Humanities & Society

Samer S. Shehata, PhD, a leading Arab-American expert on Middle East politics, will deliver the keynote address at a public symposium titled “The Crisis in Egypt” at 4 p.m. Monday, Sept. 23, at Washington University in St. Louis. The symposium, which will be held in Umrath Lounge, will also feature a roundtable discussion and presentations on the latest developments in Egypt. 

My Name Is Strong, a Clinton Global Initiative project, hosts an art exhibit Friday, Sept. 20 at Union Avenue Church. Some 45 works, including this piece(left) by Brown School student Kyle Brandt-Lubart, explore the issue of gender-based violence and celebrate the strength of its survivors.

Faculty fellows open their doors to South 40 residents looking for advice, friendship and brownies. Veteran fellow Brian Carpenter says the 15-year old program builds trust and relationships between students and professors and has fundamentally changed the South 40 experience.

​Public health is becoming one of the most pressing social concerns facing the global community, and it’s an issue Alfredo Palacio recognized years ago as president of the Republic of Ecuador. Palacio will visit Washington University during its annual Global Health Week Sept. 23-27 and give an Assembly Series talk on “Government and Health Care: Perspectives from a President and a Physician” at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 25, in Graham Chapel.

Leigh E. Schmidt, PhD, delivered the following address during his Sept. 3 installation ceremony as the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished University Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. 

​Anti-abortion groups are well known for demonstrating and sidewalk counseling at women’s reproductive health facilities, but a Massachusetts statute criminalizes even peaceful expression on public sidewalks near these clinics. An upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case will determine the constitutionality of Massachusetts’ selective exclusion law, which applies only to streets and sidewalks near reproductive health-care facilities. “If Massachusetts can close off the sidewalks surrounding reproductive health centers to peaceful expressive activity, then the government can prohibit expression in a wide range of circumstances,” says John Inazu, JD, First Amendment expert and associate professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis.​

Leigh E. Schmidt, PhD, was installed as the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished University Professor during a Sept. 3 ceremony in Holmes Lounge, Ridgley Hall. Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton places a medallion on Schmidt, who delivered a talk, titled “Mystics, Cranks, and William James.” A historian of American religion, Schmidt joined the John C. Danforth Center on Religion & Politics in 2011.

This year’s Washington University Global Health Week has something for everyone. The public can watch Ethiopian dancers, listen to the melodies of Argentina and attend a lecture by the former president and health minister of Ecuador. Attendees also can buy ethnic food, shop for artisan crafts and ask Global Health Scholars, medical students and undergraduates about their outreach efforts.

Students, staff and faculty are invited to tour the new Harvey Media Center during an open house Sept. 19. Available services include video and audio recording and Polycom video conferencing.

This fall, Hold That Thought, a weekly podcast series from Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, will continue to delve into current academic research by teaming up with WUSTL’s American Culture Studies program. Together, they are exploring the question of what it means to be an American, today and throughout the country’s history.