Events
German Unification Twenty-Five Years Later
May 20, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
After the first quarter century of development since the overthrow of Communism and the reunification of East and West Germany, how does one draw up a balance sheet? How can one assess the transfer of political institutions, the economic crises, the difficulties of women’s adjustment? There were substantial successes but also significant failures. Many of the international moves of the Berlin Republic can only be understood by considering the difficult process of adjustment during and after unification.
Lincoln and Emancipation: Presidential Intent at Home and Abroad
May 13, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
During the American Civil War Abraham Lincoln stated that his paramount object was to save the Union, leading many since to question his reputation as “The Great Emancipator.” Emancipation and the nation’s unity were indivisible in Lincoln's mind, and it was for the fusion and pursuit of these two ideas that British and other foreign progressives of the time esteemed him so highly. What were the international repercussions of Lincoln’s actions? Even more basically, what were his actual motivations?
American Tapestry: The Story of the Black, White, and Multiracial Ancestors of Michelle Obama
May 06, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
American Tapestry illuminates the lives of the ordinary people in Mrs. Obama's family tree who fought for freedom in the Revolutionary and Civil Wars; who endured the agonies of slavery, the disappointment of Reconstruction, the displacement of the Great Migration, and the horrors of Jim Crow to build a better future for their children.
Getting Out of Iraq in 1932
April 29, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
Iraq was the single mandated territory—out of fourteen—to achieve independent statehood while still under the jurisdiction of the League of Nations. Overseeing this process, the League’s expert bodies became ever more skeptical of the panacea of independent statehood. Through this case, we can see this modern state system in the making.
Bureaucracy, Citizenship and Remembrance in Wartime Iraq
April 22, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
The Iraq war was a form of everyday bureaucratic governance with the Iraq government managing resistance and religious diversity and shaping a public culture in which soldiering and martyrdom became markers of privileged citizenship. The men and families of those who fought and died during the Iran-Iraq and First Gulf wars have memories not only of the political, social, and cultures changes in Iraq but also of the “normalization” of war.
Six Moments of Crisis: Inside British Foreign Policy
April 15, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
Gill Bennett, former Chief Historian of the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office leads a discussion entitled "Six Moments of Crisis: Inside British Foreign Policy."
Historical Perspective on the Arab Spring
April 08, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
In the Middle East, a parallel pattern can be seen in the history of the first Middle Eastern constitutional revolutions in the political movements of the 1870s. What does an examination of the role of constitutionalism in the Arab revolutions of 1923-2011 reveal about prospects for constitutional governments in the Middle East?
Celebrating the Legacy of Daniel Patrick Moynihan: The Launch of "Moynihan's Moment," a New Book by Gil Troy
April 04, 2013 // 3:30pm — 5:00pm
McGill University Professor of History Gil Troy leads on expert panel on his latest book, "Moynihan's Moment: America's Fight Against Zionism as Racism" which explores the legacy of Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
The Way the Wind Actually Blew: Weatherman Underground Terrorism and the Counterculture, 1969-1971
April 01, 2013 // 4:00pm — 5:30pm
The most famous terrorist group in modern American history was the Weatherman Underground, later called the Weather Underground Organization. An outgrowth of Students for a Democratic Society, Weather was active in 1969 through the 1970s. Arthur Eckstein will argue that this is misleading and that the true history of Weather is much grimmer and more ambiguous.
Cornell Club of Washington DC hosts "The World Financial Crisis: Where Are We Now and Where Are We Going?"
March 19, 2013 // 6:00pm — 9:00pm
A panel discussion sponsored by the Cornell Club of Washington, the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies and the Woodrow Wilson Center.