To wrap up this spring’s Peace and Conflict Studies film series, we will screen The Art of Un-Warfollowed by a discussion with the film’s director, Maria Niro.
Pizza, salad, and beverages will be provided! This event is open to the public.
“The Art of Un-War is an in-depth exploration of the life and work of renowned artist Krzysztof Wodiczko. The film features Wodiczko’s artistic interventions that he creates as powerful responses to the inequities and horrors of war and injustice. Throughout the film, the artist’s powerful interventions become examples of how art can be used for social change and for healing.”
The Art of Un-War With Director Maria Niro March 22 (Wed), 4:30 PM Singer Hall Room 033 Swarthmore College
Trailer: The Art of Un-War
Come watch the film (with pizza, salad, and drinks) and stay for the special discussion with Director Maria Niro.
Co-sponsors: Peace and Conflict Studies, Art, Film and Media Studies, Lang Center, Music, Political Science, Sociology and Anthropology, Spanish
The Peace and Conflict Studies Film Series features five films that explore the evolution of militarism; the role of art and personal narratives in overcoming violence, trauma, and conflict; and the potential for building justice through different means.
Paris Shan ’23 is a Peace and Conflict Studies minor student at Swarthmore College. This summer, she was actively engaged with the Advocates for Human Rights in an internship. She describes her internship experience with ties to interviews, research, data analysis, and importantly the education she received at Swarthmore and in Peace & Conflict Studies.
Paris Shan ’23 Peace & Conflict Studies Minor
“This summer, I was able to engage in meaningful work as an International Justice and Women’s Human Rights intern with the Advocates for Human Rights. Through my role, I worked with prosecutors to collect evidence of gender-based war crimes in Ukraine to submit to the International Criminal Court. This work is extremely important as it can be used to hold perpetrators of violence accountable and allows victims to share their stories. The most impactful moment of this internship for me was an interview with a Ukrainian father who had never had the opportunity to share his pain and struggle with anyone before. He spoke about the burden he felt to protect his family, the fear of the unknown, and his gratitude for the work of the legal professionals at the Advocates for Human Rights. His interview brought him to tears as he came to confront his experience and emotions for the first time. It is easy to feel like your work as a human rights defender is so small, but experiences like this remind me that change-making can exist at various levels.”
“With the Advocates, I also worked with a team of students to research international human rights instruments and country laws on violence against women. The work I did helped bring attention to gender-based violence around the world and aid prosecutors representing victims of violence in court. I was able to build and update the www.stopvaw.org database for other organizations and victims to use as a resource. On the website, I included research and writing reports on sex trafficking and domestic violence, weekly updates on women’s rights around the world, a data tracker on the far-right movement, and updated information on gender-based violence and resources for victims. My research showed me the importance of documentation in the foundation of legal work. As a pre-law scholar, these skills are extremely valuable to my education and future goals.”
“My work this summer helped me further develop my data analysis, professional writing, and knowledge learned through my coursework as a political science and peace & conflict studies student at Swarthmore. It was a wonderful opportunity for me to apply many of the concepts that I have learned through my education at Swarthmore into real-world experiences and projects. I am grateful to theLang Center for Social and Civic Responsibility for the Social Summer Impact Scholarshipthat allowed me to pursue this summer opportunity. My growth this summer is a huge step towards my goal of attending law school and becoming an international human rights lawyer.”
We are thrilled to announce three upcoming events in “Reflections From The Field”, a new speaker series at Swarthmore College, which brings people working on the front lines of conflict and social change to campus to reflect upon *what* they do, *why* they do it and how *they* came to do it.
1. “These Birds Walk”, a film screening and conversation with director and cinematographer Omar Mullick.
Monday, March 13th @ 7:30PM Science Center 101
In Karachi, Pakistan, a runaway boy’s life hangs on one critical question: where is home? The streets, an orphanage, or with the family he fled in the first place? Simultaneously heart- wrenching and life-affirming, THESE BIRDS WALK documents the struggles of these wayward street children and the humanitarians looking out for them in an ethereal and inspirational story of resilience. Listed by The New Yorker as one of the best foreign films of the 21st century, this is a must see!
Omar Mullick is a film director and cinematographer known for his work on the 2013 feature film THESE BIRDS WALK. A 2016 Sundance Institute fellow, his most recent work can be seen on VICE’s HBO series, Black Markets, and the Gloria Steinem hosted show Woman on VICELAND. Current clients as a director and cinematographer include CNN, PBS, HBO, VICE, Discovery and The Gates Foundation. Trained as a photographer, his work has been published in The New York Times, Foreign Policy Magazine, National Geographic and TIME. He has received awards from the Doris Duke Foundation, the Western Knight Center for Journalism, Annenberg and Kodak.
2. “Closing the gap between the world we have and the world most people everywhere want”, a virtual conversation with Ricken Patel, Founding President and Executive Director of Avaaz.org, the world’s largest online activist community.
Monday, March 27th @ 4:30 PM Science Center 199
Ricken is the founding President and Executive Director of Avaaz, the world’s largest online activist community with 44 million subscribers in every country of the world.
