Education Under Fire: Documentary & ConversationEducation Under Fire: Documentary & Conversationhttp://www.haverford.edu/calendar/details/188542KINSC Sharpless Auditorium2012-02-20T19:00:002012-02-20T20:30:00
February 20, 7:00PM
KINSC Sharpless Auditorium
Distinguished Visitor Omid Memarian
Description
The Gest Center for Cross-Cultural Study of Religion, in conjunction with the Distinguished Visitors Program, the Center for Peace and Global Citizenship, Students' Council and Bryn Mawr's Pensby Center present distinguished visitor Omid Memarian
Description
The 30-minute documentary Education under Fire will screen at Haverford College on February 20 (Sharpless Auditorium, 7 pm). It “movingly presents the decades-long persecution endured by Iran’s Bahá’ís, featuring interviews with members of the community and human rights activists, as well as rare historical footage. But it is also the story of courage and commitment in the face of human rights violations, as Bahá’ís who love learning and education make heroic efforts to provide this gift to young members of their faith”, says Amnesty International Iran Specialist Elise Auerbach.
The conversation afterwards features Omid Memarian, a distinguished Iranian journalist and analyst, who is Director of Programs, International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, as well as David Hoffman, founder of the Education Under Fire campaign and executive producer of the documentary. The moderator, Ed Martin of the Center for Interfaith Engagement at Eastern Mennonite University, was Quaker International Affairs Representative for Iran, American Friends Service Committee.
Also present for the conversation will be Lehigh professor Shamim Pakzad, a UC Berkeley Ph.D. who is interviewed in the film because, like other members of the largest religious minority in Iran, he was not allowed to attend Iranian universities unless he concealed his faith. Nevertheless, he pursued his undergraduate studies at the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education, which has since been declared illegal.
Amnesty International “is sponsoring this film and encouraging its members, activists and the public to view the film and to take action to urge the Iranian government to uphold its obligations under international law and to end the persecution of the Bahá’ís in Iran, to release all prisoners of conscience, and to cease depriving Iranians of the right to education on ideological and religious grounds.” Please see a preview of the documentary and be part of the Drive to 25. Join us for light refreshments (or pizza, if you are coming from Bryn Mawr and miss dinner) at 6:30 pm.
Cosponsors include:
- Haverford College’s Quaker Affairs Office
- Haverford’s Peace, Justice and Human Rights Program
- Bryn Mawr College’s Multifaith Alliance
- Bryn Mawr and Haverford’s Bahá’í Campus Association
- Bi-College Muslim Students Association
- Haverford’s student chapter of Amnesty International
- Bryn Mawr's Social Justice Partnership Program
Link: http://www.educationunderfire.com/the-documentary
For More Info
Lynne Butler
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