September 9, 2009 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
The University Center, Drew University
The post-election violence in Iran has focused attention on the regime’s abysmal human rights record, while at the same time Iran continues to rapidly advance its nuclear program. Iran now stands at a crucial moment, as does the community of nations. This program will examine the rapidly changing situation within Iran, and examine and evaluate strategies for action and engagement, on the international, national, and even local levels, in terms of how to respond to events within Iran.
Panelists:
Golbarg Bashi, Fellow in Iranian Studies, Columbia University
Golbarg Bashi was born in Iran, raised in Sweden, and educated in Britain. She holds a First Class B.A. (Honors) in Middle Eastern Studies from Manchester University, a M.Sc. in Women’s Studies from Bristol University and has recently completed her doctoral thesis on a feminist critique of the human rights discourse in Iran. Her research interests include the theories and practices of human rights in Iran, modern Iranian social and intellectual history, and women’s rights movements in Iran and in a comparative context. She lives in New York City with her husband Hamid Dabashi and their daughter Chelgis and their son Golchin.
Amir-Abbas Fakhravar, Secretary General of the Confederation of Iranian Students
Amir Abbas Fakhravar is an Iranian jailed dissident, award winning writer, blogger, and the recipient of prestigious Annie Taylor Journalism award. Currently Fakhravar serves as the Secretary General of the “Confederation of Iranian Students” in Washington, DC. and president of Iranian Freedom Institute. He was arrested for his writings and his criticism to the Islamic Republic at the age of 17 when he was still in High school. For his role in leading Iran’s pro-democracy student movement, Fakhravar spent a total of five years and three months in Iranian prisons, including Evin Prison, sadistically run by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, suffering countless beatings and tortures. Fakhravar has testified before the United States Senate, United Kingdom Parliament, and Italian Parliament. He has been invited to speak at several international conferences on Democracy and Human Rights.
Saad Eddin Ibrahim, Wallerstein Distinguished Visiting Professor, Drew University
Saad Eddin Ibrahim is a professor of sociology and one of the Arab world’s most prominent human rights activists. He has written numerous important and influential works on the future of democracy in the Islamic world, and has been quoted and interviewed widely in print and television media around the globe. For most of his career Professor Ibrahim taught at the American University in Cairo (AUC), where he founded and directed the Ibn Khaldun Center for Development Studies. Prof. Ibrahim is often described as a scholar-practitioner, as he is a leader in the struggle for democracy and human rights, especially in his native Egypt.
Renee C. Redman, Executive Director, Iran Human Rights Documentation Center
Renee C. Redman is an experienced human and civil rights attorney. Prior to joining IHRDC, she practiced immigration law at New Haven Legal Assistance Association and served as Legal Director of the ACLU of Connecticut. Until 2004, she practiced commercial litigation with Hughes Hubbard & Reed, LLP in New York City. She clerked for the Immigration Courts in New York City and Newark, New Jersey, and the Honorable Warren W. Eginton of the United States District Court in Bridgeport, Connecticut. She is an Adjunct Professor at Quinnipiac and University of Connecticut Schools of Law.
Ambassador Kristen Silverberg, former U.S. Ambassador to the European Union
Ambassador Kristen Silverberg recently served as U.S. Ambassador to the European Union. From 2005 to 2008, she served as Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs. She previously held a number of positions in the White House, including Deputy Assistant to the President and Advisor to the Chief of Staff. In 2003, she served as a Senior Advisor to Ambassador L. Paul Bremer in Baghdad, Iraq. Ambassador Silverberg formerly practiced law at Williams and Connolly, LLP in Washington, D.C. She was a law clerk to Justice Clarence Thomas of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge David Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals. She graduated from Harvard College and the University of Texas School of Law. She has been selected by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader of 2009. She received the Secretary of Defense Award for Outstanding Public Service.
Program sponsors:
Drew University Center on Religion, Culture & Conflict (CRCC), Program in Middle East Studies, Department of Political Science; Community Relations Committee of United Jewish Communities of MetroWest NJ; United Against Nuclear Iran; The Human Rights Institute of Kean University; American Jewish Committee of NJ; American Association of University Women.
