School of Public Policy to Host Political and Spiritual Discussion

Pepperdine University School of Public Policy will host the discussion “Faith and Friendship Across the Aisle: In Pursuit of Justice, Human Rights, and Global Religious Freedom” at Wilburn Auditorium at the Drescher Graduate Campus in Malibu on Thursday, September 15, at 7 PM.

School of Public Policy dean Pete Peterson will moderate the conversation led by former U.N. ambassador and U.S. congressman Tony Hall (D-OH) and former U.S. congressman Frank Wolf (R-VA).

Hall and Wolf will each discuss how they fostered bipartisan cooperation to tackle issues ranging from human trafficking, religious persecution, political imprisonment, and global hunger. They will also explain how the Gospel has united them in friendship—though they are on opposite sides of the political spectrum—and will highlight the importance of Christians standing up for religious freedom and human rights around the world.

Hall is the executive director of the Alliance to End Hunger, which engages diverse institutions in building the public and political will to end hunger both domestically and internationally. He is a leading advocate for hunger-relief programs and improving human rights conditions in the world, as well as a three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee. Hall served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture from 2002 to 2005, and prior to his diplomatic service, represented the Third District of Ohio in the U.S. Congress for almost 24 years.

Wolf is the Distinguished Senior Fellow of the 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative, a newly created religious freedom advocacy group, and the first Wilson Chair in Religious Freedom at Baylor University. He served as a member of the U.S. Congress from 1980 to 2014 and is the author of the International Religious Freedom Act, which created the International Religious Freedom Office at the U.S. Department of State and established the bipartisan, independent U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Wolf is also the author of the legislation to create a special envoy at the State Department to advocate for religious minorities in the Near East and South Central Asia.

Convocation credit will be given to Seaver College students who attend this free event.

For additional information, and to register to attend, visit the Pepperdine University page on the Eventbrite website.