The Memphis World Affairs Council will present a lecture by Dr. Amira el-Azhary Sonbol on "Women and Islam" Feb. 22 at 1 p.m. in the Psychology Auditorium.
"I felt it combined two very important phenomenon -- the spread of Islam and global gender issues," said Dr. David Dixon, outreach director of the Center for International Programs.
Dixon is responsible for booking the lecture and said the lecture would be good for the average student.
"It will give a greater understanding of Islam and the role of gender in international affairs," Dixon said.
The lecture is sponsored jointly by International Programs, the Memphis World Affairs Council, the Center for Research on Women and the University of Memphis Political Science department.
Sonbol is an associate professor of Islamic history law and society at Georgetown University and the editor of "Women, the Family and Divorce Laws in Islamic History."
Sonbol received a Ph.D. in history from Georgetown University then went on to earn her master's degree in Arabic and Islamic studies from American University in Cairo, Egypt.
She is the recipient of a National Endowment of the Humanities senior scholar grant through the American Research Center in Egypt and is a member of the faculty of the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University.
Sonbol has served as Director of Middle Eastern Studies at American University.
Sonbol has lectured globally with stops in Europe and the Middle East.
There is no charge for admission to the lecture and all students, faculty and staff are invited.
