The Last Free Women: A Daring Escape from Afghanistan & Coming of Age in America
Journalists Rebecca Blumenstein and Diana Kapp, with Mursal Rahim, in conversation with Anna Quindlen
Thursday, October 1, 2026
4:30-6:00 PM
Amphitheatre, Fourth Floor
Rackham Graduate School (Horace H.)
Map
When the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 2021, Rebecca Blumenstein, then a top editor at The New York Times, was deeply involved in the company’s effort to evacuate more than 200 Afghan colleagues and family members, eventually resettling 124 people in the United States. Among them were four young Afghan women who had been on the path to careers as doctors and lawyers.
Join co-authors Rebecca Blumenstein and Diana Kapp in conversation with Mursal Rahim, one of the women profiled in The Last Free Women: A Daring Escape from Afghanistan and Coming of Age in America, and journalist and novelist Anna Quindlen. Together they will discuss the extraordinary evacuation and the journey of Mursal, Marwa, Maryam and Samira as they build new lives in America.
Join co-authors Rebecca Blumenstein and Diana Kapp in conversation with Mursal Rahim, one of the women profiled in The Last Free Women: A Daring Escape from Afghanistan and Coming of Age in America, and journalist and novelist Anna Quindlen. Together they will discuss the extraordinary evacuation and the journey of Mursal, Marwa, Maryam and Samira as they build new lives in America.
| Building: | Rackham Graduate School (Horace H.) |
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| Website: | |
| Event Type: | Lecture / Discussion |
| Tags: | Afghanistan, Diaspora, focus on women, human rights, immigration, International Law, international policy, Journalism, Muslim |
| Source: | Happening @ Michigan from Wallace House Center for Journalists, Global Scholars Program, Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia, Global Islamic Studies Center, Donia Human Rights Center |
The Global Islamic Studies Center organizes a number of public events each year such as lectures, conferences, and films, many in collaboration with other U-M units. Please use our searchable events calendar for information about upcoming programs sponsored by GISC and the Interdisciplinary Islamic Studies Seminar (IISS).
