Peter Balakian to Speak at James J. Kenneally Lecture in Jewish-Christian Relations

EASTON, MA — Best-selling New York Times author and poet, Dr. Peter Balakian will speak on “The Transmission of Trauma Across Generations: Growing up in Suburbia and Writing a Memoir about the Armenian Genocide,” in observance of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide at this year’s James J. Kenneally Lecture in Jewish-Christian Relations at Stonehill.

Sponsored in conjunction with the College’s Distinguished Speaker Series in Political Science and International Studies and the College’s Martin Institute, the lecture will be held on Tuesday, October 20th at 7 p.m. in the Martin Institute.

Balakian has taught at Colgate University since 1980 where he is currently the Donald M. and Constance H. Rebar Professor of the Humanities in the department of English, and Director of Creative Writing. He was the first Director of Colgate’s Center For Ethics and World Societies.

Balakian is the author of the memoir Black Dog of Fate, winner of the PEN/Albrand Prize for memoir and a New York Times “Notable Book.” The Burning Tigris: The Armenian Genocide and America’s Response was the winner of the 2005 Raphael Lemkin Prize and a New York Times “Notable Book” and a New York Times and national best seller.

He is also the author of Theodore Roethke’s Far Fields (LSU, 1989). His essays on poetry, culture, art, and social thought have appeared in many publications including Art In America, American Poetry Review, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The American Quarterly, and American Book Review, and Poetry.

He is the author of five books of poems, including his most recent release June-tree: New and Selected Poems 1974-2000. His work has appeared widely in American magazines and journals such as The Nation, The New Republic, Antaeus, Partisan Review, and many more.

Balakian was the co-founder and co-editor of the poetry magazine Graham House Review, which was published from 1976-1996.

Balakian’s prizes and awards include a Guggenheim Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, the Emily Clark Balch Prize for poetry, a Movses Khorenatsi Medal from the Republic of Armenia 2007, the Raphael Lemkin Prize, 2005 for the best book in English on the subject of genocide and human rights, the PEN/Martha Albrand Prize for Memoir, 1998, the New Jersey Council for the Humanities Book Award, 1998, among many others.