Mahmood Mamdani, Herbert Lehman Professor of Government in the departments of anthropology, political science and international affairs at Columbia University and the author of Saviors and Survivors: Darfur, Politics, and the War on Terror(Pantheon, 2009), places the conflict in Darfur in a broader historical context.
Comments [11]
fascinating segment Brian. thanks for presenting a counternarrative that is so often missing in the media.
i'm agnostic on the issue of how to allocate blame for Darfur. but, i would be very surprised if it were not a lot more complicated than the likes of a George Clooney could comprehend (see, for example, his "black and white" version, "Goodnight and Good Luck", of the actually far more complex political situation here in the early 50s).
Marco, I'm sorry you weren't admitted. Tough break - you definitely sound intelligent enough.
Not all of us here agree with Mamdani's views, and Columbia has a massive and powerful Jewish population. And a vocal opposition. That's what makes it a vibrant University.
I have taken Mamdani's class and it has helped me understand clearly why I disagree with him and those who advocate his views. Mamdani's beliefs on the importance of holding onto and addressing the past are a bit contradictory.
How frightening to read xenophobic responses. Any explanation which may deviate from the convenient narrative is seen as apology. Muffling descent is indeed sure path to fascism.
WNYC has had plenty of different perspectives on the crisis in Darfur and Mamdani is another one. His views are welcome in the mix and he is one of the leading African intellectuals of the day. Thank you to the Lehrer Show for keeping up a debate.
The comments posted here are by users are disappointing--immediately the Nazi metaphors and assuming Mamdani is a Muslim, apparently because of his name? And Columbia University is "Al Quds on the Hudson?" Absolute nonsense. It is a huge university with all sorts of different views represented on campus and by faculty, students, and staff.
Columbia really is al Quds-on-the-Hudson.
Brian, you can't let this segment be the only conversation on your show about Darfur. The problems in Darfur are not the manifestation of some "CNN effect" as your guest claims. Please bring in some other more mainstream voices, especially Darfuri voices.
This guy is scary - a Muslim Goebells.
The level of savagery in Darfur cannot be denied. Blaming colonialism, etc. is like justifying Hitler's actions because of the way the world treated Germany after World War I. At some point people have to be responsible for the immorality of their actions. This radio discussion shows how easy it is to deny the shocking savagery in an intellectual discussion of whose fault it is.
When Muslim Arabs butcher Muslim blacks in Sudan, "academic" blames colonialism...
Same old crap...different snake-tounged phony....
This man is an apologist for the Arabic oppressors in Darfur. It's like listening to a Nazi saying ''We're not killing any Jews.''
Another Muslim apologist...just look at al Bashir's response to the Hague...he threw out all the aid agencies.
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