Syracuse

Each year, the public diplomacy graduate students of Syracuse University host a public diplomacy symposium. Usually held in Washington D.C., this year's event, inspired by Geoffrey Wiseman’s book, "Isolate or Engage: Adversarial States, US Foreign Policy, and Public Diplomacy," was held at SU on Oct. 13 and 14.

Some stopped to reflect on each scene’s significance. Others walked right by. But before even entering the Joyce Hergenhan Auditorium in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications on Thursday, attendees of "Running for Cover: Politics, Justice & Media in the Syrian Conflict" walked past a wall of images - images of the people in Syria, living with this conflict every day.

The wall reflected the central theme of the event: how is the media shaping the Syrian conflict, and why is this important to understand?

The 14th annual Syracuse University Human Rights Film Festival wrapped up on Saturday after three days of documentary screenings that shed light on humanitarian issues across the world, such as the sovereignty of indigenous lands, the Syrian refugee crisis and LGBTQ rights.

“This festival is mainly for college students,” said founder Tula Goenka, who co-directed the event with fellow SU professor Roger Hallas. “Besides going to school and earning a degree, you will have to think: What is your responsibility as a human being? How are you going to give back to society?”

Anthony Harper sits on a bench near Mountain Park Avenue, hunched over his phone, wearing a black baseball cap, a gray tank top, dark blue denim, and light brown work boots. He stands up, he is 6-feet 5-inches. His arms stretch out like tree trunks with hands the size of catcher’s mitts. His arms are sculpted with hard muscles and tattooed with thick black lines that swirled around his shoulder blades and on to his chest.