Past News & Events at UICHR
Award Winners Named for UICHR@10 Competitions
The winners of the Human Rights Playwrights Awards and the Articles in Art Juried Competition will be announced and honored at the Old Capitol Building on Saturday, November 14 at 7:00 pm. Art submissions will be on display at the ceremony for the public to see for the first time, and winning plays will be performed as dramatic readings. Please join us in congratulating these talented artists!
Human Rights Playwrights Award Winners: |
Articles in Arts Competition Winners: |
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Graduate Prize- Lisa Leverton’s One Plum
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1st place– Islam Aly (artist book)
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Children's Human Rights Today: Challenges and Prospects
Wednesday, November 11, 2009 from 7:00- 8:30 pm, 1117 UCC (**this is the updated and correct location for this event)
In honor of the 20th Anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), UICHR will host a panel discussion on "Children's Human Rights Today: Challenges and Prospects." Joan Nashelsky (UICHR Project Assistant) will moderate the discussion.
- Special guest Jonathan Todres, (Georgia State University Law School, and Campaign to Ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child) will be featured in the panel
- Burns Weston (Bessie Dutton Murray Distinguished Professor of Law Emeritus; Senior Scholar, UI Center for Human Rights; Project Director, Climate Legacy Initiative) , Rex Honey (UI Geography) and Bev Witwer (Teacher/Participant in the UICHR Child Labor Initiative) will also speak on the panel.
The Sparks Fly Upward: Learning About the Holocaust, Defying Genocide
Tuesday, November 10, 2009 from 7:00- 9:00 pm, UI Music Recital Hall, 1670 UCC
The Marvin and Rose Lee Pomerantz Lecture Series and the Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies, US Holocaust Memorial Museum Present "The Sparks Fly Upward: Learning About the Holocaust, Defying Genocide, " by Cathy Mansfield (Composer/Librettist and Drake Law School Professor), in the UI Music Recital Hall and coordinated by Mary Cohen (UI School of Music).
Cmiel Intern Presentations
A panel presentation of UICHR Cmiel interns discussing their experiences working for a human rights organization during the summer of 2009. Also learn about the Cmiel Funded Internship Program and how you can get involved in human rights work.
Health Science Panel
Wednesday, October 21, 2009 from 12:30-1:30 pm in 2189 MERF Presenters: Adebukola Ogundoyin, John Woolfrey, and Robin Paetzold
Liberal Arts and Sciences Panel
Monday, October 26, 2009 from 4:30-6:00 pm in 1117 UCC
Presenters: Megan Felt, Emily Lewis, Misha Quill and Tia Upchurch-Freelove
Law Student Panel
Monday, November 16, 2009 from 12:40- 1:40 in Room 125 Boyd Law Building.
Presenters: Kumneger Emiru, Alena Vasquez, Rita Bettis, & Sarah Pierce
Health Care Reform: A Civil Discourse
The University of Iowa Center for Human Rights (UICHR), University of Iowa Public Policy Center, and University of Iowa Interdisciplinary Health Group will host a forum on healthcare reform entitled Healthcare Reform: A Civil Discourse. This forum brings a variety of informed perspectives to the table to address not only the economic and political dimensions of this issue, but also the ethical implications of continuing our current system or in adopting changes under debate. Please arrive early to submit questions to be answered by the panelists. The forum will consist of a brief opening statement by each panelist, followed by questions chosen by the moderator from submissions by audience members before the start of the forum.
Panelists include:
Joe Bolkcom, M.P.A., Iowa State Senator (D), Senate District #39
Sheldon Kurtz, J.D., Professor, UI College of Law
Jean Robillard, M.D., VIce President for Medical Affairs, UI College of Medicine
Renee Schulte, M.A., Iowa State Representative (R), House District #37
The panel will be moderated by Peter Damiano, D.D.S, M.P.H, Director of the University of Iowa Public Policy Center, Director of the Health Policy Research Program, and Professor of Preventive and Community Dentistry.
Date and Time: Monday, October 19, 2009 from 7:00- 8:30 pm in Shambaugh Auditorium, University of Iowa Main Library. The forum is free and open to the public.
For more information please contact Nick Stuber at (319) 384-2208, or nicholas-stuber@uiowa.edu.
