Dr. Melissa Fulgham served as a keynote speaker at the Texas Honors Institute, held at Schreiner?s University in Kerrville Texas. The Texas Region of Phi Theta Kappa International Honors Society met at the University July 21-23.
With 2017 being the 100th†anniversary of the United States entering the Great War (known as World War I today), Fulgham spoke about the impact of the war on the home front in an address entitled ?Great War, Great Dilemma: The Treatment of Pacifists and the Lesson of the Power of One.?
Although most people are aware of the issues on the home front in World War II, the attack on German culture in World War I is less well known. During the United States brief time in the war, the nation moved away from teaching the German language, listening to German composers such as Beethoven and Mozart, and calling food by its German names. German-Americans were viewed with suspicion, some were sent to internment camps, and thousands of patents held by Germans and German owned companies were seized by the government. German pacifist groups, such as the Mennonites, Hutterites, and Amish, faced even greater difficulties and hostility.
The full address can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3GJKf3ml90, or by going to YouTube and entering ?TXPTK Fulgham.?
Fulgham has published 15 articles and authored or co-authored 4 books. Her most recent work includes three articles published in War and Religion published by ABC-Clio in 2017. She will be presenting at the National World War I Museum in Kansas City at the ?Muted Voices? conference in October.† As a result of being named the 2017 Mosal Award winner, Fulgham will be pursuing more research on the origin of German pacifist groups by visiting European sites in Germany, Holland, and Belgium next summer.
