Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

Human Rights Expert James Waller to Offer 2025 Atrocity Studies Lecture, Genocide Prevention Workshop

Tuesday, March 18, 2025, By Martin Walls
Share
School of Education

At the 2025 Atrocity Studies Lecture—presented by the School of Education’s minor in Atrocity Studies and the Practices of Social Justice—human rights expert James Waller will explore “Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Mass Atrocity.”

The lecture takes place on Thursday, March 20, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in Bird Library’s Peter Graham Scholarly Commons (Room 114). The lecture also will be streamed online. More details and a Zoom registration link can be found on the Syracuse University Events Calendar.

The image shows a person with short, gray hair wearing a blue button-up shirt. The background appears to be an indoor setting with blurred elements, including some lights and possibly plants.

James Waller

Drawing from his award-winning book, “Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing,” Waller will discuss internal and external factors that can lead ordinary people to commit mass atrocities if left unchecked and unexamined. By examining these forces, Waller argues that no country is immune to the potential for atrocity crimes and that this awareness can facilitate atrocity prevention.

On Friday, March 21, Waller will lead a Genocide Prevention Workshop as part of an all-day series of campuswide events to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Taking place in Huntington Hall 107 between 9 and 10:30 a.m., the workshop will present an analysis of genocide in the modern world that draws out the lessons to be learned in preventing genocide, further atrocities once genocide has begun and future atrocities when a society rebuilds after genocide.

Waller is the inaugural Christopher J. Dodd Chair in Human Rights Practice and Director of the Dodd Human Rights Impact Programs for the Gladstein Family Human Rights Institute at the University of Connecticut. His other books include “Confronting Evil: Engaging Our Responsibility to Prevent Genocide,” and “A Troubled Sleep: Risk and Resilience in Contemporary Northern Ireland.”

Other events during the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination are “Joiri Minaya: Unseeing the Tropics at the Museum” at the Syracuse University Art Museum; the book talk “Representation Revolution: Black Twitter’s Lasting Impact on Television,” with Sherri Williams (10:30 a.m.; Newhouse 3, Room 434); and human rights tabling and open houses between 1 and 5 p.m. at 113 Euclid, the Barner-McDuffie House, Disability Cultural Center, LGBTQ+ Resource Center and the Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration.

Convening speakers from disciplines at the intersection of history, memory, and international human rights, the annual Atrocity Studies Lecture is supported by Lauri ’77 and Jeffrey Zell ’77. The 2025 spring lecture is co-sponsored by the following Syracuse University departments and programs: citizenship and civic engagement program, Department of Psychology, Humanities Center, Department of History, international relations program, Department of Political Science and the sociology department.

  • Author

Martin Walls

  • Recent
  • How New Words Enter Our Language: A Linguistics Expert Explains
    Friday, July 25, 2025, By Jen Plummer
  • Impact Players: Sport Analytics Students Help Influence UFL Rules and Strategy
    Friday, July 25, 2025, By Matt Michael
  • Bringing History to Life: How Larry Swiader ’89, G’93 Blends Storytelling With Emerging Technology
    Friday, July 25, 2025, By News Staff
  • Mihm Recognized for Fostering ‘Excellence in Public Service for the Next Generation’
    Wednesday, July 23, 2025, By Jessica Youngman
  • Oh, the Places You’ll Go! Celebrating Recent High School Grads
    Monday, July 21, 2025, By News Staff

More In Campus & Community

Impact Players: Sport Analytics Students Help Influence UFL Rules and Strategy

When seven students from the Department of Sport Analytics in the David B. Falk College of Sport  started working for the United Football League (UFL) this past winter, league officials explained the kind of data they had available and asked…

Mihm Recognized for Fostering ‘Excellence in Public Service for the Next Generation’

Chris Mihm, adjunct professor of public administration and international affairs in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, has received the 2025 Arnold Steigman Excellence in Teaching Award from the New York State Academy for Public Administration (SAPA). The…

Rabbi Natan Levy Appointed Campus Rabbi for Syracuse Hillel and Jewish Chaplain at Hendricks Chapel

Syracuse Hillel has appointed Rabbi Natan Levy as campus rabbi. Levy, who most recently served as head of operations for the Faiths Forum for London and senior lecturer at Leo Baeck College in the United Kingdom, will also serve as…

Imam Amir Durić Appointed Assistant Dean for Religious and Spiritual Life at Hendricks Chapel

The University has appointed Imam Amir Durić as assistant dean for religious and spiritual life at Hendricks Chapel. Durić, who has served as Muslim chaplain at Hendricks Chapel since 2017, will provide visionary, inclusive and compassionate leadership to advance interfaith…

Oh, the Places You’ll Go! Celebrating Recent High School Grads

We asked faculty and staff to share photos of their favorite recent high school graduates. Congratulations to all, and good luck as you continue your journeys!

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2025 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.