In the press and public discourse today, religion is often associated with oppression, threats to democracy, and terrorism. Yet the world hosts 600 million Buddhists, 800 million Hindus, 1.5 billion Muslims, and 2.3 billion Christians. Is the prognosis for democracy bleak?

A panel discussion at New York University’s Deutsches Haus will zero in on this question Friday, March 30th, beginning at 6:30 p.m. The German cultural house of NYU is located at 42 Washington Mews, at University Place, New York, N.Y. The event is free of charge. RSVP is required – kindly send an email to deutscheshaus.rsvp@nyu.edu indicating your plans to attend. If you need more information, call ahead – 212 998 8661.

Participants in the panel will include: Dr. Joel Hunter, White House Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships; Karsten Voigt, coordinator, German-North American Cooperation, German Federal Foreign Office, 1999-2009; Mustafa Tlili, director, Center for Dialogues, NYU; and Isabelle Werenfels, German Institute for International and Security Affairs, North Africa specialists.

The discussion is organized by Professor Marcia Pally of NYU, in cooperation with the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung.