Ethics in the Professions Series Symposium:
Torture & Interrogation

Have We Gone Too Far?

The University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill

September 13, 2008

The aim of this symposium is to explore the ethical issues raised by the methods of interrogation practiced by the U.S. government. The second day of our program features distinguished speakers addressing this timely topic from perspectives and disciplines ranging from psychology, law, philosophy and government. 

Beginning with the foundational issues regarding the historical practice and effectiveness of interrogation, this symposium will expand into exploring questions such as: What should be the limits of permissible interrogation? Under what circumstances can a society overstep these limits? What roles do professionals play in interrogation? 

The topics our experts will speak on include the role of psychologists in interrogation, the law and its interpretation, and the realities of torture and interrogation as described by law enforcement officials and demonstrated in a dramatic reenactment, Nightwind, on Friday, September 12, by Hector Aristizábal, a torture survivor (Columbia 1982).

This interdisciplinary program is intended for all audiences with the goal of fostering open discussion and greater understanding of the central issues on this important and timely subject.

This event is sponsored by the Parr Center for Ethics, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, the School of Law, the School of Public Health, the Center for Global Initiatives, Curriculum in Peace, War and Defense, Department of History, Department of Philosophy, Department of Political Science, Department of Public Policy, Department of Sociology, the Institute for the Study of the Americas, the Triangle Center of Terrorism and Homeland Security, and Duke University's Kenan Institute for Ethics.

Location: Hyde Hall University Room, 9:00 am. This event is free and open to the public as space permits.

Download Event Flier (pdf): Click Here

National Public Radio: Several of our program speakers will appear on the NPR program, The State of Things, discussing this topic on Wednesday, September 10.

Event Schedule

8:30 am – 8:45 am: Welcome

Jan Boxill - Director, UNC Parr Center for Ethics.

8:45 am – 9:00 am: Introduction/Program Overview

Joseph Kennedy - Associate Professor of Law, UNC School of Law.

9:00 am – 10:00 am: Speaker Presentation, The Interrogation Debate: Setting the Legal Framework

Scott Silliman - Professor of The Practice of Law, and Executive Director, Center on Law, Ethics and National Security at Duke University.

10:00 am – 11:00 am: Speaker Presentation

Joseph Caddell - Lecturer, UNC Department of History; Retired Lieutenant Colonel of the U.S. Air Force Reserves.

11:00 am – 12:00 pm: Speaker Presentation

David Price - Congressman, 4th District of North Carolina, U.S. House of Representatives. Price currently serves on the House Appropriations Committee and is chair of the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee. He is a recognized leader in foreign policy, heading the House Democracy Assistance Commission, which he initiated to help strengthen parliaments in emerging democracies.

12:00pm – 1:00 pm: Symposium Lunch Break
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm: Speaker Presentation

Jack Cloonan - FBI special agent from 1977 to 2002, who interrogated members of al Qaeda during the late 1990s. He is now president of Clayton Consultants, a global risk and crisis management company.

2:00 pm – 3:00 pm: Speaker Presentation

Stephen Soldz - Director, Center for Research, Evaluation and Program Development at Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis.

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm: Speaker Presentation, Terror and Consent

Philip Bobbitt - Professor of Law and Director of the Center for National Security at Columbia University; Senior Fellow in the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law at the University of Texas. He has served extensively in government, in both Democratic and Republican administrations, including Associate Council to the President, and senior directorships at the National Security Council.

4:00 pm – 4:10 pm: Break
4:10 pm – 5:10 pm: Panel Discussion, Reflections and Speaker Q&A

Moderator: Joseph Kennedy - Associate Professor of Law, UNC Law School. Panel: Symposium speakers and commentators

5:10 pm - 6:00 pm: Symposium Reception

For more information, please contact Lance Westerlund at lancew@unc.edu and (919) 843-5641.