91短视频 junior Jason Dwyer is interested in a career in public policy. The Fairfax, Virginia, native is double-majoring in political science and history and envisions a job someday at the U.S. Department of State.
So, when Dr. Kristina Hook, a former State Department policy adviser for mass atrocity prevention, visited 91短视频 last week to present on Russia鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine, Dwyer jumped at the chance to see her speak.
鈥淚t was fascinating and interesting to see someone in the field talk about what they鈥檙e passionate about,鈥� Dwyer said. 鈥淚t was cool, especially to hear not necessarily what you get on the news.鈥�
is an assistant professor of conflict management at Kennesaw State University specializing in comparative genocide studies. Supported by the National Science Foundation, Fulbright and USAID fellowships, she has conducted fieldwork in Ukraine since 2015.
She was selected as this year鈥檚 speaker for the annual Albert N. Keim Lecture Series, presented by the 91短视频 History and Political Science programs. In addition to her lecture, she met with faculty and students such as Dwyer for lunch, where she talked about her career progression and path through higher education.
Lys Nolt, a senior from Harrisonburg, also attended the lunch talk with Hook as well as the afternoon lecture. Nolt is taking a human rights and dignity course this semester, and was strongly encouraged to attend the presentation.
The peacebuilding major is interested in working with nongovernmental organizations after graduation, and appreciated hearing Hook speak about generational trauma.
鈥淪omething I鈥檝e been learning more and more in peacebuilding is the importance of hearing the community and hearing what people have to say,鈥� Nolt said. 鈥淭he amount of care she has for both the Russian and Ukrainian peoples and for their state of living and their well-being during events of mass atrocities 鈥� I was really impressed by the way she approached it.鈥�
Hook’s lecture on Thursday, Jan. 25, titled 鈥淩ussia鈥檚 Full-Scale Invasion of Ukraine: Atrocity Crimes, Accountability, and Pursuing a Just Peace鈥� included:
- Legal definitions of 鈥渁trocity crimes鈥� and how they differ from 鈥渨ar crimes鈥�
- A historical context to Russia鈥檚 aggression against Ukrainians
- Descriptions of the horrors that Ukraine is enduring
- Reactions from Ukrainians to the war
According to a slide from her presentation, 14,000 Ukranians were killed and 1.5 million internally displaced in the first seven years of the Russia-Ukraine War, from 2014 to 2021. During that span, 30,000 war crimes were committed on Ukrainians, and 鈥渏okes and slurs began to open conversations about Russian imperialism within Ukraine.鈥�
In early 2022, as Russia鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine became the largest attack on a European country since World War II, the violence ratcheted up. Ninety-thousand war crimes were recorded in 365 days. Genocidal language was regularly aired on Russian state TV. Torture and disappearances were a regular occurrence. And, for more than 700 days, daily nationwide missile attacks struck hospitals, churches, museums and art galleries.
91短视频 60 people filled the Strite Conference Room in the Campus Center to watch her presentation.
Hook received her joint Ph.D. in anthropology and peace studies from the University of Notre Dame. She is a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council鈥檚 .
Her forthcoming book analyzes the legacy of the Holodomor, a genocide in Ukraine under Joseph Stalin, including how this historical memory is driving Ukraine鈥檚 strong resistance to Russia today.
More on the Keim Lecture Series
The Albert N. Keim Lecture Series honors the memory of Professor Albert N. Keim, who served as a history professor at 91短视频 for 35 years and was the academic dean from 1977 to 1984. The inaugural lecture in 2013 featured leading historian Peter N. Stearns, of George Mason University.
Learn more about past presenters, in this sampling:
2023: Clayton Koppes, professor emeritus of Oberlin College, presented on 鈥淪ex, Drugs and Human Rights: The Contested History of HIV/AIDS in the U.S.鈥�
2022: Professor Kimberly Schmidt presented on鈥淢arketing Mennonites, Posing Cheyennes: Photography, Gender, and Indigenous Agency on the Mission Field (1880-1920).鈥�
2021: Historian, author, and investigative reporter Rick Shenkman, founder of History News Network, spoke on 鈥�Why is Democracy so @#$&! Hard?鈥�
2020: Professor Ernesto Verdeja, of the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at University of Notre Dame, was the speaker.
2019: Federal public defender, immigrant rights attorney and playwright Kara Hartzler 鈥�94 spoke on 鈥淏orders, Jails, and Long Drives in the Desert: 25 Years of Immigration Law in the Southwest.鈥�
2017: Dongping Han, professor at Warren-Wilson College and a native of rural China, addressed 鈥淭he Cultural Revolution: A Reinterpretation from Today鈥檚 China.鈥�
2016: Artist/activist provided a lecture titled 鈥�Performing Statistics: Connecting incarcerated youth, artists, and leading policy experts to challenge Virginia鈥檚 juvenile justice system.鈥�
2015: , political scientist in the University of Kansas鈥檚 School of Public Affairs and Administration, presented 鈥淭he Police and Racial Discrimination in America.鈥�
2014: , a pastor, activist and history professor who helped EMC professors initiate social change in Harrisonburg during the early 1960s, presented 鈥淚s America Possible?鈥