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Human Rights Series

Lectures about historic and modern-day human rights issues around the world.

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Never Again, Again, Again...

Lane Montgomery

October 6, 2009

Lane Montgomery discusses her photographic essay with text on the six major genocides of the 20th and 21st centuries: Armenia, the Holocaust, Cambodia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Rwanda and Darfur.

Bearing Witness: Captivity, Protest, and Survival I

Stacey Bredhoff

This lecture series is based on the touring National Archives exhibition, Eyewitness. The exhibit incorporates lectures from historians and/or eyewitnesses to episodes in history from WWII to the Civil Rights Movement.

Freedom on Fire: Human Rights Wars

December 9, 2003

John Shattuck, former assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights, and labor, and current CEO of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, discusses his new book, Freedom on Fire: Human Rights Wars and America's Response, with Pulitzer-prize winning author Samantha Power.

Modern Slavery: MIT-BBC Symposium

Jagdish Bhagwati

In an effort to shine light on this issues of forced labor, enforced prostitution and human trafficking, MIT's Program on Human Rights and Justice at the Center for International Studies partners with the BBC World Service Trust, an independent BBC charity that promotes development through the innov

Bystanders to Genocide

February 3, 2003

Samantha Power and Elizabeth Neuffer examine the US responses to genocide since the holocaust.

Data, Dollars, and Unintentional Subversion of Human Rights

Thomas I. White

February 12, 2007

Thomas White argues that one of the unanticipated consequences of some recent decisions in the IT industry is a disregard for the importance of privacy as a fundamental human right.

Abolitionism and Human Rights in the U.S.

Political activist Angela Davis talks about abolitionism and human rights in the United States.

Creating an Impact in Human Rights

John Prendergast

John Prendergast, a Clinton administration adviser and avid human rights activist, discusses his involvement in a number of peace processes throughout Africa.

Creating an Impact in Rights Activism

The Georgia Nonprofit Summit presents Marc Freedman as he discusses changes and transformations affecting our work, our communities and the world.

Urgency of Repairing US Human Rights Policies

December 6, 2006

Curt Goering, senior deputy executive director of Amnesty International USA; and Karin Ryan, director of the Carter Center's Human Rights Program, examine prospects for reasserting US commitments on human rights.

Heralding Freedom: The Gulag and Human Rights Today

December 12, 2007

The Jimmy Carter Library presents a panel discussion of Heralding Freedom: a discussion of the Gulag, the American Civil Rights Movement, and human rights. The Soviet Gulag prison system imprisoned millions of innocent people during its infamous history.

Dear John: Addressing Child Sex Exploitation

Shirley Franklin

August 21, 2007

Dear John, a public education campaign under Atlanta Women's Agenda (AWA), aims at ending the commercial sexual exploitation of children, is a collaboration by Mayor Shirley Franklin, the Juvenile Jus

Why Africa Matters

Nicholas Kristof

November 26, 2007

The New York Times columnist Nicholas D. Kristof discusses economic and human rights developments in Darfur and other African nations.

Women to Women: Journey to Darfur

Gloria White-Hammond

November 17, 2005

Linda Mason, Liz Walker and Gloria White-Hammond discuss their experiences and thoughts about the future of Darfur and its people and what the United States can do.

Crisis in Darfur

Jennifer Leaning

December 9, 2004

Jennifer Leaning of the Harvard School of Public Health, Eric Reeves of Smith College, Alex de Waal of the Global Equity Initiative at Harvard, and William Schulz of Amnesty International discuss the crisis in Darfur. Gail Harris, a journalist for both NPR and PBS, moderates their discussion.

Lost Boys of Sudan: Inside Sudan's Civil War

January 25, 2007

Mark Bixler, author of The Lost Boys of Sudan and staff writer at The Atlanta Journal Constitution, discusses the Sudanese conflict and challenges facing refugees.

Gloria White Hammond: Liberating Sudanese Slaves

Gloria White Hammond

Gloria White Hammond, inner city minister and pediatrician, discusses her work that helped liberate more than 9,000 Sudanese slaves as part of a ministerial coalition.

This Far By Faith: Francis Bok Speaks Out

Francis Bok speaks to Harvard Law School students and community members about the horrors of slavery from his own experience, and shares how his faith helped to keep him alive. Since his escape, he has dedicated his life to speaking on behalf of those who are still in bondage.

