Global Conservatism? The Political Thought and Itinerary of Lebanese Diplomat Charles Malik (1906-1984) – Public lecture by Chloe Kattar (Darwin College)

PLACE: AMSTERDAM, BUSHUIS, ROOM E1.02

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Abstract

The lecture will explore the possibilities of writing a global intellectual history of conservatism in the latter part of the 20^th century through a biographical lens. To do so it will look at the political thought and career of Charles Malik, a Lebanese diplomat in the US with a long career in the United Nations and one of the signatories of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Through a mapping of his late career and activities in the global sphere, the presentation will combine conceptual and transnational histories to demonstrate how ideas, networks and religious solidarity intersect. Whereas traditional histories of conservatism have focused on the West, the lecture will draw attention back to the Middle East to shine a light on an oft-neglected strand of Christian conservatism which drew on personalism, anti-communism, anti-Arabism, and the rights of minorities.

Biography

Dr Chloe Kattar is a historian of the modern Middle East, interested in the global movement and exchange of ideas between the Arab-speaking world and Western societies, and an expert of the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). Kattar is a Research Fellow in History at Darwin College, where she also acts as the Fellow Librarian. In 2021-22, she is also a Fellow of Europe in the Middle East (EUME) at the Forum Transregionale Studien in Berlin.