China and its treatment of Uyghur Muslims focus of presentation at CSUSB

The mass internment of China’s Uyghurs, a largely Muslim ethnic minority who live in the northwestern region of Xinjiang, will be among the topics discussed by two guest speakers when the Center for Islamic & Middle Eastern Studies presents “China and the Uyghur Muslims: A Human and Cultural Genocide.”
 
The program is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 12, beginning at 6 p.m. in the College of Education building, room CE-105. The event is free and open to the public; parking at CSUSB is $6.
 
The panelists are Dru C. Gladney and Nurnisa Kurban. Gladney is chair and professor of anthropology at Pomona College in Claremont, and recent president of the Pacific Basin Institute. He is author of several books, including the award-winning book, “Muslim Chinese: Ethnic Nationalism in the People's Republic” (Harvard University Press, 1996, 2nd edition). Kurban is an Uyghur American and board member of UyghurLA. She is also an assistant principal at Helen Bernstein High School in Los Angeles.
 
Jeremy Murray, CSUSB associate professor of history, will be the panel moderator.
 
The focus on the Uyghurs (also known as Uighurs or Uigurs) people will place them in historical and contemporary geopolitical context, both in China and around the world. The Uyghurs are a largely Muslim ethnic minority people who also have a significant diasporic community.
 
Gladney and Kurban will bring their scholarly expertise and personal experience to CSUSB. Kurban will provide a personal perspective on Uyghur identity, diaspora, and activism in recent years. She will situate the Uyghur experience within the broader Muslim world of China, which also includes the Hui and Kazakh people.
 
Recent developments in the region, including the mass internment of Uyghurs and proscription of some cultural and religious practices by the Beijing government, have made this an urgent topic around the world. According to The Guardian newspaper in the U.K. and the Council on Foreign Relations, more than 1 million Uyghur Muslims are being held in detention centers.
 
For more information, contact CIMES Director Ahlam Muhtaseb at amuhtase@csusb.edu.