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

Ishmael Beah tells his story in the new book A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier.

Struggle for Freedom and Justice in South Africa

October 30, 2007

Desmond Tutu, Margaret Marshall, and Richard Goldstone examine the long road toward freedom and justice in South Africa. Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. moderates.

Mercy: Dying of AIDS in Africa

September 10, 2007

Lara Santoro, a veteran journalist, discusses her first novel, Mercy, a tragic and powerful story of what it is like to die of AIDS in Africa.

Chasing the Crescent Moon: Sickle Cell Disease

Kwaku Ohene-Frempong

A genetic disease mostly affecting those of African descent, sickle cell produces debilitating pain and a life sometimes cut short, especially for the undiagnosed.

Tibet: Lens on Human Rights in China

Lobsang Sanjay explores Tibet's situation in order to illuminate the shortcomings and strengths in international law and politics.

Maya Angelou: Responsibility to Speak for Freedom's Sake

Maya Angelou receives the Ford Hall Forum's 1982 Louis P. and Evelyn Smith First Amendment Award.

Harry Belafonte: Civil Rights and Human Rights

Harry Belafonte

Singer and actor Harry Belafonte reflects on America's painful history of racial injustice and comments on the challenges that remain in advancing human rights at home and abroad.

Civil Rights and Human Rights

October 19, 2006

Julian Bond, chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, discusses civil and human rights.

Researching Civil Rights: Challenges Met and Yet to Come

Gary Orfield, of the Civil Rights Project, and Theodore Shaw, of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, examine how researchers and legal advocates can further the aim of advancing civil rights in knowledge and policy.

Civil Rights Movement Series

Civil Rights Movement Series

Lectures examining the Civil Rights Movement from Brown v. Board of Education to the civil and human rights initiatives today.

Global Health Equity and the Future of Public Health

Paul Farmer, a world-renowned infectious disease specialist who has been called a public health Robin Hood, discusses global health equity and the future of public health.

State of the World's Children

Jeannie Grussendorf

Jeannie Grussendorf, a lecturer in political science at Georgia State University, discusses the role that private donors, governments, and international organizations play in ensuring health care, education and safety for the world's children.

Global Health Crises and Child Survival

October 18, 2005

A panel of experts discuss the global health crisis, focusing on child survival. This lecture is part two in a three part series of discussions from the National Press Foundation's "Increasing Health Risks in Our Globalized World: A Conference for Journalists."

Global Health Issues and Challenges

October 26, 2005

A panel of internationally renowned medical experts and two producers from the six hour PBS documentary RX for Survival: A Global Health Challenge, discuss global health issues and challenges with award-winning journalist Jon Beaupre.

Why We Must Rise to the Global Health Challenge

Philip J. Hilts

October 25, 2005

Philip J. Hilts, health and science reporter and author of the companion book for the PBS Rx for Survival series, speaks at a supplemental public outreach event sponsored by the series.

Combating Global Poverty

February 6, 2005

A panel discuss strategies to help eliminate the spread of disease and hunger in the developing world.

Combating AIDS: The Human Rights Perspective

December 10, 2002

This forum examines HIV/AIDS as a human rights crisis On December 10, Human Rights Day, 54 years after the 1948 adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the General Assembly of the United Nations. HIV/AIDS has become the greatest health crisis in human history.

Eliminating Poverty: Attainable Goal or Unrealizable Dream?

This is the sixth forum in a special discussion series entitledThe World We Want, which focuses on the search for real solutions that will lead to a better world. Participants explore the following questions:

Jeffrey Sachs: Ending Global Poverty

Jefferey Sachs discuses the challenge of ending the poverty that afflicts so much of the world today.

Morris Dees Jr.: Founding the Southern Poverty Law Center

Morris Dees Jr.

Morris Dees Jr. discusses the founding of the Southern Poverty Law Center and talks about his experience with this group.