Careers for Change: Gebisa Ejeta, 2009 World Food Prize Winner
Building Partnerships to Enhance Global Development
Dr. Ejeta won the $250,000 World Food Prize for his monumental contributions in the production of sorghum, one of the world’s five principal cereal grains. His invention of a drought and weed resistant variety of sorghum has dramatically enhanced the food supply of hundreds of millions of people in sub-Saharan Africa.
Dr. Ejeta will be honored for his achievements on October 15 at the World Food Prize International Symposium in Des Moines. But first he will come to share his insight on global hunger and its solutions with the UI community on October 13. Don’t miss the opportunity to meet this incredible speaker, and learn how a career in science can lead you down a human rights path. (Read more about this event.)
Date and Time: Tuesday, October 13 at 1:00 pm in Room 1117, University Capitol Center in the Old Capitol Mall
Wall Street Journalist and UI Alum, Roger Thurow
Careers for Change
Co-author of the world-renowned book Enough: Why the World’s Poorest Starve in an Age of Plenty, Roger Thurow will be giving a guest lecture as part of the UICHR Lecture series, Careers for Change. Thurow has been a foreign correspondent for the Wall Street Journal for twenty years, and in 2004, he and his co-author Scott Kilman were nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting for their coverage of 3 instances of famine in 2003. The duo also wrote Enough, which is a gripping picture of hunger painted in the personal accounts of African families.
Date and Time: Wednesday, October 14th, 2009 at 12:00 pm in E146 Adler Journalism Building
Roger Thurow at Prairie Lights
University of Iowa Alum, Roger Thurow, will be here to read from Enough: Why the World’s Poorest Starve in an Age of Plenty. Thurow co-wrote this award-winning book with his colleague from The Wall Street Journal, Scott Kilman. Enough is a powerful investigative narrative which shows exactly how, in the past few decades, British, American and European policies conspire to keep Africa hungry and unable to feed itself. For more than thirty years, humankind has known how to grow enough food to end chronic hunger worldwide. Yet while the ‘Green Revolution’ succeeded in South America and Asia, it never got to Africa. More than 9 million people die every year of hunger, malnutrition and related diseases – most of them in Africa and most of them children. Enough is essential reading for us all.
Date and Time: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 5:00 pm at Prairie Lights Books.
Shane Darcy: Recent Developments in Human Rights
Dr. Shane Darcy is a member of the faculty at the Irish Centre for Human Rights, part of the National University of Ireland, Galway. Shane will share his experiences as a human rights academic engaged in such issues as the jurisprudence of the International Criminal Court, the use of human rights law to challenge environmental damage, and the laws of belligerent occupation.
Date and Time: Wednesday, October 7, 2009 in Room 125 Boyd Law Building. Refreshments will be provided; please RSVP to nilza-molina@uiowa.edu by noon on Tuesday, October 6.
This event is co-sponsored by the International Law Society, the Iowa Campaign for Human Rights, the University of Iowa Center for Human Rights, and the International and Comparative Law Program.
United States in the World Lecture Series
The Department of History presents Professor Marilyn Young
Limited Wars, Unltd.
Marilyn Young, a professor at New York University and former Guggenheim Fellow, is an internationally renowned scholar of US foreign policy and East Asian relations. A distinguished historian of the Vietnam War and its legacy, she has also served as a commentator on PBS’ Bill Moyers Journal.
Her books include The Vietnam Wars, 1945-1990 (Harper 1991), the first international history of the war; Making Sense of the Vietnam Wars. Local, National and Transnational Perspectives (Oxford 2008), a collection of historiographical essays; Iraq and the Lessons of Vietnam. Or, How Not to Learn from the Past (New Press 2007), a comparative history containing her highly regarded essay on counterinsurgency; and most recently Bombing Civilians. A 20th Century History (New Press 2009), a study of the impact of modern military policies and tactics.
Date and Time: Thursday, October 8, 2009 from 2:30-3:45 pm in Gerber Lounge, EPB 304. Professor Young will be available for discussion of her work after the lecture, 4:30 – 5:45 pm, Schaeffer Hall 302.
Tools for Human Rights Advocacy: A Workshop for Non-Profits and Service Providers
Presented by Kristin Antin of New Tactics in Human Rights
UICHR and New Tactics in Human Rights invite local organizations, service providers and activists to join us for a brown bag lunch and workshop on innovative approaches to human rights and social justice advocacy. The workshop will focus on the importance of civic leadership, the sharing of strategic thinking and tactics with others in the human rights community, and the development of strategies for the protection of rights.
