This is Democracy – Episode 16: Democracy in the Middle East?

What are the historical challenges of democratization in the Middle East? What are the possibilities? Dr. Suri, and Ph.D. candidate Emily Whalen, discuss why global perceptions can be damaging, and how the countries that comprise the Middle East could move towards a true democracy. Zachary sets up the conversation with his poem, “The Last Time I Cried For The Middle East.” Emily Whalen is a doctoral candidate in History at the University of Texas – Austin. Her dissertation, The Lebanese Wars: Civil Conflict and International Intervention, 1975-1985, focuses on the transnational history of war and U.S. policy in the Middle East. She is currently a Smith Richardson Predoctoral Fellow in International Security Studies at Yale University. Her website is www.emilyingridwhalen.com.