Lincoln, Neb., Sept. 29, 2003 -- In 1988, E.N. Jack Thompson, then head of the philanthropic Cooper Foundation, conceived of a public lecture series that would bring prominent individuals to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to speak on important international issues. Since then, the world has come to Lincoln and thousands of Nebraskans have had a chance to more closely examine our global society.
This year, two noted authors, a historian and a former United Nations official will speak as part of the 2003-2004 E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues Series. All lectures occur in the Lied Center for Performing Arts, 301 N. 12th St. on the UNL City Campus. All lectures begin at 3:30 p.m. and are free and open to the public. An informal pre-talk precedes each lecture at 3 p.m. in the Lied's main auditorium.
A cooperative project of the Cooper Foundation, the Lied Center and UNL, the series promotes better understanding of world events and issues by Nebraskans. In 1990, the name of the series was changed in honor of E.N. "Jack" Thompson (1913-2002), a 1933 graduate of the University of Nebraska who served as president of the Cooper Foundation from 1964 to 1990 and as its chairman from 1990 until his death.
In its 16-year history, the Thompson Forum has established itself as one of the preeminent speakers series in higher education. Past Thompson Forum events have featured, among many others: Mikhail Gorbachev, former president of the Soviet Union; Elie Weisel, Holocaust survivor and peace activist; Camelia Sadat, the daughter of Anwar Sadat and founder of the Sadat Peace Institute; Maki Mandela, daughter of the former South African president; the Rev. Peter Gomes, Plummer professor of Christian morals at Harvard University; Hedrick Smith, journalist and expert on the former Soviet Union; Robert McNamara, secretary of defense for the Kennedy administration; Archbishop Desmond Tutu; and Bono, AIDS activist and musician.
This year's series continues to offer thought-provoking speakers on timely issues of world import.
Opening the series Oct. 15 is Benjamin Barber. Author of the international best-seller "Jihad vs. McWorld," Barber is the Gershon and Carol Kekst professor of civil society at the University of Maryland. A distinguished, internationally renowned political theorist, Barber consults regularly with political and civic leaders and organizations in the United States and abroad. He writes frequently for Harper's, the New York Times, the Atlantic Monthly, the Nation, Le Nouvel Observateur, Die Ziet, and many other scholarly and popular publications in America and Europe. He was a founding editor and for 10 years editor-in-chief of the distinguished international quarterly Political Theory. Barber is renowned for his passionate defense of "strong democracy," a democratic theory that advances the role of robust democratic citizenship over formal constitutional mechanisms. Barber has written 17 books, and his most recent, "Fear's Empire: Terrorism, War and Democracy," will be published in 2003.
Amos Oz is Israel's most distinguished literary figure and a founding member of Israel's Peace Now movement. His lecture, titled "Israel: Peace and War," will be Nov. 18.
In a stellar and occasionally controversial literary career spanning nearly 40 years, Oz has commanded both serious critical attention and a wide popular audience. His reputation was established with his first book, "Where the Jackals Howl," and many of his subsequent novels have been critically acclaimed best-sellers in Israel and around the world, including his best known work, "My Michael," and "Black Box." Oz is the author of 11 novels, three volumes of nonfiction, and a children's book. He continues to devote his time to writing, teaching and actively campaigning for the Israeli peace movement. This lecture, which is also part of the Kripke Lecture Series, is co-sponsored by the Thompson Forum and UNL's Norman and Bernice Harris Center for Judaic Studies and the Lincoln Jewish Federation. Oz will also speak at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 19 at Temple Israel in Omaha. That talk, delivered as the Annual Kripke Lecture Series; is co-sponsored by UNL's Harris Center for Judaic Studies, the Hermene Zweiback Center for Lifelong Jewish Learning and the Philip G. and Ethel Klutznick Chair in Jewish Civilization at Creighton University.
Thomas Borstelmann joined the UNL faculty this fall and is the new Thompson professor of modern world history. He will lecture on the topic, "America and Its Enemies," on Jan. 26. After receiving his Ph.D. from Duke University, Borstelmann spent 12 years in the history department at Cornell University, where he was a prize-winning author and teacher. His most recent books include "The Cold War and the Color Line: American Race Relations in the Global Arena" and "Created Equal: A Social and Political History of the United States."
The final lecture of the season, co-presented as the Lewis E. Harris Lecture on Public Policy, will feature Mary Robinson, a former United Nations official. Her lecture is Feb. 17.
Robinson, the first woman president of Ireland (1990-1997) and more recently, United Nations high commissioner for human rights (1997-2002), has spent most of her life as a human rights activist. As an academic, legislator, and barrister, she has always sought to use law as an instrument for social change. Based in New York, Robinson leads a new project, the Ethical Globalization Initiative, whose goal is to bring the standards of human rights into the globalization process and to support capacity building in good governance in developing countries, with an initial focus on Africa.
The Lewis E. Harris Lecture on Public Policy, named in honor of Lewis E. Harris, is funded by a gift from SmithKline Beckman.
CONTACT: Annette Wetzel, University Communications, (402) 472-8524
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Posted by Tom Simons, Office of University Communications
Phone: (402) 472-8514, Fax: (402) 472-7825