Date and Time: Friday, September 18, 2009 from 12:00- 1:30 pm in Meeting Room B of the Iowa City Public Library.
"One Community, One Book" 2009
UICHR is excited to announce our 2009 "One Community, One Book" selection. This year's book is Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year in Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver, with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingsolver. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle tells the story of how Kingsolver and her family for one year deliberately ate food produced in the place where they live. Kingsolver wrote the central narrative, and her husband, Steven Hopp, wrote in-depth sidebars about various aspects of food-production science and industry. Kingsolver's 19-year-old daughter, Camille, wrote brief essays on the local-food project, plus nutritional information, meal plans and recipes. (Text from the UI News Service press release on OCOB 2009)
Also new on the OCOB web site is a comprehensive list of the books nominated by members of our reading community. All of the books suggested from 2005-2009 are now listed on a Nominated Books page, as well as information on where you can continue to send book suggestions.
The University of Iowa International Programs Summer Institute for Teachers
"Global Climate Change: Human Rights, Consequences & Responsibilities"
Date and Time: June 15- 19, 2009 in the University Capitol Centre. Click here for the institute schedule. For additional information see the IP Outreach & Community Development website, or contact Buffy Quintero at (319) 335-0345.
Details: Each summer International Programs (IP) offers a week-long professional development workshop for K-12 teachers focusing on "what Iowans need to know about the rest of the world." This years institute, "Global Climate Change: Human Rights, Consequences & Responsibilities," will engage 7th-12th grade educators in various approaches to teaching about the impacts of climate change. Through a series of lectures and discussions, presenters will cover issues such as sustainability, ethics, environmental law and the medical consequences of climate change. Presenters will also discuss approaches to teaching about these topics including service learning, technology and interactive media, and learning through a human rights perspective.
Careers for Change Lecture: Carrie La Seur
Careers in Environmental Law & Social Justice
(Please note the time for the Climate Change lecture is 7:00pm)
Dates and Times: Careers for Change lecture: Tuesday, April 21, 2009 from 4:00-5:00 pm in 1124 University Capitol Centre
Public Lecture on Climate Change: Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 7:00 pm in 1117 University Capitol Centre
Details: Carrie La Seur is the founder and President of Plains Justice, a Cedar Rapids-based public interest environmental law center that works for environmental justice. An energy and environmental lawyer and Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Iowa, Dr. La Seur earned her J.D. from Yale Law School. She also earned a doctorate in modern languages as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, and a Bachelors degree in French and English from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania.
“Climate Change & Justice: What Legacy for our Children & Grandchildren?” By Professor Burns H. Weston
Date and Time: Thursday, April 23, 2009 from 8-9:00 pm in 1505 Seaman Center for Engineering
Details: The Climate Legacy Initiative (CLI) is a collaborative project of the Environmental Law Center of Vermont Law School and The University of Iowa's Center for Human Rights. Its overall purpose is to research and promote legal doctrines, principles, and rules appropriate for recognition by courts, legislatures, administrative agencies, and private sector institutions to safeguard present and future generations from harms resulting from global climate change. It takes as given that climate change exists, affirms that lawyers have a vital role to play in both public and private discourse and action relative to it, and comprises two phases. Burns H. Weston, UICHR's founding Director and Senior Scholar, is serving as the CLI's Project Director and Senior Researcher.
This lecture is part of the launching of the CLI Policy Paper, Recalibrating the Law of Humans with the Laws of Nature: Climate Change.
Read the University of Iowa news release about the Climate Legacy Initiative here.
This event is free and open to the public.
Follow-up Conversation on Immigration, Detention and Deportation (after The Visitor screening)
Date and Time: Wednesday, April 15 from 7-8:30 pm in Room 1117 University Capitol Centre.
Details: Join UICHR again in discussing ideas and issues around Immigration, Detention and Deportation. We hope to take a step forward in Iowa in ensuring human rights for all by educating ourselves on these issues, brainstorming ways we can make a difference in our communities, and setting up our own Immigrant Safety Network. To learn more about work being done in Iowa and beyond, please visit our Resources page. Find ways to help those affected by the Postville raids last summer, conversation starters, links to organizations and other useful information on this page.
Zvonimir Jelinic Lecture: Access to Justice by Legal Aid Systems in Europe
Date and Time: Thursday, April 16, 2009 from 2-3:00 pm in 1117 University Capitol Centre.
