The Department of Sociology invites the York community to join us for Celebrating the Book, a new lecture series showcasing our faculty members and their recent publications. Each event features an engaging talk where the author discusses key themes, questions and contributions of their latest book. The series highlights the depth and diversity of sociological research taking place within our department. Audiences will have the opportunity to explore timely themes, discover new perspectives and engage with the ideas driving sociology today.
Quick Links
In Desolate Places, We Find Hope
Date: March 18, 2026
Time: 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Location: South Ross, Room 802
Speaker: Professor Sylvia Bawa
How does a girl growing up in Ghana get swept into the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa through music, art and radio without ever setting foot in South Africa? How would the lives of Soweto, Winnie Mandela, Wangari Maathai, Funmilayo (and Fela) Ransome-Kuti inspire solidarity and interest in human rights? In this talk, Professor Sylvia Bawa takes us on a journey through the hope-giving work of solidarity and human rights in a world in turmoil. Drawing on the book, Truth Commissions and State Building, Bawa weaves a thread through music, geography, biography and solidarity to discuss the work of constructing truth, nation, hope and progress.
Sylvia Bawa is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology. Her research focus is on the interconnections of globalization, human/women's rights, human-non-human connections, and critical development in postcolonial contexts. She is interested in the mobilizing impact of human rights; how discourses of rights, self-determination and development evolve and are shaped by global events, new technologies and opportunities.
Event Itinerary
| 11:30 a.m. - 11:40 a.m. | Land acknowledgement and welcoming remarks |
| 11:40 a.m. - 11:55 a.m. | Interim Dean Kathryn McPherson and Associate Dean Ravi de Costa |
| 11:55 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. | Book Launch: Truth Commissions and State Building Sylvia Bawa, Associate Professor of Sociology, York University (In person) Bonny Ibhawoh, Senator William McMaster Chair in Global Human Rights, McMaster University (via Zoom) Jasper Abembia Ayelazumo, Associate Professor of Political Science and Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Communication and Cultural Studies, University for Development Studies, Ghana (via Zoom) |
| 12:30 p.m. - 12:45 p.m. | Questions, comments and discussion |
| 12:45 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. | Closing remarks |
About the book
Truth Commissions and State Building (McGill-Queen’s Uni. Press), presents the first comparative study of the role of truth commissions in state-building. More than just an opportunity to uncover facts after conflict, truth commissions can also offer nations across the globe restorative power. Contributors to the volume explore the mandates, methods, outcomes, and legacies of truth commissions, analyzing their place in transitional justice, human rights, and restorative justice. Rather than conceptualizing state building as incidental to their work, they present it as an intrinsic, central component. This flagship volume – authored by a stellar cast of policymakers, practitioners, and scholars – brings multidisciplinary and cross-sectoral perspectives to bear on the complex role of truth commissions in addressing transitional justice, historical injustices, and present-day human rights violations. As more countries, in both the Global South and the North, adopt this model to address historical and contemporary abuses, the dialogue between different sectors of society modelled here will help inform this process, wherever it might occur.