Center Stage 
FALL 2009 MULTI-CULTURAL / DIVERSITY
Students scan Eagle ID cards for attendance tracking
September 10, 7:00 p.m. JOAN MANDELL “Voices in Exile” Backdoor Playhouse
Ms. Mandell will show and discuss her documentary about the trial of 8 immigrants to the U.S. who were arrested in 1987 for being associated with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).
September 15, 6:00 p.m. LUZMA UMPIERRE “I Am Still Standing” South Hall 104
Dr. Umpierre will discuss and do poetry readings from her books, on her migration to the U.S. and her many issues as a Latina, a woman of color and as a lesbian.
September 22, 7:00 p.m. FAROOKA GAUHARI “An Afghan Woman’s Odyssey”
Derryberry Auditorium
Ms. Gauhari, author of “Searching for Saleem: An Afghan Woman’s Odyssey” describes the search for her husband after the 1979 Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan and speaks of the changes in her society, her decision to leave the country and life for Afghan women today.
September 28-30, 8:00 p.m. OLU OBAFEMI’S “Naira Has No Gender" Backdoor Playhouse
This is a play by Professor Obafemi, a visiting scholar from Nigeria. It is directed by Dr. Obafemi and Mark Harry Creter. http://www.tntech.edu/bdph
September 29, 6:00 p.m. RACELLE WEIMAN “Finding Family: Outsiders and Insiders, Creating an Inclusive Global Community” Clement Hall 212
Dr. Weiman will screen her Emmy nominated documentary based on the reunion of Holocaust survivor, Henry Blumenstein, and the descendants of the Dutch-Catholic family who saved his life during the Holocaust.
October 8, 6:00 p.m. BARBARA EHRENREICH “Nickel and Dimed” Derryberry Auditorium
Ms. Ehrenreich is a New York Times bestselling author. She has written or co-authored 19 books, many of which focus on women and minorities. One of her most popular books is “Nickel and Dimed On (Not) Getting By in America” on which her presentation is based.
October 20-30 DR. RICHARD ACKAM “Art of Ghana, Africa” Various locations/times
Oct. 21-30 Exhibit Joan Derryberry Art Gallery
Oct. 22, 9:30am-10:50am Lecture: Prehistory, Ancient & Modern Art on the African Continent
Bryan Fine Arts Room 374
Oct. 22, 11:00am-Noon Reception Joan Derryberry Art Gallery
Oct. 26, 1:15pm-4:15pm Workshop: Adinkara Cloth Making Techniques
Appalachian Center for Craft
Oct. 27, 1:30pm-2:50pm Lecture: Trends in African-American Art Bryan Fine Arts Room 374
Oct. 29, 3:00pm-4:20pm Lecture: Indigenous Ghanaian Art Traditions Bryan Fine Arts Room 374
October 22, 7:00 p.m. ELEPHANT ENGINE HIGH DIVE REVIVAL Backdoor Playhouse
This is an annual tour of performance poetry, featuring several artists from the Write Bloody Publishing collective. This part of the tour will feature Derrick Brown, Buddy Wakefield, Anis Mojgani, Cristin O’Keefe and Mindy Nettifee.
November 2, 7:00 p.m. ISSUES IN THE MUSLIM “The Raging Debates” Multipurpose Room
A panel will discuss current issues in the Muslim world. The panel will include Dr. Abdulhakim Ali Mohamed, a 3rd generation American of Yemeni decent who grew up in Detroit and has been an Imam in New York City, Detroit, Nashville and Fort Worth. Dr. Mohamed currently serves as the Executive Director of the Texas Islamic Council (T.I.C.) program at the Freedom and Justice Foundation in Dallas, Texas. Mr. Gyasi Mckinzie is from Memphis, TN and spent 7 years in Saudi Arabia studying Arabic and Islam completing a Diploma in Arabic and a Bachelor’s degree in Islamic studies from the Islamic University at Medina, Saudi Arabia. He has served as both Imam and Director of the Memphis Muslim Youth Center and the Education and Outreach Center of the Memphis Muslim Society mosque. Dr. Awadh Amir Binhazim was born and raised in Kenya and educated in Saudi Arabia, Kenya and the University of Georgia in the U.S. He is the founder and President of the Board of Directors of Olive Tree Education, an Islamic outreach and education awareness group in Nashville. After the 9/11 attacks, he served as the spokesperson of the Muslim community in Nashville (2001-2006). He is currently professor of pathology at Meharry Medical College, adjunct professor of Africana studies at TSU and former adjunct professor of Islam at the Divinity School, as well as the Muslim Chaplain at the Office for Religious Life at Vanderbilt University.
November 5, 4: 00-6:00p.m. MULTICULTURAL EVENING Multipurpose Room RUC
Free international food and activities
November 5, 7:30 p.m. STEFAN FREUND, Composer Wattenbarger Auditorium
This public performance of Stefan Freund’s music is part of his composer residency on campus.
November 12-13 ADRIENNE DANRICH “This Little Light of Mine” Bryan Fine Arts Building
Nov. 12, 11:00 a.m. Master Class
Nov. 13, 7:30 p.m. Public Performance Wattenbarger Auditorium
THIS PERFORMANCE HAS BEEN CANCELLED AND RESCHEDULED FOR JANUARY 21-22, 2010
November 19, 11:00 a.m. DR. JACK LEVIN “Hate & Violence on Campus”
Multipurpose Room RUC
4:00 p.m. “Campus Rampage” Derryberry Auditorium
