Global Programs host United Nations Lecture Series, discuss global fight against terrorism
On March 24, 2015, the Alcorn State University Office of Global Programs hosted the sixth installment of its United Nations Lecture Series. Held in the Medgar Evers Auditorium of the J.D. Boyd Library, the event featured keynote speaker Paul Mattias Sundholm, communications advisor for the United Nations Security Council Counter Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED).
Dr. Dovi Alipoe, director of the Office of Global Programs, welcomed the students, faculty and staff and offered the purpose of the event.
“The UN Lecture Series is an initiative that brings speakers to Alcorn who present lectures on current issues of global interests. It is a collaborative endeavor among the University, the Humpty Dumpty Institute, the Higher Education Alliance, and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund,” said Alipoe.
During his speech titled, "United Nations and the Global Fight Against Terrorism,” Sundholm gave an overview of terrorist groups such as the Islamic Society Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), Daesh and other radicalized Sunni Muslims who terrorize people in the Middle East as well as Egypt, Libya, Nigeria and Somalia.
Sudholm spoke at length about the preventative work that the United Nations conducts on behalf of the international community, as well as their strides in establishing legal framework to prevent “freedom fighters” (non-traditional suspects in the diaspora) from joining the movement. He also discussed the different strategies that the United Nations, as well as the United States government, use to identify the root causes of terrorism and help in the efforts to prevent such acts.
“Terrorism is a global phenomenon and although we do not know the reason for terrorist acts, the United Nations is working on preventative efforts and combatting the issues conducive to terrorism,” said Sudholm.
For more information about future UN Lecture Series events, or the Office of Global Programs, contact Dr. Dovi Alipoe, director, at (601) 877-6543 or [email protected].
To report suspicious activity on campus, contact Campus Police at (601) 877-3000 or to report suspicious activity in your community, contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation anonymous terrorism hotline at 1-888-292-1919.
