Previous Events
The following is a list of previous HRP-sponsored or co-sponsored events for the 2011-2012 academic year. For more information on these events,
please read the descriptions below or contact the HRP office at hrp@law.harvard.edu.
2011-2012
“Leon Trotsky: A Revolutionary's Life”
January 30, 2012
A book talk by Joshua Rubenstein, Northeast Regional Director of Amnesty International USA and Associate at the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies, Harvard University. As a witness and participant to a Europe-wide Communist upheaval, Trotsky’s life and observations bring perspective on contemporary global upheavals, as well as the use and abuse of the judicial system in the legitimation of ruling regimes.
“The Past and Future of Atrocity Crimes”
January 26, 2012
This event featured a book talk by David Scheffer, Professor of Law and Director of the Center for International Human Rights at Northwestern University School of Law, and the author of "All the Missing Souls", an insider’s account of the international gamble to prosecute those responsible for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. Scheffer was the first U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues.
“I Came To Testify”
January 11, 2012
A screening and panel discussion featuring “I Came to Testify,” from the groundbreaking PBS Series Women, War & Peace, which tells the moving story of how a group of women imprisoned and raped by Serb-led forces in the Bosnian town of Foca broke history’s great silence. The screening was followed by a Q & A with Alex Whiting, Assistant Clinical Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and Investigation Coordinator at the International Criminal Court, and Pamela Hogan, director of the film and Co-creator of the Women, War & Peace series.
“A Celebration of Ruti Teitel's 'Humanity's Law'”
December 2, 2011
A book talk and panel discussion with the author of "Humanity's Law", Ruti G. Teitel, the Ernst C. Stiefel Professor of Comparative Law at New York Law School; Gabriella Blum, Rita E. Hauser Professor of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law; Naz Modirzadeh, Associate Director of the Program on Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research at Harvard University; and Robert Sloane, Associate Professor of Law at Boston University.
“Nuremberg: Its Lesson for Today”
November 17, 2011
This event featured a viewing of the ground-breaking film, “Nuremberg: Its Lesson for Today”, with introductory Remarks by Dean Martha Minow. Special guest Sandra Schulberg, restoration producer and daughter of filmmaker Stuart Schulberg, discussed the use of motion picture evidence at the trial; the making of “Nuremberg”; and its subsequent suppression by the U.S. government.
“Indefinite Detention in the Age of Obama”
November 15, 2011
This event featured a panel discussion with Gitanjali Gutierrez and P. Sabin Willett, moderated by Deborah Popowski, Lecturer on Law and Clinical Instructor, Harvard Law School. Gitanjali S. Gutierrez , formerly of the Center for Constitutional Rights, was the first habeas attorney to visit the U.S. Naval Prison in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. P. Sabin Willett, JD ’83, is a partner at Bingham McCutchen and has been active in the firm’s representation of Guantánamo detainees since 2005.
“Human Rights, Humanitarian Law and Nuclear Disarmament”
November 8, 2011
A talk by John Burroughs, JD, PhD, a specialist on treaty regimes and international law relating to nuclear and other non-conventional weapons. He is both Director of the UN Office of the International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms and Executive Director of the Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy (LCNP). At this event, he discussed the nature and prospects of the humanitarian approach to nuclear disarmament.
"LGBT Rights and US Foreign Policy"
October 28, 2011
This event will featured Mark Bromley, Executive Director of the Council for Global Equality, in dialogue with Scott Long, former director of the LGBT Division of Human Rights Watch, and a current Visiting Fellow with the Human Rights Program.
"Abuse by Church and State: The Hidden Story of Ireland's Magdalene Laundries"
October 25, 2011
A talk by Maeve O’Rourke, 2010 Global Human Rights fellow, and James M. Smith, Author and Associate Professor of English, Boston College. O’Rourke, LLM ’10, and Smith, author of Ireland’s Magdalen Laundries and the Nation’s Architecture of Containment, discussed their legal campaign for an investigation into- and reparations for- the abuse of thousands of girls and women in Ireland’s church-run Magdalene laundry institutions from 1922 – 1996.
