Media Advisory: G. Whitney Azoy, Afghanistan Expert, to visit Wake Forest

Azoy has been involved with Afghanistan for 40 years as a U.S. diplomat in Kabul and as an anthropologist. He is the author of “Buzkashi: Game and Power in Afghanistan” and more than 100 op-ed newspaper pieces in the aftermath of 9/11. He has served as a consultant for numerous government and non-government organizations, collaborated with the International Security and Assistance Force and the U.S. Army’s Counter-Intelligence Academy, and spent three years directing the American Institute of Afghanistan Studies in Kabul. In October 2011, he was one of six internationals invited by the Afghan National Security Council to attend that country’s first Presidential Study Group.

Azoy has been awarded four Fulbright grants, participated in the National Geographic documentary “Quest for the Blue Mountain” and founded an Afghan scholarship program.

During his visit, he will lead class discussions in anthropology, history, and politics and international affairs

The following events are open for media:

Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.

Location: Carswell Hall, Room 111

“Quest for the Blue Mountain” screening and discussion session

Azoy played the role of guide, central character and narrator in this short 1989 National Geographic Explorer documentary.  The film depicts a trip on foot with an anti-Soviet Afghan Resistance caravan from northwest Pakistan into northeast Afghanistan in search of the world’s oldest and best mine of lapis lazuli. The screening is free and open to the public.

Nov. 13 at 12:15 p.m.

Autumn Room, Reynolda Hall

Azoy will lead a luncheon discussion for students on the importance of developing cultural competency in a global world — drawing on lessons learned from his work in Afghanistan.

Nov. 13 at 7 p.m.

Wake Forest Museum of Anthropology

“An Anthropological Understanding of Afghanistan” (An illustrated lecture)

Azoy will discuss the history, culture and religion of Afghanistan in a talk similar to presentations he has given to U.S. and NATO military personnel preparing to deploy to Afghanistan. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Azoy’s visit is sponsored by the Museum of Anthropology, the Global Affairs Funds for International Scholars, the Documentary Film Program, the Department of Politics and International Affairs, the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, the Wake Forest University Humanities Institute, and the Office of Multicultural Affairs.

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