Speakers
Martin Griffiths
Former Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), United Nations
Jeffrey D. Sachs
Professor and Director of the Center for Sustainable Development, Columbia University; President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network
Lana Baydas
Program Director, Center for Human Rights, American Bar Association
Phyllis Bennis
Fellow and Director of the New Internationalism Project, Institute for Policy Studies
Matthew Duss
Executive Vice President, Center for International Policy
Layla Elabed
Organizer, We the People Action Fund; Campaign Manager, Listen to Michigan
H. A. Hellyer
Senior Associate Fellow in International Security Studies, The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI); Non-resident Scholar, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Osama Abu Irshaid
Executive Director and Board Member, American Muslims for Palestine (AMP)
Dalia Mogahed
Scholar and Former Director of Research, Institute for Social Policy and Understanding
Kenneth Roth
Charles & Marie Robertson Visiting Professor, Princeton School for Public and International Affairs; Former Executive Director, Human Rights Watch
Wadie E. Said
Professor of Law and Dean’s Faculty Fellow, University of Colorado
Sarah Leah Whitson
Executive Director, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN)
Sarah Yager
Washington Director, Human Rights Watch
James J. Zogby
Co-founder and President, Arab American Institute (AAI); Director, Zogby Research Services
Moderator
* Additional speakers to be announced
About the Conference
Arab Center Washington DC’s 9th Annual Conference is dedicated to discussing the 2024 presidential elections in the United States amid US policy toward the Gaza war. Experts will assess the current state and future of US democracy, explore the impact of the election results on US foreign policy in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and examine the potential changes in US global power and influence in light of US policy toward Israel’s war on Gaza. The various conference sessions will also address the implications of the election outcomes for democracy and human rights in MENA, international law and the global law-based order, regional geopolitics and shifting alliances, and the future of US foreign policy.
Topics to be addressed:
- Polling and predictions for election outcomes
- The impact of the Gaza war on election results
- The role of Arab/Muslim American and young/progressive voters in the elections
- US democracy at risk (limiting freedoms/protests, Trump’s fascism, etc.)
- Impact of election results on democracy and human rights in MENA
- Evolving US policy in MENA and shifting alliances: Biden vs. Trump
- US foreign policy and global standing after Gaza
- The global political, legal, and humanitarian impacts of US Role in the Gaza war
Agenda
9:00 AM – Registration and Breakfast
9:25 AM – Welcome and Introductions
Tamara Kharroub
Deputy Executive Director and Senior Fellow, Arab Center Washington DC
9:30 AM – Opening Keynote Address
The Future of US Foreign Policy in a Changing World: Challenges, Prospects, and Recommendations
Jeffrey D. Sachs
Professor and Director of the Center for Sustainable Development, Columbia University; President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network; SDG Advocate for UN Secretary General António Guterres; Former Special Advisor to UN Secretaries-General Kofi Annan, Ban Ki-moon, and António Guterres
Khalil E. Jahshan – Moderator
Executive Director, Arab Center Washington DC
10:00 AM – Panel I
The Outcome of the US Presidential Election: Polling, Predictions, and the Impact of the Gaza War
Layla Elabed, Organizer, We the People Action Fund; Campaign Manager, Listen to Michigan
Osama Abu Irshaid, Executive Director and Board Member, American Muslims for Palestine (AMP)
Dalia Mogahed, Scholar and Former Director of Research, Institute for Social Policy and Understanding
James J. Zogby, Co-founder and President, Arab American Institute (AAI); Director, Zogby Research Services
Yousef Munayyer – Moderator
Head of Palestine/Israel Program and Senior Fellow, Arab Center Washington DC
11:15 – Coffee Break
11:30 AM – Panel II
Threats to Democracy at Home and Abroad: Human Rights and Freedoms in US Domestic and Foreign Policy
Lana Baydas, Program Director, Center for Human Rights, American Bar Association
Matthew Duss, Executive Vice President, Center for International Policy
Kenneth Roth, Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor, Princeton School for Public and International Affairs; Former Executive Director, Human Rights Watch
Sarah Leah Whitson, Executive Director, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN)
Laurie King – Moderator
Teaching Professor of Anthropology, Georgetown University; Member of the Executive Board, Arab Center Washington DC
12:45 – Lunch
1:00 PM – Luncheon Keynote Conversation
The Gaza War and the Role of the International Community: Global Political, Legal, and Humanitarian Implications
Martin Griffiths, Former Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), United Nations
Yara M. Asi – Moderator
Non-Resident Fellow, Arab Center Washington DC; Assistant Professor, School of Global Health Management and Informatics, University of Central Florida.
1:45 PM – Panel III
US Global Influence amidst the Gaza War: Implications for US Foreign Policy and the International Law-Based Order
Phyllis Bennis, Fellow and Director of the New Internationalism Project, Institute for Policy Studies
H. A. Hellyer, Senior Associate Fellow in International Security Studies, The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI); Non-resident Scholar, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Wadie E. Said, Professor of Law and Dean’s Faculty Fellow, University of Colorado Law School
Sarah Yager, Washington Director, Human Rights Watch
Tamara Kharroub – Moderator
Deputy Executive Director and Senior Fellow, Arab Center Washington DC
3:00 PM – Adjournment
Featured image credit: Shutterstock/Mike AZ
