bulletin_board_77_September 2014 Bulletin Board 7/30/14 11:50 AM Page 77 Upcoming Events, Announcements & —Compiled by Kevin A. Davis Obituaries BulletinBoard Events The Alliance of Baptists and Bright Stars of Bethlehem will host the Room For Hope Festival at Queens University, Covenant Presbyterian Church and St. John’s Baptist Church in Charlotte, NC. At the four-day festival, from Sept. 25 to 28, visitors will learn about the story of Palestine through performances and events. For more information visit . The Washington, DC area will celebrate Arab Fest 2014 on Sept. 27 at Bull Run Regional Park in Centreville, VA. The event aims to celebrate Arab culture and enhance the image of Arabs to Americans. It will feature food, music, DJs, comedy shows, talent shows, fashion shows, and dance performances. Visit or e-mail for more information. The Ramallah Club of Detroit will host Palestine Day: Building Bridges, a fundraiser for the Medical Mission in Palestine, on Sept. 28 at the Burton Manor in Livonia, MI. Visit for more information and how to volunteer. The art exhibit Here and Elsewhere is on view at the New Museum in New York City through Sept. 28. One of the largest contemporary collections of art from the Arab world outside the Middle East, the exhibit features more than 45 different artists from more than 15 countries. For more information visit . The Jerusalem Fund Art Gallery in Washington, DC will be showing Fragmented Spring, an exhibit of works by LebaneseAmerican artist Helen Zughaib. The exhibit will feature paintings relating to the 2011 Arab Spring and the anti-government protests that defined it. Opening on Sept. 5, it will remain on view until Oct. 17. For more informatin visit . American Muslims for Palestine will hold its 7th Annual Conference for Palestine in the U.S.: Reclaiming Our Narrative Nov. 27 to 29 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare in Rosemont, IL. Speakers will include Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, Abdelfattah Mourou, Bill Fletcher and many more. Discounts for SEPTEMBER 2014 early registration. E-mail or visit for complete information. Announcements As the result of an agreement between FilmOn Networks and Voice of America, all Voice of America programming can now be viewed at , including VOA’s Persian-language programming. The Policy Studies Organization (PSO) and the Digest of Middle East Studies (DOMES) have issued a Call for Papers for their 2015 Middle East Dialogue: The Middle East: Glorious Past, Uncertain Future. The conference will take place Feb. 26, 2015 in Washington, DC. Two-page proposals for papers relating to political, social and economic reform, as well as women’s rights and religious tolerance, should be sent to by Nov. 1, 2014. Obituaries Lebanese-American scholar Fouad Ajami, 68, died of cancer June 22 in Maine. Born a Shi’i Muslim in Arnoun, in southern Lebanon, he moved to the United States in 1963 and attended what is now Eastern Oregon University. He went on to pursue a Ph.D. in international studies at the University of Washington’s Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies. He then taught political science at Princeton University, where he was known for his activism on behalf of Palestinian rights. However, it was not until Ajami left Princeton to become the director of the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, DC that he rose to prominence. The author of numerous books and articles, including The Arab Predicament, The Dream Palace of the Arabs: A Generation’s Odyssey, and The Foreigner’s Gift: The Americans, The Arabs and the Iraqis in Iraq, he was also a frequent contributor to such publications as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Foreign Affairs. Along with Orientalist scholar Bernard Lewis, he founded the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA), an academic organization intended to counter the respected Middle East Studies Association (MESA), which Ajami claimed to THE WASHINGTON REPORT ON MIDDLE EAST AFFAIRS be unfairly critical of Israel and U.S. foreign policy in the region. Ajami is perhaps most notorious for his advocacy for the U.S. invasion of Iraq and his advising the George W. Bush administration. He was a close adviser to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and was frequently cited as a Middle East expert by neocon administration officials, including Vice President Dick Cheney, to justify the U.S. invasion. Ajami asserted that Iraqis in the streets would “erupt in joy” at the arrival of American troops. He went on to support the surge, then became a sharp critic of President Barack Obama for not supporting the war, further criticizing Obama’s 2011 announcement of U.S. troop withdrawal. Ajami even went so far as to credit the Arab Spring to Bush’s invasion and occupation of Iraq. Despite his ostracizing by the academic community and the rousing opposition to his political positions, Ajami remained committed to the war in Iraq until his death, calling it a “noble effort.” Salwa Bugaighis, 50, a Libyan human rights activist, was killed June 25 in her home in Benghazi by unknown attackers. An active supporter of the 2011 Libyan uprising that led to the death of Muammar Qaddafi, she also served on the National Transitional Council, the Libyan transitional governing body. Her death is currently being investigated. Ashley Mammo, 45, an attorney in West Bloomfield, MI who also worked with the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, died July 9 in Detroit of breast cancer. A graduate of the University of Michigan-Dearborn with a degree in psychology and political science, she earned her law degree at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law. She joined ADC in 1997 and became a board member in 2005. A co-founder of Arab-American Women Advocating for Resources and Empowerment (AWARE), which helped bring together and foster female leaders in the Arab-American community, she was well known for her passionate advocacy of the Chaldean Christian and Arab communities in Michigan and across the country. ❑ 77