Details: According to the Article 6 of the European Convention for the protection of Human Rights and Fundamental freedoms, each member state has a positive obligation to support everyone's attempt to get information, legal advice and unobstructed access to the courts and other state bodies making decisions about civil rights and obligations. Problems usually arise when citizens who are depending on social benefits or who have low incomes are unable to pay the lawyer and legal service.
Zvonimir Jelinic, a faculty member at the University of J.J. Stossmayer in Croatia, will speak on legal aid systems in Europe, specifically involving civil rights matters. This lecture will discuss the historical development of the Case Law of the European Court for Human Rights concerning access to justice and legal aid in civil matters. Jelinic will also examine legal aid's future perspectives in the context of Treaty of Lisbon and Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU.
Film & Discussion: "African Soul, American Heart"
Dates and Times: April 5th, 2009 at 6:00pm in 2520 D University Capitol Centre. Free screening followed by a discussion with light refreshments.
Details: "African Soul, American Heart" is a documentary of the journey of Joseph Akol Makeer. A Sudanese Lost Boy who now lives in the U.S., he dreams of helping the orphaned children who live in his village in South Sudan. The event will include a showing of the documentary followed by a discussion time led by the producer of the film. The documentary details Joseph’s struggles to balance the responsibilities of caring for his younger siblings and three children of his own with his dream of opening an orphanage. "If these kids are raised from the age they are and given what they need, they will be good leaders in our nation or in our world," Joseph states.
Although many Americans have heard of the Lost Boys of Sudan, few realize that thousands of Sudanese remain in refugee camps - not only young boys were forced out of their country. The tribesmen who survived the civil war and remained in Southern Sudan have little education and few resources. What little infrastructure once existed was destroyed, making it difficult or impossible for many refugees to return to their homeland.
To tell his story, Joseph wrote "From Africa to America, The Journey of a Lost Boy of Sudan." He began to talk to people he met about the Christians of Southern Sudan, their desire for independence from the Muslim North - to be decided by vote in 2011 - and the enormous obstacles they face in rebuilding their lives.
To spread this story to a wider group, Joseph envisioned a film to tell a tangible story about these real people, their suffering, their endurance, and their will to survive and provide a better future for their families. See www.africansoulamericanheart.com for more information
Careers for Change Lecture: Anne Fadiman
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: How Culture Complicates Medicine
Dates and Times: March 9, 2009 at 7:30 pm in W10 John Pappajohn Business Building (Buchanan Auditorium) with reception following in Anderson Galleria W101 PBB
Details: Anne Fadiman is an author, essayist, editor, and teacher. Her first book, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, chronicles the trials of an epileptic Hmong child and her family living in Merced, California. Fadiman's sensitive, incisive treatment of the unbreachable gulf between the Hmong and American medical systems won her a National Book Critics’ Circle Award. The book continues to be taught at universities both as literary journalism and as a casebook for cross cultural sensitivity in general; it is also widely read by medical practitioners who wish to offer more effective care to patients from other cultures. As the inaugural Francis Writer in Residence, Yale University’s first endowed appointment in nonfiction writing, Anne Fadiman serves as both a professor in the English department and a mentor to students considering careers in writing or editing. Her essays and articles have appeared in Harper's, The New Yorker, and The New York Times, among many other publications. She has won National Magazine Awards for both reporting and essays.
For more information or special accommodations to attend this talk, contact the UICHR at 319-335-3900 or uichr@uiowa.edu.
Transnational Flows of Labor: Exploitation and Opportunity
in the Global Economy
UI Provost's Forum on Immigration and Human Rights
Dates and Times: March 5-6, 2009 in Room 2520D, University Capitol Centre. Please see the Forum website for more information on the schedule of events.
Details: This year’s forum is an international symposium that explores labor rights, human trafficking, slavery, civil rights of trafficked workers, and migrant farm workers, among other topics. Locations highlighted include the United States, the European Union, Asia, and the Middle East.
Speakers include Frank D. Bean, social science professor and director for Research on Immigration, Population, and Public Policy at the University of California-Irvine; Gay Seidman, sociology professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison; Shivali Shah, immigration attorney, journalist, and immigrants’ rights activist; and Kathleen C. Kim, associate professor of law at Loyola Law School.
The Visitor and Presentation and Panel Discussion
Dates and Times: February 22, 2009 1:00-4:00 pm (doors open at 12:30 pm) at the Englert Theatre in Iowa City. This event is free and open to the public.
