The Princeton Middle East Society is a non-profit organization created to promote an understanding of the history, culture and peoples of the Middle East. Fundamental to our mission is respect for the human rights and dignity of all in the region. Our aim is to provide the Greater Princeton community in New Jersey with access to information and viewpoints that are often underrepresented in the mainstream media.
Dr. Christiana Parreira to Speak at PMES Event on April 19, 2022
We’re happy announce our first event of the “post-pandemic era,” and hope you’ll join us. The event will be held on Tuesday, April 19th, at 7:00 p.m. in the Founder’s Room of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 50 Cherry Valley Road (at the corner of Route 206) in Princeton. The doors will open at 6:30 p.m. for light refreshments and a brief PMES meeting.
Our guest, Dr. Christiana Parriera, a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Near East Studies at Princeton University, will speak at 7. Her topic is: Lebanese Politics Through Protest and Crisis. She has provided the following summary:
Over the past three years, Lebanon has experienced an unprecedented protest wave and an equally extraordinary economic meltdown. That said, Lebanon’s political system and elite power structures have remained largely intact. What explains these patterns of continuity and change? And can upcoming elections in May 2022 produce meaningful change?
Drawing from my forthcoming book-project and ongoing fieldwork in Lebanon, I will examine the factors that led up to Lebanon’s 2019 “October Revolution” and subsequent crisis of governance. I will then discuss the implications of the current political landscape for the upcoming Parliamentary elections, which will see the country’s long-standing ruling parties pitted against a slew of nascent opposition movements.
This event is open to members and their guests only. Contact us for information about becoming a member of the Princeton Middle East Society.
In the Past
March 19, 2020: Private docent-led tour of Princeton Art Museum holdings of arts of the Ancient Near East, Byzantium and Islamic World. Members only. (Cancelled)
February 10, 2020: Private home screening of The Cave, 2020 Oscar nominee for Best Documentary (Feature). Members only.
For besieged civilians in Eastern Ghouta during the Syrian Civil War, hope and safety lie underground inside the subterranean hospital known as the Cave. The film follows pediatrician and managing director Dr. Amani Ballour and her colleagues as they contend with daily bombardments, chronic supply shortages, the threat of chemical attacks and the patriarchal culture that challenges the women’s right to work as equals alongside their male counterparts.
December 18, 2019: Holiday Party and Talk on “Current Developments in Tunisia.”Author and journalist Nicholas Noe and entrepreneur Steven Abdelatif presented their unique insights into business and contemporary life in Tunisia from the point of view of two young men with multiple businesses in Tunisia. Members only.
October 1, 2019: PMES and co-sponsor Jewish Voice for Peace-Central New Jersey kicked off the new year with a reception and screening of the acclaimed film The Wanted 18 at the UU Congregation of Princeton. Free and open to the public.
Through a clever mix of stop-motion animation and interviews, The Wanted 18 recreates an astonishing true story: the Israeli army’s pursuit of 18 cows, whose independent milk production by the townspeople of Beit Sahour was declared a “threat to the national security of the state of Israel.”
