Global Review Opens Year with Speakers on July War in Lebanon

Date: 9/6/06
Contact: Marc Lebovitz

"The 2006 War on Lebanon: Facts and Views" will be the first Global Review topic of the school year at Illinois State University at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7, in the Eleanor Kong Room of Walker Hall. Admission is free and open to the public.

The speaker will be Ramez Abi-Akar, a Lebanese-American resident of Peoria who works at State Farm in Bloomington. Abi-Akar's wife, Hind, and daughters, Farah and Reema, were among Americans trapped in Lebanon for nearly two weeks at the beginning of the Israeli-Hezbollah war in July.

Abi-Akar, whose wife and daughters will accompany him at the lecture, will present an analysis of the current situation in Lebanon. Hind will offer an eyewitness account of the events including the family's evacuation experience.

The next Global Review speaker will be former Congressman Paul Findley, who will speak at 7 p.m. on Sept. 14 on "The Role of Israel in U.S. Policy: Is a Civilized National Debate Possible?"

A week later, History Associate Professor Patrice Olsen will speak on the recent Mexican elections. She will be accompanied by Ron Gifford of the History department and graduate student LaTishia Baker, both of whom were election observers. The presentation is titled "Hoy, Cambio o Continuidad? (Today, Continuity or Change?) Observing the Mexican Presidential Election" and will include a roundtable, "point-counterpoint" discussion.