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Peace activist Kathy Kelly to speak Feb. 21

February 8, 2013
Kathy Kelly

Kathy Kelly

Internationally known peace activist Kathy Kelly will talk about her recent visits to Syria and the Gaza Strip at 7:15 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, in the Illinois Room of Holmes Student Center on the NIU campus.

The talk is free and open to the public. Free parking will be available in the NIU visitors lot after 7 p.m.

Kelly co-coordinates Voices for Creative Nonviolence, a campaign to end U.S. military and economic warfare. Her experiences provide an on-the-ground perspective of the present Middle East situation.

Tomis Kapitan, NIU Presidential Teaching Professor of philosophy, will deliver an introduction.

“In the interests of justice, peace and an informed public, I think it is absolutely vital that voices like Kathy Kelly’s be heard,” Kapitan said, “especially since our country is pouring billions of dollars into the Middle East, and we are deeply involved in every aspect of political life in the region.”

Kelly has made numerous trips to the Middle East over the past decade and has been nominated more than once for the Nobel Peace Prize for her humanitarian work. She also has written numerous articles about her experiences in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Gaza Strip, Lebanon and Syria.

Her talk is co-sponsored by the DeKalb Interfaith Network and the NIU Department of Philosophy. For more information, contact Dan Kenney, co-coordinator of the DeKalb Interfaith Network, at (815) 793-0950 or dkenney53@hotmail.com.