invited to engage in conversation with Shelby and UE Syrian students in attendance at the lecture.
For more information on the speaker series, contact 812-488-2218.