Nine Jews Who Fled Hitler and Changed the World

December 4, 2006

Marton offers a haunting tale of the wartime Hungarian diaspora, and the nine Hungarians who achieved world fame who are profiled in the book including: Nuclear scientists Leo Szilard, Edward Teller, Eugene Wigner, game theorist and computer pioneer John von Neuman, photojournalists Robert Capa and

Alanson B. Houghton: Ambassador of the New Era

Jeffrey Matthews

January 26, 2006

Jeffrey J. Matthews provides a clear and concise account of Alanson B. Houghton's diplomatic experience during the 1920s, and consequently, a fresh assessment of US foreign policy during a pivotal decade in world history.

Lessons from the Holocaust

November 6, 2003

Alan Berger, the Raddock Chair of Holocaust Studies at Florida Atlantic University, talks about educating students for altruism, and the lessons that can be learned from Holocaust rescuers. Berger is introduced by Philip Cunningham, executive director of the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning.

Bearing Witness: Captivity, Protest, and Survival II

Murray Lynn shares stories of his ordeal and survival through WWII Auschwitz concentration camp. Dr. Catherine Lewis, Kennesaw State University, moderates.

Torture and Detention, Justice and Power

Christopher Pyle

Christopher Pyle and Andrew Bacevich discuss new definitions of justice and national security in our post 9/11 world, where anti-terror policies including torture, rendition, and indefinite detention

Chain of Command: From 9/11 to Abu Ghraib

Seymour M. Hersh

October 29, 2004

Seymour Hersh discusses his recent book Chain of Command: The Road from 9/11 to Abu Ghraib as well as the Bush Administration's "war on terror," its intelligence failures, and what he describes as the lies and obsession that led America into Iraq.

Defending Guantanamo Bay Detainees

Thomas B. Wilner

In a program cosponsored by Amnesty International USA, three lawyers currently defending prisoners in Guantanamo Bay talk about who the detainees are and why the United States continues to hold them.

Slavery and the Making of America Series

Slavery and the Making of America Series

Lectures curated around WNET's Slavery and the Making of America and WGBH's Africans in America.

Abolition and Garrison Bicentennial Series

Abolition and Garrison Bicentennial Series

Lectures curated around Abolition and the bicentennial of William Lloyd Garrison's birth.

Why Terrorism Works

Alan M. Dershowitz

December 4, 2002

Renowned criminal defense and civil rights attorney Alan M. Dershowitz shares insights from his new book, Why Terrorism Works, on understanding and responding to terrorism.

Living with Terror: How To Reduce the Threat

Former Senator Sam Nunn explores the topic, "Living in a World of Terrorism: Reducing the Threats from Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Weapons."

Nuclear Terrorism: Preventing the Ultimate Catastrophe

Graham T. Allison

September 9, 2004

Graham Allison, founding dean of Harvard's JFK School of Government and director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, presents a feasible blueprint for eliminating the possibility of nuclear terrorist attacks completely.

Facing Up to Evil in an Age of Genocide and Terror

Journalist Os Guinness discusses evil as evidenced in human history. How we understand evil is not merely an academic question for philosophers or a matter of personal morality; it is has powerful significance for our national politics and policies.

Tracing the Dollars Behind the Terror Network

Loretta Napoleoni

Italian journalist and expert in terrorism Loretta Napoleoni follows the money to describe the 1.5 trillion dollar international economic network that fuels the new economy of terror. What is the relationship between Western national economies and those run by non-state actors?

Development and Prevention of Bioterrorism

Jeanne Guillemin

Lecturing from her book Biological Weapons: From the Invention of State-Sponsored Programs to Contemporary Bioterrorism, Jeanne Guillemin explores the circumstances under which governments have undertaken major biological weapons programs and explains why such weapons were never deploye

Crab Wars: Horseshoe Crabs, Bioterrorism, and Health

William Sargent

William Sargent, environmental author and NOVA consultant, reveals intense debates currently surrounding horseshoe crabs.

Human Rights and Terror

Michael Ignatieff

October 30, 2002

Michael Ignatieff discusses his recent work, which combines eyewitness accounts of modern war with an historian's insight into the constancy of human conflict.

Human Rights in Iraq and Beyond

November 15, 2006

Ann Clwyd, the UK's Special Envoy on Human Rights in Iraq, discusses human rights in the world today. For more than 25 years, Ann Clwyd has been a staunch supporter and campaigner for human rights around the world.

