"Surviving death is not a moment rather a passage" – these words were uttered to a room of nearly 400 eager students and attendees who came to learn more about the man who, along with three other journalists, was held captive by Qaddafi forces in Libya in March.
Anthony Shadid, Beirut bureau chief for the New York Times and Pulitzer Prize winner, visited UCF on Thursday to discuss his experiences covering the Arab revolution. His lecture is the first of many in the "People, Power, Politics, and Global Change" series being hosted by the UCF Global Perspectives Office in partnership with other groups on campus including the UCF Global Peace & Security Studies Program, the Middle Eastern Studies program, and the Nicholson School of Communication among others.
Mark Freeman, Global Perspectives Public Affairs Coordinator, is responsible for the coordination and promotion of many UCF Global Perspectives' events
"He [Shadid] was the perfect person to kick off the series. He has been covering the Middle East for quite some time and his knowledge of the region's people and politics is quite strong," Freeman said.
Shadid doesn't claim to know the answer to all things Middle Eastern but he discussed points pertinent to today's society and was able to give first-hand details about the ongoing revolutions in the Middle East as he has seen them.
"I am struck by how much people are willing to fight in the face of all this violence…[Syrian] fear is gone," Shadid said. He mentioned that revolts in Tunisia and Egypt were successful and now it's their Syria's turn.
He described the individuals he met along the way and the strength they had to continue on their route to freedom.
"These revolutions are being driven by youth wanting dignity as individuals, dignity as a whole, regime change, and liberation" Shadid said about the Arab spring.
Lara Ghannam, UCF junior majoring in international and global studies, came to the event believing in the idea that a new government for Syria -- and the Middle East -- could bring change and globalization to a world in great need of it.
"These new revolutions will knock out the puppets of the West", Ghannam said, "Arabs are not bad, but the world view of them especially these days is misinformed, we need a new view. Lectures such as this create a big impact for Muslims, for students, and for the world as a whole."
Many attendees hoped for future predictions during this lecture, ideas of which Shadid could not discuss in depth.
"I don't claim to know what will happen in the future, and when I do make a prediction it is usually wrong. The more important thing to take away here is that we don't need to be conclusive or know everything that is going to happen. It's important to know something, to start somewhere" Shadid said.
Freeman agreed, "We hope people who attend realize how interconnected the world truly is. That what may be going on in the Middle East can have profound impacts on us here in the U.S."
After the event, attendees were invited to meet Anthony Shadid and his daughter who stood by his side. Shadid's "Night Draws Near-Iraq's People in the Shadow of America's War" was available for purchase and he was available to sign copies for everyone who hung around to meet him.
The next event in this series is being held Tuesday, Sept. 6 at 3 p.m. in the Cape Florida Ballroom.
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