Since the first address in 1938 by Eleanor Roosevelt, the Borah Symposium has been a powerful event educating on issues of war and peace and inspiring the Pacific Northwest.
The symposium is put on with the support of the Borah Foundation, which was established to honor and continue the work of Idaho Senator William Edgar Borah. Borah served from 1907 to his death in 1940, and his legacy of fighting for peace is upheld through the work of this annual symposium.
Each symposium brings in world leaders and academics to discuss a topic regarding war or peace in the world. The Borah Symposium Committee, consisting of faculty, staff and student leaders, chooses a topic each year that reflects the state of the world and is relevant to the current political climate. In past years, the symposium has been an impactful event on campus.
As the seventy-fifth anniversary of the symposium, the committee wanted this year to be one to remember, with notable speakers and topics chosen. The theme this year is “75 Years on Behalf of Peace” with a focus on the international protection of human rights. Speakers include the former President of Peru Rafael Sagasti, U.S. Army General Erik Peterson and the Prince of Jordan Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein.
“We always have notable speakers from year to year, but this year is very special with the anniversary, and we’re at a very famous level in terms of these two speakers as well as the other speakers,” Chair of the Borah Symposium Committee Dave Gottwald said.
Gottwald explained that the committee’s process of choosing a theme worthy of the diamond anniversary was a long process. They eventually came to the decision of human rights and peace after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“Under the umbrella of 75 years on behalf of peace, suddenly with the invasion of Ukraine, human rights come really, sharply into focus,” Gottwald said.
Each speaker throughout the course of the symposium has extensive experience regarding human rights, the pursuit of peace and an understanding of the effects of war. Each address is meant to be relevant to the current social and political climate, as well as insightful into how human rights and peace are so closely intertwined on a global level.
“The symposium committee feels that there is no better way to honor the diamond jubilee of this event than to highlight that, yes, without justice there is no peace,” Gottwald said. “And without human rights, we can have no justice.”
The symposium is happening Sept. 22, 27 and 28, and is free for students and the public to attend. The symposium’s events will be held in the Pitman Center International Ballroom.
The symposium will begin with a panel discussion on Thursday, Sept. 22, titled “Coercive Labor in Nazi Germany and the Pacific Northwest, 1933-45.” Presented in conjunction with the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the panel includes University of Idaho History Department Chair Rebecca Scofield, University of Southern California History Professor Wolf Gruner and will be moderated by UI Sociology Professor Kristin Haltinner. The panel begins at 4 p.m. in the ballroom and will also be available to view via Zoom.
On Tuesday, Sept. 27, Borah Foundation and Martin Institute Director Bill Smith will be presenting “William Edgar Borah and the Outlawry of War Movement,” beginning at 12:30 p.m.
The first keynote address will be at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 27. The address will be presented by President Fransisco Rafael Sagasti Hochhauster, the former president of Peru who served from November 2020 until July 2021. President Sagasti is an engineer, academic and author who founded an anti-poverty group and has been active in government and foreign affairs for much of his career.
U.S. Army Lieutenant General and Deputy Chief of Staff Erik Peterson will be presenting “War and Peace in the Twenty-first Century” Wednesday, Sept. 28 at 12:30 p.m.. Peterson is a UI alum and previously served as a commanding general and director of force development of First Army Division West.
The closing keynote is titled “Global Challenges to Human Rights Today” and will be presented by Prince of Jordan Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein on Wednesday at 7p.m in the ballroom. Zeid served as the United Nations high commissioner for human rights from 2014-2018. He has been a powerful advocate for human rights and an outspoken critic of fascism, religious radicalism and threats to civil liberties.
This line-up of world leaders and academics is spread throughout the week in Pitman’s Internation Ballroom. The links to view the panel and addresses virtually, as well as more information about the event, can be found here.
Grace Giger can be reached at [email protected]