Remembering Eden: Why the Islamic State is Assaulting our Collective Memory
VIEW EVENT DETAILSEvening Presentation
Drinks Reception 6:30pm,
Presentation 7:00pm,
Close 8:00pm
The world in June 2014 witnessed the erosion of a most diverse cultural landscape that characterized Mesopotamia when hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi Christians, Yezidis and other historic minority communities were driven out of their ancient homelands by Islamic State (IS) militants. Sledgehammers were taken to irreplaceable treasures and bulldozers were turned to historic sites. Culture and monuments that forged our collective memory were destroyed and borne witness to our shared humanity. During the presentation, Dr. Amal Marogy will argue that IS is not only motivated by religious zeal, as it claims. Rather, they are trying to control how we remember our past and shape our future by targeting culture and destroying several millennia of common heritage. Dr Marogy will also argue that the culture of fear and hatred that IS is spreading can only be defeated by protecting our common heritage.
Dr. Amal Marogy is Founder and Executive Director of Aradin Charitable Trust, a charity that aims to help historic minority communities in the Middle East and around the world to preserve their language and endangered culture heritage. She is also Affiliated Researcher in Neo-Aramaic Studies at the University of Cambridge. Her current research seeks to document the social and cultural history of a group of Neo-Aramaic dialects that have lost most of their fluent speakers and record their endangered oral tradition before it is too late. Dr. Marogy was previously Director of Studies in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at King’s College, London. She has taught Arabic at various European universities and institutions including the Universities of Leuven and Cambridge. Dr. Marogy has authored and edited numerous books mainly in the field of Arabic. Dr. Marogy holds a Ph.D. in oriental languages and cultures from the University of Ghent, Belgium.
Event Details
Asia Society Hong Kong Center, 9 Justice Drive, Admiralty