An event sponsored by the Faculty & Staff Association (Human Rights & International Solidarity) and the Race & Antiracism Network (RAN) this evening will explore human rights and the war on terror.

Sunera Thobani: Imperialism, Feminism and the ‘War on Terror’

Through its definition of the West as endangered by the hatred and violence of its Islamist other, the War on Terror is reconfiguring the practices that constitute whiteness. Critical race and feminist theorists have long defined ‘whiteness’ as a form of subjectivity that is socially constructed, historically contextual, and inherently unstable. The equation of whiteness as a social identity with the socio-political category of the West has been seen as particularly problematic for its furthering of colonial and imperialist projects. This presentation examines the engagement of a number of key feminist texts the hegemonic discourse of the War on Terror, human rights and violence. Sunera Thobani is Associate Professor in Women’s and Gender Studies and Director of the RAGA Centre at UBC.

Ron Dart: Human Rights, Terrorism & the American Empire: The Double Hook

The language of Human Rights is very much the lingua franca of our age. The United States often sees itself as the bearer and bastion of Human Rights and, in the ‘clash of civilizations’, doing battle against terrorism. And yet, the U.S. as the dominant empire in the global village is a state that often uses terror in covert and overt ways. This lecture will examine the double hook of both the rhetoric of glory and the reality of American darkness. Ron Dart is a faculty member in the Department of Political Science at UFV.

Everyone is welcome.

Mon, Jan 30
4-6pm
B121 Abby

For more information, contact Adrienne Chan (Adrienne.Chan@ufv.ca) or Rita Kaur Dhamoon (Rita.Dhamoon@ufv.ca), 604 504 7441x 4173.