Into Afghanistan: Reflections on War, History and the Persistence of Art

Presentation by Ana Menéndez, The Humanities Edge Program 

Thursday, November 15, 2018  |  6:30 PM  |  FIU MMC  |  Green School Gallery (SIPA Building, 1st Floor)

Join the Steven J. Green School of International and Public Affairs for a special presentation and reception marking the closing of the exhibition “Turquoise Mountain: Artists Transforming Afghanistan.” Ana Menéndez, co-director of the FIU/Miami-Dade College program The Humanities Edge, will share her experiences as a journalist traveling through Afghanistan in 1998, when the Taliban were at the height of their power, and crumpled Soviet tanks still littered the countryside. Ana will talk about that long war, the startling hospitality she encountered, and how a surprise encounter on the road from Kandahar to Herat altered her perceptions about that beautiful and troubled land forever.

Ana Menéndez has published four books of fiction: Adios, Happy Homeland!, The Last War,  Loving Che and In Cuba I Was a German Shepherd, whose title story won a Pushcart Prize. She has worked as a journalist in the United States and abroad, lastly as a prize-winning columnist for The Miami Herald. As a reporter, she wrote about Cuba, Haiti, Kashmir, Afghanistan and India, where she was based for three years. Her work has appeared in a variety of publications including Vogue, Bomb Magazine, The New York Times and Tin House and has been included in several anthologies, including The Norton Anthology of Latino Literature. She has a B.A. in English from Florida International University and an M.F.A. from New York University. A former Fulbright Scholar in Egypt, she is now a program director with Academic Affairs at FIU. 

Event will feature Afghan music by Jorge Alfano and food and refreshments by Rice House of Kabob. 

Co-sponsored by

Mohsin & Fauzia Jaffer Center for Muslim World Studies

The Humanities Edge Program  |  Green School Arts & Humanities Initiative

This event is free and open to the public.  To RSVP, please click here.

For more information, please call 305-348-7266