The popular press has taken some recent shots at the utility of anthropology specifically, the social sciences generally and, most broadly, a liberal arts education. While this knowledge may not produce a bunch of millionaires, it does make real differences in the lives of real people. We (the Department of Anthropology at UNCG) hosted a great talk this past Wednesday (November 6th) that demonstrates this very process in action. David Hines, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Florida, presented on his forensic anthropological work excavating mass graves in Iraq. David originally contacted the department because his father taught at UNCG and, during the few months a year that he is in the states, makes him home in Greensboro. Currently, he serves as a forensic anthropology trainer for the Iraq offices of the International Commission on Missing Persons.
The numbers that Hines cited are staggering: an estimated 300,000 to over 1,000,000 missing people are thought to be buried in known or unknown mass graves within the country, most as a consequence of Saddam Hussein's regime. Hines related that most of these deaths occurred during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), political infighting, the murder of political dissidents, terrorism, and the Anfal campaign (the genocide of the Kurds and other non-Arab populations in the late 1980s). He gave a nice overview of the political situation in the country (which is critical to understanding how this sort of work can be carried out) and how they go about finding and excavating the mass graves.
The talk was really, really well attended (350+ showed up), thanks largely to the organizational talents of our Student Anthropological Society. A huge thanks to David for taking the time to visit!
The numbers that Hines cited are staggering: an estimated 300,000 to over 1,000,000 missing people are thought to be buried in known or unknown mass graves within the country, most as a consequence of Saddam Hussein's regime. Hines related that most of these deaths occurred during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), political infighting, the murder of political dissidents, terrorism, and the Anfal campaign (the genocide of the Kurds and other non-Arab populations in the late 1980s). He gave a nice overview of the political situation in the country (which is critical to understanding how this sort of work can be carried out) and how they go about finding and excavating the mass graves.
The talk was really, really well attended (350+ showed up), thanks largely to the organizational talents of our Student Anthropological Society. A huge thanks to David for taking the time to visit!
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