Life under Saddam Hussein:

The Legacies of War, Sanctions, and Authoritarian Rule for the People of Baghdad
A Presentation by American Fellowship Grant Recipient, Alissa Walter
Join us on Monday, March 19, 2018 at Community United Methodist Church Half Moon Bay

Alissa Walter, an AAUW American Fellowship grant recipient, will address our Branch with her fascinating research in the modern Middle East: How ordinary people develop survival strategies when lives are in turmoil with foreign wars, domestic uprisings and huge economic downturns – not to mention coping with the violence of a dictatorship. This is an excellent opportunity for us to see how our fundraising, spent at the national level, supports women, research and education. As a professor, Ms. Walter uses her research to empower students, policymakers and community members with knowledge about current issues in the Middle East and their historical context. Our guest speaker comes to us via Georgetown University, Washington, DC, where she is currently a PhD candidate in modern Middle Eastern history, with plans to de-fend her dissertation in Spring this year. Alissa is building her career as a schol-ar/teacher committed to advancing knowledge about the modern Middle East. She has recently been offered and accepted a position as Assistant Professor of History at Se-attle Pacific University, to begin in the Fall of 2018. Alissa’s fields of expertise include State Building in 20th-century Iraq and Egypt, Wom-en and Subalterns in the non-Western World, History of Development. She is the win-ner of the Georgetown Sharabi Graduate Student Essay Competition in 2012 and earned highest distinction in comprehensive exams in 2014. Her research is funded by AAUW, the United States Institute of Peace, the Dolores Zohrab Liebmann Fund, the American Academic Research Institute in Iraq (TAARII) and Georgetown University. Alissa is also a new mother. Her daughter Luna, was born in August 2017. Since AAUW supports women of all ages, we have encouraged her to bring Luna to the meeting, if bedtime permits. Come join us! Witness just how wide the ripple effect of AAUW and women supporting women can reach! Social time begins at 6:30 PM. Alissa Walter’s presentation will begin at 7 PM. Branch Business will follow our guest speaker’s presentation.
Hospitality is provided by Moss Beach.