POLITICAL SCIENCE CLUB HOSTS FORUM ON MIDDLE EAST PROTESTS

MELANIE SLOCUM
PRIDE STAFF WRITER

On Tuesday, March 8, the Political Science Club at Cal State San Marcos hosted the event “Protests and Political Change,” which featured Political Science professors Dr. Cyrus Masroori and Dr. Scott Greenwood discussing current protests in the Middle East.

The event took place during U-Hour on Tuesday, and students poured in to listen to the words of expert professors. An estimate of 75 attendees crammed themselves into a University Hall classroom.

Political Science Club President Brittany Varga discussed the event as having “perfect timing because so much is happening right now in the Middle East [and] it is important people understand what is going on.” She continued, “not only is it important to know what’s going on, but it’s imperative to understand why it’s happening there.” Dr. Greenwood and Dr. Masroori aimed to provide such understanding with their presentations.

Dr. Greenwood began the event with his presentation titled “Lessons from Tunisia, Egypt and Libya,” which juxtaposed the democratic success in Tunisia and Egypt against the tragedy of events in Libya. Dr. Greenwood carefully tailored his presentation to a level that was relatable to CSUSM students by discussing the significant role played by new media such as Facebook and Twitter, the globalized economy, the military and more. Dr. Greenwood’s enthusiasm and empathy stemmed from his travels in these countries, which he also discussed. Greenwood often chanted “We can do this!” as a way to explain the attitudes of the demonstrators in Egypt and Libya while concurrently contrasting it to the lack of success in Libya.

Following Dr. Greenwood’s presentation, Dr. Masroori discussed the protests in Iran in his presentation titled “Iran, Searching for a Promise.” Dr. Masroori exposed the longevity of Iran’s 21-month-long protests and attributed it to three factors: the state, the opposition and the international dynamic. Masroori worked to clear Western media biases by providing a theoretical basis that aided in explaining the reasoning behind and effects of the Iranian demonstrations.

Whether students showed up for extra credit, free pizza or sheer interest in the subject, there is no doubt that the audience was large. Political Science Club Treasurer Gabriella Pruitt, surprised by the turnout, commented: “Although this subject is very important to me, our campus is still very lackluster in terms of student life [for a variety of reasons]. I guess we should have reserved a larger room!”

Awareness of political and humanitarian issues is proving itself especially essential these days, and as reflected by the large student turnout, the CSUSM community realizes this.