Lean to Speak on Islamophobia at University of Mount Olive

MOUNT OLIVE – Nathan Lean, author of “The Islamophobia Industry: How the Right Manufactures Fear of Muslims,” will speak at University of Mount Olive on November 12, 2012. The event, sponsored by the religion and history departments, will take place in Southern Bank Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

Lean’s new book examines a highly organized enterprise of conservative bloggers, right-wing talk show hosts, evangelical religious leaders, and politicians that are united in their quest to exhume the ghosts of September 11 and convince their compatriots that Islam is the enemy. He will take attendees inside the minds of the manufacturers of Islamophobia and will discuss the ways in which this industry of hate inserts their venomous ideologies into mainstream populations. He will discuss their money trail and will situate increased anti-Muslim sentiment in the United States in Europe within recent events such as the anti-Muslim film that set off protests in the Middle East, controversy over the construction of mosques in America, and the wave of violent attacks directed at Muslims.

Lean is the editor-in-chief of Aslan Media, and the co-author of  “Iran, Israel, and the United States: Regime Security vs. Political Legitimacy” (2010).  His writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, the Christian Science Monitor, The Huffington Post, TruthDig, Salon, the New York Daily News and several other online and print outlets. He has been featured on Current TV, National Public Radio, American Public Media, and is frequently cited as an expert on Islamophobia. On November 3, 2012 Lean will receive the “2012 Courage in Media Award” by the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Lean holds a master’s degree in international studies with a concentration in Middle Eastern studies from East Carolina University. Currently, he attends Georgetown University where he is completing further graduate work at the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies. He lives in Washington, D.C.

University of Mount Olive is a private institution rooted in the liberal arts tradition with defining Christian values. The College, sponsored by the Convention of Original Free Will Baptists, has locations in Mount Olive, New Bern, Wilmington, Goldsboro, Research Triangle Park, Washington and Jacksonville. For more information, visit www.moc.edu