By Zorian Edwards and Kaity Hersee, Staff Writers
On Nov. 14, Associate Professor and Chair of the English Department, Hamish Dalley organized arrangements for a limited number of students to attend UB’s Distinguished Speaker event featuring Nobel prize winner and activist Nadia Murad. Around thirteen students total participated in the event.
“I thought the talk by Nadia Murad was interesting and insightful,” freshman undeclared major Stephanie Baier said. “She had excellent speaking skills, which is really impressive considering English is her second language. I learned a lot about the situation in Iraq; I didn’t know how extreme it was for the Yazidi people so this really opened my eyes…She didn’t let her circumstances control her. Instead of staying quiet, she got a college education and then used her voice to tell the world her story.”
Nadia Murad’s story is detailed in her book The Last Girl: My Story of Captivity, and My Fight Against the Islamic State.
“Nadia Murad was born and raised in Kocho, a small village of farmers and shepherds in northern Iraq,” the book’s description on Amazon states. “A member of the Yazidi community, she and her brothers and sisters lived a quiet life. Nadia had dreams of becoming a history teacher or opening her own beauty salon. On August 15th, 2014, when Nadia was just twenty-one years old, this life ended. Islamic State militants massacred the people of her village, executing men who refused to convert to Islam and women too old to become sex slaves. Six of Nadia’s brothers were killed, and her mother soon after, their bodies swept into mass graves. Nadia was taken to Mosul and forced, along with thousands of other Yazidi girls, into the ISIS slave trade.”
Murad’s accomplishments after surviving what has happened to her are significant. She carried on and not only won a Nobel prize, but she also started Nadia’s Initiative, which aims to create a world where women and girls are able to live peacefully. They also help communities who have experienced trauma feel supported and help them redevelop.
“We advocate — at the local, national, and international levels — for resources and policy changes needed to protect and support survivors of sexual violence and rebuild communities in crisis,” their website states. “We collaborate with global leaders, governments, and international organizations to raise awareness and direct critical funding necessary to make positive, meaningful change.”
During the event, Murad shared her story with the attendees and shared the struggles and triumphs she experienced throughout her activism and writing her book.
“I felt responsible to share what women and girls were going through,” Murad said. “…It was so risky because ISIS knew me and my family members…without my face, my story is not completed…The world is connected and it is so important to think about it. It’s never really too far…The one thing that pushed me, no matter what, was my family…After I left Iraq I realized how common it was…knowing that this is very common and very old and that we have not found a way to stop it. Only makes my story more important to share.”
This event was the product of collaboration and teamwork.
“I was greatly aided in coordinating by my friend Dr. Kari Winter, Professor of American Studies in the Department of Global Gender and Sexuality Studies at the University at Buffalo, who mc’d the event and was responsible for leading the interview portion,” Dalley said. “Dr. Winter drew my attention to Nadia Murad’s visit during the summer and negotiated for Daemen students to be admitted at the rate normally reserved for UB. It’s important to acknowledge the support of the Dean of the College of Arts, Sciences, and Education, Dr. Heather Maloney-Stassen, who provided the funds for tickets. Dr. Messinger was a great help in recruiting students and ensuring a robust turnout.”
The English department is looking for similar opportunities in the future for Daemen students.
“It’s my hope that we can continue to provide opportunities to participate in interesting and engaging extra- and co-curricular opportunities like this one,” Dalley said. “ Last year we welcomed to campus a local novelist, Susan Furber, who did a public reading of her work and met with English majors to discuss careers in creative writing and the publishing industry. I’m looking for similar opportunities in the future. I think they boost the profile of our department and help emphasize the concrete value of studying English.”