Details: UICHR will be screening The Visitor, a film by Tom McCarthy that addresses two increasingly relevant issues to Iowa, immigrant rights and detention. This screening is part of a national campaign utilizing the 2008 film as a tool to help audiences learn more about the immigration detention system, the importance of due process, and ways to get involved. UICHR hopes to also education our community on local immigration issues, including worker rights and immigration raids. Following this free screening, three panelists will speak on their involvement in these areas and answer questions from the audience.
Speaking on the panel are Angel González Irizarry, a Labor Educator at the UI Labor Center and Vice Chair for the Commission of Latino Affairs in Iowa; Kathryn Salazar, an immigration attorney practicing in Washington, Iowa, co-founder of Friends and Neighbors of Immigrants Coalition, and a member and former vice chair of the Iowa-Nebraska Chapter of American Immigration Lawyers Association; and Miryam Antúnez de Mayolo, an immigration and naturalization lawyer from out of Cedar Falls, Iowa, with experience in issues such as asylum, family-based immigration, deportation defense, and employment-based immigration.
Co-sponsoring this event are the UI Labor Center, the Iowa City Federation of Labor, Amnesty International, Active Voice, and International Programs. For more information or special accommodations to attend this event, contact the UICHR at 319-335-3900 or uichr@uiowa.edu.
Powerlines to the Future: Energizing Midwest Physicians for Social Responsibility
Dates and Times: February 13-14, 2009
Details: The conference is called, Powerlines to the Future and will address efforts to Halt Climate Change/Coal Fired Power plants, nuclear proliferation, etc. all from the perspectives of health and human rights. It's timed to take advantage of the positive energy coming out of the new Administration. We'll feature speakers from Wisconsin, Kansas, and elsewhere, with participants coming in from across the Midwest. Disasters, permafrost melting, lower agricultural yields, growing health problems, and many other potential crises driven by climate change have begun taking a toll on people around the world–all at a time of increasing scarcity of basic resources like oil, food and water. Many predict an increasingly fragmented world, where conflict over scarce resources will rise, poorly contained by existing international institutions, while nuclear proliferation, particularly in the Middle East, and even nuclear conflict grow more likely. International organizations, like the UN, seem ill-prepared and incapable of rising to the challenges without concerted efforts by a variety of other actors around the world including the healing voice of medicine and public health. A transition to a healthier, more just and environmentally sustainable future based on cleaner energy is essential–it is just the speed and under what circumstances we get to that future. During the window of opportunity brought about by the recent electoral events, Midwest PSR members hope to engage others in the health professions, especially those just beginning their careers, to become more informed and actively engaged in confronting the gravest health challenges of the day.
Careers for Change Lecture: Peter Eichstaedt
Peter Eichstaedt
Dates and Times: February 12, 2009 at 4:00 pm in 1117 University Capitol Centre
Details: Peter Eichstaedt is the Africa Editor for the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, based in The Hague, Netherlands. He has worked as a journalist and news media advisor in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Afghanistan and most recently Uganda, DR Congo and Sudan. His most recent book, First Kill Your Family: Child Soldiers of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army, is based on his personal experiences and research during 2005 and 2006 when he lived and worked in Uganda. He has been a journalist, editor and author for more than 30 years and was a recipient of a Fulbright grant in journalism in 1998-1999 in Slovenia and Moldova. He is the author of an additional book, If You Poison Us: Uranium and Native Americans, which revealed the health and environmental damage done by uranium mining on Navajo lands in the Southwest during the Cold War. (event flyer)
For more information or special accommodations to attend this talk, contact the UICHR at 319-335-3900 or uichr@uiowa.edu.
MLK Celebration of Human Rights 2009
Dates and Times: Monday, January 19, 2009 at 6:30 pm in the 2nd Floor Ballroom, Iowa Memorial Union (event flyer)
Details: Recognition of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birth date has been a tradition at The University of Iowa since 1969, and the national holiday has been observed through human rights programs since its inception in 1986. In 1990 the University initiated the Human Rights convocation program. Afternoon classes were cancelled to encourage student, faculty, and staff participation in programs that encourage dialogue about diversity and reinforce the principle that the University is a forum for the free exchange of ideas. The convocation has been an opportunity for serious thinking by all of us about issues of social justice, human rights, and world peace.
