Leonard to present lecture series on Islam and terrorism

   JOHNSON CITY -- A Kingsport man who is an expert on Islam and Middle Eastern studies will present a series of three public lectures at East Tennessee State University at Kingsport, 1501 University Blvd.
   Dr. Graham Leonard has served UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) as an adviser on teacher education for UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East), West Bank; worked in Jerusalem as management officer of the Program for Assistance to the Palestinian People through the United Nations Development Program; taught at a variety of institutions in the U.S., England, China and the Middle East; and acted as a consultant on education, the Middle East and other topics.
   His free lectures, which will be held from 7-9 p.m. in room 236 of ETSU at Kingsport, are:
   * "Principles and History of Islam" on Tuesday, Oct. 30.
   * "Extraordinary Changes in Muslim Behavior in the Past 75 Years" on Thursday, Nov. 1, and
   * "Profiling Potential Middle Eastern Terrorists" on Tuesday, Nov. 6.
   Though not Muslim himself, Graham has extensively studied Islam. He has been "sympathetic to many very close Muslim friends and observed Muslims respectfully for over half a century in their own environments.
   In recent years, Leonard has noted many changes in Islam, as well as the impact of a variety of political factors, including "the end of military Colonialism, rise of Nationalism and . . . a deeply resented and much more intrusive 'Dollar Imperialism,'" on Islamic peoples.
   He writes, "Few in Islam, and almost none in the West, know of the permeating impact of deeply crippling 'Intellectual Imperialism' on Islam and much of the rest of the world. Until all these can be understood and countered, the Middle East remains dangerously explosive."
   Each of Graham's lectures, co-sponsored by ETSU at Kingsport and the ETSU office of professional development, will be followed by a question-and-answer period.
   For more information or for special assistance for persons with disabilities, call Terry Means in the ETSU office of professional development at (423) 439-8298, or Beth Shumaker at ETSU at Kingsport, 392-8000.