For immediate release: Nov. 12, 2010

BLOOMSBURG — Pakistani-American writer and commentator Rob Asghar will discuss his experiences as a Muslim-American during a lecture Tuesday, Nov. 16, at 8 p.m. in Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania’s McCormick Hall, room 2303. The event is free and open to the public.

Hosted by the Frederick Douglass Institute and the Helping Professions Living and Learning Community, the lecture aims to inform the public about struggles in the Middle East and how Muslim-Americans have been treated since Sept. 11, 2001. He approaches the subject with honesty, experience and a sense of humor.

“Christian, Muslim, Jew, Hindu, Buddhist, pagan, agnostic, atheists and others can live together in a democratic society,” Asghar said. “But only if we begin working urgently and intentionally to build a better future through true democracy.”

Asghar has published essays in more than 30 newspapers worldwide, including The Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Jordan Times and Japan Times. He is a regular contributor to the Huffington Post and serves as a university fellow at the University of Southern California’s Center on Public Diplomacy.

For more information on this event contact Brian Johnson, director of the Frederick Douglass Institute, at (570) 389-4006.

Bloomsburg University is one of 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. The university serves approximately 9,000 students, offering comprehensive programs of study in the colleges of Education, Business, Liberal Arts and Science and Technology.