Unholy War: Terror In the Name of Islam

Considered "the most influential Islamic Scholar in the United States" by the International Herald Tribune, John Esposito discusses his latest book, Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam, which sketches the activities and influence of Osama bin Laden, surveys the doctrines and practice of j

Anouar Majid: Piracy, Terrorism and the Question of Islam

Dr. Anouar Majid, professor and chair of English at the University of New England, discusses the United States' first major contact with the Muslim World in the Barbary War and the parallels to our own time.

Who Defended the Country?

October 22, 2003

Elaine Scarry, professor of English at Harvard University, looks at the security failures of September 11th, 2001, and their implications for our national safety and well-being.

Recovering from 9/11

Edward M. Kennedy

September 10, 2004

Senator Edward M. Kennedy introduces Kenneth R. Feinberg, the special master administering the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund of 2001. Mr. Feinberg discusses his efforts to compensate the families of victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks.

Homeland: Emotional Aftermath

October 13, 2004

Reporting from middle America in the tradition of James Agee and Walker Percy, the Pulitzer Prize-winning team of author Dale Maharidge and photographer Michael Williamson discuss Homeland, a troubling and revealing narrative of the impact of 9/11 on our nation.

Terrorist Next Door: Militia Movement and Radical Right

Daniel Levitas discusses his new book The Terrorist Next Door. Georgia Perimeter College presents Levitas, writer of the The Terrorist Next Door: The Militia Movement and the Radical Right, which was nominated for both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award.

Bioviolence: Preventing Biological Terror and Crime

October 4, 2007

Barry Kellman, discusses his book, Bioviolence: Preventing Biological Terror and Crime, and describes how diseases such as smallpox, anthrax, or ebola might be used for hostile purposes. His book explores developers of disease weapons including rogue states and groups such as Al-Qaeda.

Iraq: An Endgame

January 17, 2008

Dr. Reiter spells out the challenges and options in Iraq and places them in a broad framework to help others evaluate alternatives and arrive at their own answers.

Seymour E. Goodman on Technology and Terrorism

Seymour E. Goodman

November 7, 2007

Professor Goodman's research focuses on international technological development, technology diffusion, and related public policy issues. Sam Nunn School of International Affairs at Georgia Institute of Technology (GIT) and PBA present Dr.

Monitoring the Threat: The Center for Disease Control

Julie Gerberding

October 24, 2007

Dr. Julie Gerberding discusses business at the nation's headquarters for monitoring disease threats, the Center for Disease Control (CDC).

Doctors Without Borders in Niger

November 5, 2005

Milton Tectonidisas and Jonathan Spector describe Plumpy'nut, a revolutionary new approach that Doctors Without Borders is using to treat malnourishment in Niger; and they discuss what this technique could mean for how the organization will respond to nutritional crises and famine in the future.

Corporate Responsibility and Human Rights

December 17, 2002

In the wake of the upheavals in corporate America, Orin Smith, CEO of Starbucks; Richard K.

Educating for Human Rights and Global Competency

Felisa Tibbitts

February 10, 2009

Felisa Tibbitts, of Human Rights Education Associates, and Ed Gragert, of the International Educational Resource Network (iEARN), examine the relationship of Human Rights Education and Global Competen

Epic Journeys of Freedom

Cassandra Pybus

February 22, 2006

Historian Cassandra Pybus traces the lives and adventures of the runaway slaves who absorbed the dreams of liberty from their masters during the American Revolution and fled to the British to find fre

Charles E. Cobb Jr.: On the Road to Freedom

Charles E. Cobb Jr.

February 19, 2008

Charles E. Cobb Jr., a prominent black journalist and reporter for NPR and PBS' Frontline, discusses On the Road to Freedom: A Guided Tour of the Civil Rights Trail. The book is a guide to over 400 historic sites in America linked to the Civil Right Movement.

First Amendment and Freedom of the Press

February 13, 2008

Former New York Times columnist Anthony Lewis discusses the implications of the US Constitution's First Amendment on the press.

Afghanistan and Freedom of the Press

Christopher Lydon

November 7, 2002

Christopher Lydon, former host of The Connection, leads a discussion on the importance of American citizens having a sense of the full picture in order for them to participate in democracy.

Answering Only to God: Faith and Freedom in Iran

Jonathan Lyons discusses his book Answering Only to God: Faith and Freedom in Twenty-First-Century Iran.