An official University holiday was designated in 1995 to provide an opportunity to engage the University community in a discussion of the human values that the King holiday epitomizes. These initial events have grown into a campus wide celebration that engages faculty, staff, students and community members to give lectures, discussions, and cultural arts presentations. All events are free and open to the public. For a complete and updated list of events, view the event listing. (text taken from UI's MLK Celebration of Human Rights 2009 website).
Invisible Slaves: Human Trafficking in the Midwest and United States
Dates and Times: Wednesday, January 21, 2009 from 6:00- 8:00 pm in Meeting Room A of the Iowa City Public Library (event flyer)
Details: The Iowa City Human Rights Commission and the Iowa Human Trafficking Awareness Project are sponsoring a program entitled Invisible Slaves: Human Trafficking in the Midwest and United States. Program participants include University of Iowa College of Law Professor Mark Sidel who has researched state laws and civil actions with respect to human trafficking here in Iowa, Sergeant Kevin Kinney of the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office who worked on a Johnson County human trafficking prostitution ring involving minors, Denise Timmons, Assistant Attorney General for the State of Iowa who worked on a human trafficking case out of Crawford County which led to the first conviction under the Human Trafficking Law enacted in Iowa in 2006, and Kate Karacay founder of the Iowa Human Trafficking Awareness Project. This event is open to the public. It is sponsored by the Iowa City Human Rights Commission and the Iowa Human Trafficking Awareness Project in conjunction with the University of Iowa Martin Luther King, Jr. Human Rights Celebration Week.
Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend. If you are a person with a disability who requires an accommodation in order to participate in this program, please contact The Iowa City Human Rights Office at 356-5022.
“NO”: Palestinian Artists Confront Violence Against Women
Dates and Times:Through Jan. 30, 2008 the exhibition will be displayed at the Iowa City Public Library, North Wall.
Details: Through January, 2009 the Iowa City Public Library will display “NO”; Palestinian Artists Confront Violence Against Women, a collection of block-prints created at a workshop aimed at confronting gendered violence. The artistic workshop to create these wood blocks was hosted by the Women's Center for Legal Aid and Counseling, an organization focused on changing laws that enforce gendered inequality by combating the social taboo and silence which envelope domestic violence and honor killing. The artwork, carved out of wood and pressed in bold colors, is charged with each artist’s own response to gendered violence. This exhibition has generated a tremendous amount of discussion and works to strengthen the solidarity of those working to eliminate gendered violence. This exhibition was curated by UI Student Julia Bailey.
This project was sponsored by Middle East Muslim and World Studies, Iowa Women Initiating Social Change, Framer's Intent, The Women Resource and Action Center, and Dick Blick. Please contact Julia at julia-bailey@uiowa.edu with any questions.
Eye Witness: Daniel Heyman's Portraits of Iraqi Torture Victims
Dates and Times: November 1, 2008-January 4, 2009, Hanson Family Humanities Gallery, Old Capitol Museum
Details: Starting in November, the UI Museum of Art will house paintings and other works by Daniel Heyman. Heyman is an artist who had the unique opportunity to meet with former detainees in the war in Iraq, capturing both their images and their stories in his work. His artwork is displayed throughout the country and calls attention to an important human rights issue facing the US- torture. The exhibit will be open to the public through January 4, 2009, with several opportunities for discussion and education on torture.
The Museum of Art is working with UICHR, the Old Capitol Museum and the UI College of Law to host several related events, including a gallery talk with Daniel Heyman. For more information on these events, please visit the museum website.
UDHR@60 Colloquium 2008: "The Challenge of Universal Rights: Realizing Dignity and Justice for All"
UICHR co-sponsored a colloquium in celebration of the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Information and a detailed schedule on the three-day event can be found on theUDHR@60 page. Also find short biographies on key speakers and panelists on this page.