"Roma Rights at the European Court of Human Rights: Challenging Forced Sterilization"
October 20, 2011
A talk by Barbora Bukovská, LLM ’05, currently Senior Director of Law and Policy at the London-based human rights organization Article 19. A founder of the Czech Republic’s first legal clinic, in 2001 she founded the Centre for Civil and Human Rights in Kosice, Slovakia, where she led efforts to eliminate the practice of forced sterilization of Roma women in Slovakia, as well as other human rights abuses. She is currently representing a group of Roma women who were forcibly sterilized by Slovak authorities in a case before the European Court of Human Rights.
"Creating International Law: Gender as the New Paradigm"
October 19, 2011
A talk by Catharine A. MacKinnon, James Barr Ames Visiting Professor of Law and Professor of Law at the University of Michigan. Since 2008, MacKinnon has been the Special Gender Advisor to the International Criminal Court, implementing the concept of "gender crime." She previously pioneered the legal claim for sexual harassment; helped create ordinances recognizing pornography as a civil rights violation;and served as co-counsel in litigation that led to a judgment recognizing rape as an act of genocide.
"Accountability After Katrina: Community Lawyering and Organizing for Justice"
October 12, 2011
This event featured a discussion about the ways in which community organizers and lawyers are working together to address justice issues in New Orleans. Norris Henderson is a community leader and the Founder and Executive Director of Voice of the Ex-Offender (VOTE), a non-profit justice organization founded by and run by formerly incarcerated people. Davida Finger, a former Wasserstein Fellow at Harvard Law School, teaches the Community Justice Clinic at Loyola University New Orleans College of Law.
"Accountability for Gaza: International Law and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict"
October 3, 2011
A talk by Raji Sourani, the founder and director of the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, a human rights organization established in Gaza City in 1995. An award-winning lawyer and advocate, Sourani discussed potential avenues for international accountability for human rights violations committed as part of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He focused on the aftermath of Israel’s three-week offensive in 2008-09, known as Operation Cast Lead, as well as the implications of the ongoing closure of the Gaza Strip.
"Litigating Health Rights"
September 27, 2011
This event revolved around the launch of "Litigating Health Rights", the latest book from the Human Rights Program. It featured a panel discussion with Alicia Ely Yamin, co-editor of the book and Director of the Program on the Health Rights of Women and Children, François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University; Norman Daniels, Professor of Population Ethics and Professor of Ethics and Population Health at the Harvard School of Public Health; Namita Wahi, SJD candidate and co-author of a chapter in the book; and Mindy Roseman, Academic Director of the Human Rights Program.
"International Crimes and Universal Jurisdiction"
September 26, 2011
A talk by Judge Baltasar Garzón, a hero within the human rights community who is perhaps best known for indicting and issuing an arrest warrant against Gen. Augusto Pinochet, the former dictator of Chile. Last year, the Spanish judiciary suspended him for opening an investigation into General Franco’s crimes during the Spanish Civil War. At the time, Garzón had been investigating the use of government-authorized and systematic torture in U.S. detention facilities. He spoke at HLS in Spanish, with simultaneous translation provided.
"Documenting Human Rights Violations in Burma"
September 20, 2011
This brown bag featured Matthew Bugher, JD ’10, who has been working in Thailand for more than a year to document human rights violations by the Burmese regime. He described the ways in which lawyers, researchers, and activists are working to ensure accountability for abuses, and address the impact of armed conflict on Burma’s ethnic minorities. He also discussed his experience as a Sheldon fellow.
For a list of events from Academic Year 2010-2011, click here.
For a list of events from Academic Year 2009-2010, click here.
For a list of events from Academic Year 2008-2009, click here.
For a list of events from Academic Year 2007-2008,
click here.
For a list of events from Academic Year 2006-2007, click here.