Ricken has been voted the “ultimate game changer in politics” (Huffington Post), listed in the world’s top 100 thinkers (Foreign Policy magazine) and described as “the global leader of online protest” with a “vaunting sense of optimism” (The Guardian). Prior to starting Avaaz.org, Ricken was the founding Executive Director of ResPublica, a global public entrepreneurship group that worked to end genocide in Darfur and build progressive globalism in US politics, among other projects. Ricken has also lived and worked in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Sudan and Afghanistan, consulting for organizations including the International Crisis Group, the United Nations, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Gates Foundation, Harvard University, CARE International and the International Center for Transitional Justice. Born in Canada, Ricken has a B.A. from Oxford University and a Master’s in Public Policy from Harvard.
3. “From the streets of Kabul to the streets of New York: Reflections on covering war and crime”, a conversation with New York Times reporter, Joseph Goldstein.
Friday, April 7th @ 4:30 PM Science Center 105
Joseph Goldstein’s first newspaper job was at the 6,000-circulation Daily Citizen in Searcy, Ark, where he wrote, among other things, a feature story about how meth-fueled treasure hunters in rural Arkansas were creating an underground economy for arrowheads and other Native American artifacts.
He soon moved to New York City, where he worked at The New York Sun, until its demise, and later at The New York Post. He joined The New York Times in 2011 and writes mainly about the criminal justice system in New York. He has reported on the N.Y.P.D.’s over-reliance on stop-and-frisk tactics and about a secretive police unit that combs the city’s jails for Muslim prisoners in the hopes of pressuring them into becoming informants. He has covered Ferguson, the emergence of the alt-right, and Afghanistan, where he was based for a year.
Sponsored by the Department of Political Science, Global Affairs Program at the Lang Center for Civic and Social Responsibility, Media Studies, Career Services, and Peace and Conflict Studies.
A discussion of Israeli culture and music with Shaanan Streett
Friday, October 30 at 4:00 p.m. Kohlberg Hall 228 Swarthmore College (Directions)
Shaanan Streett is one of the most influential and respected cultural voices in Israel today. He is a singer and songwriter for Israeli band Hadag Nahash (“The Sticker Song”). Streett has released 7 albums with the band, as well as 2 albums of his own. He is a screenplay writer (“The Wonders”), a former columnist (Time out Israel), a peace and social activist (who founded The One Shekel Festival), and a lifelong Jerusalemite in a land where nearly the entire cultural scene has migrated to Tel Aviv.
As part of his talk, Shaanan will share with audiences what he sees as the strengths and flaws of Israel today. Through subtitled video clips he will go on to analyze and share the meanings of the lyrics and where he draws from in his writing. Following each clip, questions will be taken from the audience.
While Israel’s art and culture scene has largely moved to Tel Aviv, Shaanan remains one of the most recognizable faces in Jerusalem. Far from leaving, he owns a bar in the Shuk, has written about it for National Geographic and other publications, his children attend a joint Jewish-Arab school and, time and again, has chosen to stay in spite of the difficulties it brings. In the microcosm of Jerusalem, Shaanan will show and discuss where the lines are drawn and how culture crosses those lines. Shaanan will discuss his life as a member of Israel’s leftist political scene.
This event is organized by Swarthmore Students for Israel and co-sponsored by the History, Political Science, and Peace and Conflict Studies Departments.
All of Us or None: Responses & Resistance to Militarism
Across the globe, militarism directly impacts all of our lives. The American Friends Service Committee’s new traveling exhibition, All of Us or None, examines the effects of militarism at both the foreign and domestic policy levels. It also highlights alternatives and positive nonviolent solutions.
Exhibition: October 7–November 17, 2015
McCabe Libary Atrium, Swarthmore College
Panel Discussion and Opening Reception October 8, 4:30 p.m.
McCabe Libary Atrium, Swarthmore College (directions)
Panelists: Sa’ed Atshan (Moderator), Nanci Buiza, Sharon Friedler, Keith Reeves, and Lee Smithey
An exciting line-up of Martin Luther King Jr. Day events is lined up for next week:
MLK Welcome Luncheon and Keynote Speaker Collin Williams Jr.: “Like You’ve Never Seen Obstacles”
Sharing his personal experiences as a first-generation college graduate with West Indian roots, Collin Williams, Jr. will give a riveting talk on the struggles of Black and Latino students in America and his current research with Dr. Shaun Harper at the University of Pennsylvania. Opening remarks will be given by Naudia Williams ’14.
Monday, January 20, Bond Memorial Hall, 12:30 PM – 2:00 PM.
MLK Luncheon and Documentary: “The Story of Higher Education for Undocumented Students”
Enjoy lunch and a lively discussion with colleagues about the state of higher education for undocumented students. A short documentary highlighting the revolutionary work of Freedom University will be shown, with closing remarks to be given by Jennifer Marks-Gold, International Students and Scholars Advisor at Swarthmore. (Film to begin at 12:15pm).
Wednesday, January 22, Black Cultural Center, 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
MLK film, “Waiting For Superman”
Documentary filmmaker Davis Guggenheim explores the tragic ways in which the American public education system is failing our nation’s children, and explores the roles that charter schools and education reformers could play in offering hope for the future. Snacks will be provided.
MLK Collection & Reception: “Reflecting on Our Past & Present: Three Generations of Swarthmore Men”
Guest speakers Maurice Eldridge, Professor Keith Reeves, and Paul Cato ’14 will offer some brief remarks about their Swarthmore experiences with a special performance by the BCC Gospel Choir.