“NO”: Palestinian Artists Confront Violence Against Women
- Dec. 4 from 5-9:00 pm, Exhibition of artwork in the 2nd floor boardroom in the Old Capitol Centre with introduction by Julia Bailey and presentations by Marisa Handler of the Writers Workshop and Angela Gadzik of Iowa Women Initiating Social Change
- On Dec. 5 at 12:00 noon the artists will hold a video conference and discussion in 1117 University Capitol Centre. Also beginning at 9:00 am, exhibition of artwork in the 2nd floor boardroom in the UCC
- Following the video conference, a panel discussion will begin at 2:30 pm on Dec. 5 in the 2nd floor boardroom of the University Capitol Centre. Leading the panel discussion are:
- Jamil Dakwar, Director of the ACLU Human Rights Program
- Rachel Marie-Crane Williams, UI Art Department
- Kenda Stewart, Crossing Borders Fellow, Ph.D. candidate in sociocultural anthropology
- Rex Honey, Department of Geography, Director of Crossing Borders
- Jasmine Nadua Trice, Ph.D. candidate
Faculty Learning Community Series: "Civic Responsibility, Literary Reliability"
Dates and Times: Wednesdays, Sept. 3, October 1, November 5 and December 3, 12-1 p.m., 2390 University Capitol Centre (Executive Boardroom)
Details: Greg Hamot, Professor, College of Education, Department of Teaching and Learning will lead the Center for Teaching's Faculty Learning Community, titled “Civic Responsibility, Literary Reliability”. The series will explore the pedagogical implications of Ishmael Beah’s A Long Way Gone" Mempoirs of a Boy Soldier . This series will serve “as a venue to help students explore civic responsibility, a writer’s 'compact' with readers, and the nature of memoir”. The Faculty Learning Community is open to all tenured, tenure-track, and clinical and adjunct faculty members on a first-registered, first-served basis. For more information about the series, visit the Center for Teaching website.
Iowa Women's Archives to honor co-founder and activist
Iowa Women's Archives
Louise Noun
Date and Time: Wednesday, December 3, 2008 from 4:00- 5:30 pm at the Iowa Women's Archives, Main Library
Details: The Iowa Women’s Archives is holding a celebration to commemorate the life and work of archives co-founder Louise Noun, who was an ardent supporter of civil and human rights, feminism and social justice. Remarks by Linda K. Kerber, a May Brodbeck Professor in Liberal Arts & Sciences, and Kären Mason, the curator of the Iowa Women's Archives. Join the conversation and enjoy a piece of cake while celebrating the achievements of Louise Noun. For more information on the event, please see the event flyer.
Noun became widely recognized for her leadership and commitment to a number of organizations and causes. She served as president of the Iowa Civil Liberties Union and the Des Moines chapters of the League of Women Voters and the National Organization for Women (...more on Noun).
International Programs: Student Funding Expo
Dates and Times: Wednesday, November 19th from 3:00 - 5:00 pm in Room 1117 University Capitol Centre (Commons)
Details: In addition to support for study abroad, IP also provides funding support for research, experiential learning, internships, language learning, and travel to conference. Stop by the IP Funding Expo to learn more about the wide range of funding programs available for IP. This is an excellent opportunity to talk with IP staff about funding and meet students that have received funding from IP to learn about their experiences. Students will present posters and other visual materials from their trip. Refreshments will be provided. For more information, please visit the International Programs website.
Ida Beam scholar to discuss “Is the American Way of War Just?
Dates and Times: Monday, November 10, at 7:30 pm, in 2520D University Capitol Centre and Tuesday, November 11, at 4:00 pm, in 1117 University Capitol Centre
Details: As part of the Ida Cordelia Beam Distinguished Visiting Professorships Program, Henry Shue will present two lectures focusing on the American policies and conduct of war, beginning with “Is the American Way of War Just?: Terrorism and the Initiation of War,” then following with “Is the American Way of War Just: Bombing and the Limitation of War.”
For more information on these lectures, please see the University of Iowa news release.
Ishmael Beah, author of A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, to speak at Iowa
The University of Iowa Lecture Committee is set to host Ishmael Beah, the author of A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier in coordination with the UICHR "One Community, One Book" program. More information about the event and a brief biography of Beah is available here.
2008 Selection for "One Community, One Book"
The 2008 selection for "One Community, One Book" is A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier written by Ishmael Beah. 2008 marks a significant change for One Community, One Book. With support from the UI Office of the Provost, the UICHR will provide copies of a special printing of "A Long Way Gone," including a welcome letter from UI President Sally Mason, to all incoming first year undergraduate students at the UI, approximately 4,300 students. Additionally, the UI Department of Rhetoric in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences will integrate this year's selection into the courses taught to satisfy the general education requirement in rhetoric. Other events, both curricular and extra-curricular, will help integrate the program into the university's fall semester and expand the common book program to all UI students, including an on-campus lecture by the author.
