Center for the Study of Europe Hosts Lecture on Belarus
The Center for the Study of Europe, an affiliated regional center at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, hosted Kim Scheppele, Laurance S. Rockefeller Professor of Sociology and International Affairs in The Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, for a virtual lecture on September 3, 2020, titled “How Dictatorships End (or Not): Finding a Way Forward in Belarus.” Ambassador Vesko Garčević, Pardee School Professor of the Practice of International Relations, provided introductions for the lecture.
Following the seemingly fixed presidential election of Alexander Lukashenko in August, oposition leaders in Belarus were forced to flee the country resulting in nationwide protests. During her remarks, Scheppele discussed the ongoing demonstrations in Belarus, the ensuing revolutionary energy permeating the country, the role of women in these movements, and the brutal response by Belarus’ leadership and military police.
A recording of the event can be viewed below.
The mission of the Center for the Study of Europe is to promote understanding of Europe through its cultural heritage; its political, economic, and religious histories; its art, literature, music, and philosophy; as well as through its recent emergence as a new kind of international form through the European Union (EU). Operationally, the center provides a focal point and institutional support for the study of Europe across Boston University through coordination of teaching missions, support of research, community-building among faculty and students, and outreach beyond the University.