By Katie Krahulik
STAFF WRITER
Hofstra facilitated discussions on international relations for Globalization Day on Tuesday, March 15, with several globally oriented events including “The UN in Resolving Conflicts: Syria, A Case Study.”
Director of The Institute for Policy Studies Phyllis Bennis was the speaker for this lecture, and introduced her subject saying, “We can’t bomb terrorism. That’s part of the reason why U.S. policy doesn’t work.”
Bennis, a writer, activist and analyst who’s been featured in several renowned publications including The New York Times, spoke of the United Nations’ involvement (or lack thereof) in global affairs, primarily in the refugee crisis in Syria. Her lecture shed light on the ramifications of ongoing wars.
“It’s the hypocritical oath. First do no harm. If we want to stop the killing, then we must stop kill- ing,” Bennis said.
Bennis was in college during the height of the Vietnam War, and she has drawn powerful con- clusions through her experiences.
“I think that social movements are the only thing that changes the world. Politicians only do what we make them do,” she said. “Media only covers what we make them cover. Therefore, we need movements. So, that’s why Igooutandtalktoalotofpeople so that they’ll go out and form movements which will change the world.”
Natasha Repazzo, a sopho- more political science major,
is a fellow with the Center for Civic Engagement. She is also the program coordinator for the Long Island Alliance for Peaceful Alternatives, “a nonprofit, non- partisan, activist organization founded in 1985 to educate on peace, nonviolence and human security issues,” according to the organization’s website. As a stu- dent activist, Repazzo feels that young people hold a lot of power in resolving matters of conflict if they just apply themselves.
“Something that we’re doing with the alliance, and maybe
the simplest thing we can do,
is we’re passing out petitions.
So, if you just sign the petitions, that’s important; if you just share articles, that’s important, because it’s the little things that you do
to share information that can teach people about the issues,” Repazzo said. “On a broader scale, you should join groups
like Peace Matters and Campus Feminist Collective, because that’s how you meet people with like-minded ideas, and that’s how you can organize change.”
Margaret Melkonian, the execu- tive director of the Long Island Alliance for Peaceful Alternatives, helps coordinate the Peace Fellows Program here at Hofstra.
Melkonian felt that Bennis would provide students with some important context about the UN and the Syrian refugee crisis, which would allow them to form their own opinions and ambitions.
“I think that [students] will gain a better understanding of U.S. policy by listening to Dr. Bennis,” she said.
“Going back to the invasion of Iraq and the war in Iraq, and going back to Afghanistan, it’s important to realize that we can’t bomb our way to end terrorism.
In the region, things have gotten worse really, in terms of terror- ism,” Melkonian said. “So, I would hope that they’d also be able to look at the context, the history and the possibilities for how these conflicts can come to an end. [Bennis] specified ceased fires, arms and embargoes, as well as the role of powerful nations such as the U.S. and Russia who are continuing the conflict.”
Freshman marketing major Vicky Zaharopoulos, attended the event for her cultural geography class.
“I really thought it was inter- esting how [Bennis] mentioned Americans facing xenophobia when it comes to letting refugees into the country,” she said. “It was really upsetting to find out that most of the weapons and ammu- nition used by radical groups in Syria were being supplied by the United States.”
Bennis is working hard to spread her message to students all over the country.
“Young people are what spark movements,” she said. “Look
at Black Lives Matter. Look at the old Civil Rights movements. These activists were 17, 18, 19 years old. They were kids. Those were the movements that change the world.”
