The African Studies Program, Asian Studies Center, Center for Latin American Studies, and Global Studies Center are delighted to celebrate this year's graduates at a joint graduation ceremony and reception!

All Spring 2014 graduates are invited to attend, as are faculty and friends. The dress code for this event is casual.

Graduates who plan to attend are strongly encouraged to RSVP at http://tinyurl.com/PittUCISGrad

Food may be a marker of identity, metaphor for social change, and means of resistance. Gezi Park events started after brutal interventions were made by police against Gezi Park occupiers on May 29, 2013, quickly escalating into one of the greatest civil protests in Turkish history, and spreading to other parts of the country. During the events, protesters responded to misinformation from mass media and accusations of the government in a variety of creative ways.

The last session of the five part Breaking Down the Headlines series, where Dr. Hakim will present on the literature and poetry shedding light on the aspirations as well as daily life of the Arab populations past and present who reside in this region in spirit or in person.

The Breaking Down the Headlines is a five part series that will begin with a historical overview of the late 19th and 20th centuries; a time period which witnessed the demise of the Ottoman Empire, colonial land grabs, the rise of nation states and their struggles for power. With over one-third of the population now living as refugees, our readings and presentations will cover conflicts, power grabs, identity and citizenship. The series concludes with a literary perspective.

The Breaking Down the Headlines is a five part series that will begin with a historical overview of the late 19th and 20th centuries; a time period which witnessed the demise of the Ottoman Empire, colonial land grabs, the rise of nation states and their struggles for power. With over one-third of the population now living as refugees, our readings and presentations will cover conflicts, power grabs, identity and citizenship. The series concludes with a literary perspective.

The Breaking Down the Headlines is a five part series that will begin with a historical overview of the late 19th and 20th centuries; a time period which witnessed the demise of the Ottoman Empire, colonial land grabs, the rise of nation states and their struggles for power. With over one-third of the population now living as refugees, our readings and presentations will cover conflicts, power grabs, identity and citizenship. The series concludes with a literary perspective.

The Breaking Down the Headlines:Understanding the Levant is a five part series beginning with a historical overview of the late 19th and 20th centuries; a time period which witnessed the demise of the Ottoman Empire, colonial land grabs, the rise of nation states and their struggles for power. With over one-third of the population now living as refugees, our readings and presentations will cover conflicts, power grabs, identity and citizenship. The series concludes with a literary perspective.

On April 3-4, 2014, the University of Pittsburgh will host a workshop entitled Living with Difference in a Global Society with past program directors of CEDAR—Communities Engaging with Difference and Religion, a global educational network dedicated to enabling members of disparate communities to recognize and accept their differences as they work toward a civil society. The aim of the workshop is to connect to Pittsburgh and advance CEDAR’s more than 10 years of experience in advancing a pedagogy of living with difference as a response to the challenges of conflict and globalization.

Jean-Luc Robert was previously a political advisor for Justice and Home Affairs and is now the First Counselor at the European Parliament’s Liaison Office in Washington DC in charge of public diplomacy and university outreach. He will present his viewpoints on the issues and risks that surround the upcoming European Parliament elections. With the Euro Area Crisis, anti-EU populism and the rise of far right parties as part of the current political landscape and public debate, the elections have the potential to create significant changes for the EU and European politics.

The University of Pittsburgh Department of History presents the 20th annual E.P. Thompson Memorial Lecture. Joe William Trotter Jr. is Giant Eagle Professor of History and Social Justice at Carnegie Mellon University and Director of the Center for African American Urban Studies and the Economy (CAUSE).