UICHR Law Intern to Recieve 2008 Cmiel Award
Date and Time: Thursday, October 23, 2008 at 7:30 am in the E.H. Lehman Ballroom of hotelVetro
Congratulations to UI law student and UICHR intern Rita Bettis, the recipient of the 2008 Kenneth Cmiel award! This award is given to University of Iowa students who have shown exceptional dedication and enthusiasm for furthering human rights activism and education as Ken Cmiel had throughout his life. Rita volunteered with the UI Center for Human Rights over the past summer and into the fall semester, bringing her compassion and knowledge into each project and event she worked on. Rita continues her support for UICHR and human rights still as an active student and community member.
Details: The 25th Annual Human Rights Awards Breakfast hosted by the Iowa City Human Rights Commission will present the Cmiel award as well as several other human rights awards. Wallace D. Loh, the Executive Vice President and Provost at the University of Iowa will speak at the ceremony.
Congratulations also to Sandy Pickup (Isabel Turner Award); ICAAR, Fair Housing Ambassadors, Housing Authority (Community Award); Annie Tucker, Mediation Services of Eastern Iowa (Individual in a Service Organization); and Chris Klug (Rick Graf Award).
Tickets are $15 and should be purchased in advance at the Cashier at City Hall (410 E. Washington) or by calling 356-5022.
Summer internship program recipients announced
Every year the UICHR helps fund travel and living expenses for students who are pursuing a summer internship at a human rights organization in the United States or abroad through the Kenneth J. Cmiel Funded Human Rights Internship Program.
This year seven students from across campus have been selected. The students are participating in a variety of internships from an Egyptian Center for Women's Rights in Cairo to the HIV/AIDS program at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
More information about the funded internship program is available on the Internships page.
Midwest Coalition for Human Rights to sponsor summer intern
For the third year, an intern sponsored by the Midwest Coalition for Human Rights will work with the UICHR and Justice for Our Neighbors (JFON) on the issue of immigrant detention. Rita Bettis, a student at the UI College of Law, will facilitate legal representation of JFON's detained clients and provide educational outreach to immigrant communities throughout Iowa.
"I am grateful for this opportunity to be a Fellow with Midwest Coalition for Human Rights and be a part of its important human rights work, " Bettis said. "I am very much looking forward to working with UICHR and JFON this summer, and I know the experience I gain will continue to inform my public interest practice far into the future."
The internship is one of seven competitively selected positions sponsored by MCHR at its member organizations. It carries a $3,000 stipend and will continue from approximately mid-May through August.
UICHR announces winner of Weston International Human Rights Essay Prize
The $1,000 prize in the graduate and professional student category went to student Rebecca Bowman for her essay "Lubanga, the DRC, and the African Court: Lessons Learned from the First ICC Case." The competition is intended to promote understanding and the continuing advancement of international human rights, as well as honor Weston, the former and founding director of the UICHR and an internationally renowned scholar in international human rights law. ... more
Burns Weston to serve on international justice journal, Call for Papers
UICHR Senior Scholar and College of Law Professor Emeritus Burns Weston recently accepted an invitation to serve on the editorial board of the German-based Intergenerational Justice Review (IGJR). The IGJR is an English-speaking quarterly magazine seeking to publish articles of the most important research and current thinking from political science, law, and ethics. As part of his role, Weston is publicizing a Call for Papers for the upcoming issue of the IGJR. The topic is "Historical Injustice."
Human Rights At Large: Libraries and education
A new e-book, "ICT Service in Human Rights Education: The Role of Digital Libraries," has been published and is available online. The e-book also provides a rough guide to setting up a digital or other type of library within a non-governmental organization.
The aim of the 2007 project was to analyze digital libraries in Southeastern Europe with regard to content and applied human rights education, and to compare them to digital libraries in Western Europe. The e-book is an outgrowth of a research project implemented by the ETC Graz, the Institute for Ethnic Studies in Ljubljana, and the Human Rights Centre at the University of 2007.
Human Rights At Large: Events in South Ossetia
Concern about the violence in Georgia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia mounts as the consequences continue to unfold. UNHCR reports an ongoing humanitarian crisis and the political future of the region is now more unstable than ever. UICHR Founding Director and Senior Scholar Burns Weston and Marta Cullberg Weston produced a report for the Swedish Foreign Ministry in 1994 as part of a post-conflict human rights mission to Georgia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The report's findings remain relevant to understanding recent events. Click here to read the report on our Resources & Publications page.