Internationally recognized political and human rights leader Garo Paylan will be delivering the Annual Hrant Dink Memorial Lecture at Harvard University on Wednesday, January 22, 2025.
The Boston-based Friends of Hrant Dink, Inc., is pleased to welcome Paylan as the 2025 Distinguished Lecturer, following a long series of annual lecture events that are sponsored by the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Harvard University (Hrant Dink Memorial CMES Fund).
Garo Paylan is a leading opposition voice and a prominent human rights defender in Turkey. He served in the Turkish parliament for eight years, from June 2015 to June 2023, and is internationally recognized for his dedication to democracy and the rights of all minorities in Turkey, as well as his advocacy for peace in the South Caucasus.
Paylan was one of the very few Armenians ever elected to the Turkish parliament and the first lawmaker to propose an amendment for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide in Turkey. Throughout his tenure, he consistently emphasized the need for Turkey to confront this historic tragedy, despite facing legal prosecution for his proposals and statements.
Widely regarded as one of Turkey’s foremost advocates for democracy, Paylan has received several international awards for his work in promoting democratic values.
His lecture, titled “Building Bridges of Understanding: Hrant Dink’s Legacy in a Fractured World,” will focus on the many dimensions of the legacy of the assassinated journalist, Hrant Dink.
Gonca Sönmez-Poole, the newly elected Chairwoman of the Friends of Hrant Dink, Inc, stated, “Hrant Dink’s legacy stretches beyond the borders of Turkey and into our wider world where the need for democracy, transparency and social justice is being obstructed by authoritarian tendencies. His legacy has proven essential not only for Turkey, but also for the understanding of the principles of freedom of speech and expression in every corner of our world.”
Harry Parsekian, founder and Board member of Friends of Hrant Dink, Inc, shared his thoughts about this upcoming event: “We could not have invited a more qualified person to speak about Hrant Dink’s legacy than Garo Paylan.”
Paylan is currently a visiting scholar with the Europe Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C., where his research focuses on the South Caucasus and Turkey.
The lecture is open to the public, and will begin at 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, January 22, 2025, in the Science Center Hall E, 1 Oxford St, Cambridge, MA 02138.
For more information, please visit the following link or email Liz Flanagan at elizabethflanagan@fas.harvard.edu.
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