Peace Activist to Present Guest Lecture

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Col. Ann Wright (ret.)

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Col. Ann Wright (ret.) will present a guest lecture titled "The World's Perception of U.S. Foreign Policy: Assassin Drones and Threats of Military Attacks" at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 25, in Giffels Auditorium.

A retired U.S. State Department official, Wright is known for her outspoken opposition to the Iraq War. She is most noted for her public resignation from the State Department, along with two colleagues, in protest to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

After growing up in Bentonville and attending the University of Arkansas, she also attended the U.S. Naval War College and spend 29 years in the U.S. Army (active duty and reserves). In 1987, Wright joined the Foreign Service and served as U.S. Deputy Ambassador in Sierra Leone, Micronesia, Afghanistan, and Mongolia. She received the State Department's Award for Heroism in 1997, after helping to evacuate several thousand people during the civil war in Sierra Leone.

Wright now spends her time writing and speaking out for peace. Her book Dissent: Voices of Conscience was published in 2008 by Koa Books.

The free lecture is sponsored by the OMNI Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology and is open to the public.