"The River Flowing West" at Columbia University

The screening at Columbia University's Teachers College was attended by Turkish and international guests, including Bahçeşehir University Chair of the Board of Trustees Enver Yücel, New York University faculty member Prof. Dr. Selçuk Şirin, University Youth Solidarity Platform Chair İbrahim Artukarslan and Professor Rivera-Batiz of Columbia University.

 

At the screening of The River Flowing West, Rivera-Batiz, one of the host Columbia University professors, noted that the documentary tells the stories of the interaction between cultures from different perspectives, and said: "We are pleased that the first US screening of this documentary, prepared by Bahçeşehir University and its Center for Civilization Studies, is being held at Columbia University."

 

"THERE ARE THOSE WHO DESIRE A CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS"

 

In his speech, Bahçeşehir University Chair of the Board of Trustees Enver Yücel said the documentary was very important. Emphasizing that such documentaries, books and publications are greatly needed, especially after the events of 11 September, Yücel noted that although Bahçeşehir University is a very young university, it was the university that founded Türkiye's first center for civilization studies. Stating that we live in a world with people who desire a clash of civilizations and people with views that make an alliance of civilizations important, Yücel said: "Of course, those who desire a clash of civilizations are not visibly present in society. People must work so that civilizations can live together in peace. MEDAM, which we founded, took the first step in this field by deciding 5 years ago to make such a documentary. With this documentary, we wanted to show world public opinion that civilizations are a continuation of one another and that they form a whole."

 

"EVERY CIVILIZATION IS VALUABLE"

 

Stating that today's modern world is the accumulation of civilizations dating back 3,500 years, Yücel said that every civilization has contributed to the formation of civilizations. Yücel said: "All civilizations are the common building of humanity. We tried to make this documentary with an objective eye. We believe that every civilization is valuable. We do not speak of the superiority of civilizations. However, we want it to be known how the history of humanity, born in Mesopotamia, influenced the Renaissance," and noted that today's world sees the source of some developments in itself. Emphasizing that the task of universities is to reveal this, Yücel said that they tried to do this in the documentary "The River Flowing West."

 

Built on the views of nearly two hundred scientists, the documentary was filmed by a British team in 16 different countries under the leadership of MEDAM and Prime Ministry Advisor Prof. Dr. Bekir Karlığa and took its final form in 20 episodes. The documentary, which has begun airing on Turkish television, is expected to be shown on nearly one hundred television channels around the world.

 

Images from The River Flowing West Documentary