Dr. John Sorenson, photo supplied
Animal rights advocate Dr. John Sorenson, author of Constructing Ecoterrorism, will speak at The University of Winnipeg on Wednesday, March 23, at 12:30 p.m., in Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall. This event is free and open to the public. Sorenson teaches courses in critical animal studies, globalization, and anti-racism at Brock University. His current research examines the ways that corporate propaganda uses “politics of fear” to undermine animal rights activism.
Sorenson’s new book, Constructing Ecoterrorism: Capitalism, Speciesism, and Animal Rights, will be launched this spring. Informed by both critical animal studies and critical terrorism studies, the book analyzes ecoterrorism as a social construction. Sorenson examines how corporations that profit from animal exploitation fund and produce propaganda to portray the compassionate goals and nonviolent practices of animal activists as outlandish, anti-human campaigns that operate by violent means and threaten to destroy Western civilization. Sorenson argues that the idea of concern for others is viewed as a dangerous one, and that capitalism works by keeping people focused on individual interests and discouraging compassion and commitment to others.
Sorenson’s previous work includes research in the Horn of Africa, where he studied the experience of women in the Eritrean liberation struggle, and research on diasporic communities from Africa in Canada. His books Imagining Ethiopia and Ghosts and Shadows (co-authored by Atsuko Matsuoka) investigate the politics of national identity. More recently, Sorenson has ublished the books Ape and About Canada – Animal Rights.
Sorenson’s lecture is hosted by the UWinnipeg’s department of Sociology. For further information, please contact Dr. Kimberley Ducey (k.ducey@uwinnipeg.ca) or Dr. Colin Goff (c.goff@uwinnipeg.ca).
