UC Forum Examines Revolution and Human Rights in Libya

University of Cincinnati faculty with specialties in human rights, Europe, North Africa and the Middle East will discuss recent events in Libya and their implications for international politics.

The forum, “Revolution and Human Rights in Libya: Intervention or Not?” will take place from 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Wednesday, March 2, in the Max Kade German Cultural Center (Room 736, Old Chemistry Building). The forum is free and open to the public.

The event will feature the expertise of the following faculty:

Elizabeth Frierson – Frierson is a UC associate professor of history and former director of Middle Eastern Studies for the McMicken College of Arts & Sciences (A&S). She has lived in the Middle East and is a published researcher on the history of politics, censorship, women and cities in the Middle East. She serves on the National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowships Committee for Africa and the Middle East. She has been an invited speaker and workshop participant around the world on topics regarding events in that region. In the forum, she’ll analyze the demographics of the protestors as well as why they’re protesting now. She will also present background on the Qaddafi regime and analyze possibilities regarding who could govern a post-revolutionary Libya.

Ethan Katz – Katz is a UC assistant professor of history and is a historian of modern Europe, with specialties in the history of modern France and Francophone North Africa as well as modern Jewish history, and a secondary expertise in the history of political Islam. His research interests include inter-ethnic relations; religion and the secular in modern life; the interplay between colonial regimes and anti-colonial politics; and national and sub-national identity. Katz has written widely on these issues and has lectured extensively in the U.S., France and Israel. His presentation will examine the colonial and post-colonial history of Libya, comparing it to its North African neighbors. He will also analyze why Libyans are looking to the U.S. and Europeans in a way not seen so much among Egyptians and Tunisians.

Bert Lockwood – Lockwood is a UC Professor of Law since 1979. He serves as the Director of the Urban Morgan Institute for Human Rights at the College of Law. He is also Editor-in-Chief of Human Rights Quarterly, published by The Johns Hopkins University Press. Lockwood maintains active and extensive involvement with human rights organizations and advocates around the world, including serving a three-year term on the board of directors of Amnesty International, USA. For 15 years, he has served as Rapporteur to the American Association of the International Commission of Jurists Annual Colloquium on The Role of Government Departments in the Formulation and Implementation of Human Rights Considerations in Foreign Policy. He also has served on advisory committees for a number of academic institutions including presently the Board of Overseers of the Human Rights Institute at the University of Connecticut, and co-founded the International Human Rights Education Consortium, a project that focused on undergraduate human rights education and curricula.

Stephen Porter – A UC assistant professor of history, Porter is a historian of the U.S. and international relations. His research interests include refugee affairs, human rights, international organizations, law, global migration, and domestic and international governing strategies. His presentation will explore the history of human rights promotion and international crisis management to provide some context for asking how both the U.S. and the broader international community might most effectively address the humanitarian challenges presented by the events unfolding in Libya.