Professor Geoffrey Harris, Ph.D.

School of Economics and Finance
University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Web site: http://www.ukzn.ac.za/economics/Geoff%20Harris.htm

Introduction

Visiting scholar, Professor Harris, teaches at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa. He’s an economist who studies nonviolent methods of resolving conflicts. Professor Harris visited Northern Michigan University classes and gave a lectured titled “The Cost Effectiveness of Nonviolent Methods in Dealing with African Conflicts,” during his week-long stay in Marquette.

Question and Answer Session with Professor Harris

What prompted you to come to Marquette?
A former Development Fund (currently named the NMU Foundation) officer tried to raise money so it would be possible for me to come here, but it didn’t work out. (Former Professor) Bill Waters was able to get funding from the Ford Foundation to travel to Africa to teach for a semester. A new visiting scholar program started this year and Bill pushed my name forward, so I was able to get funding to come here.

Tell me about your background.
I taught at the University of New England in small, isolated town like Marquette. In 1999, I moved to the University of KwaZulu-Natal. It has 35,000-40,000 students with five campuses…I moved for three reasons: my daughters grew up and they ‘released me,’ it’s my calling in life to teach peace and there is a little boy, adventurous streak in me. In the conflict resolution and peace studies program, I work with five to six other people in different disciplines with the composition of about four of the members changing each year. They study social work, sociology and education.

Tell me about your university.
It’s a range of students from first class to struggling. The first-class students could come here (to NMU) and do well. Struggling students probably wouldn’t make it here. They received poor educational preparation. It’s racially distinguished. Whites and Indians are prepared because they are wealthy. Blacks are still poor and have low levels of literacy. Affirmative action is trying to fix it. (The disparity) is a challenge in class because (the material is) boring to some and challenging to others.

An example of how nonviolent resolution can be cost effective at my university is that it gets into conflicts that end up in court often. A lot of the issues could be dealt with on a lower level instead of going to court. It would save them a lot of money (if they could resolve issues without taking legal action).

Could you please describe your peace studies program in South Africa?
It’s mostly post-graduates who take distant learning classes. Most students are from Rwanda, Zimbabwe and the Republic of the Congo. They want to learn how you recover from conflict…Most are employed by NGOs (non-government organizations) and churches. Some come from the government and return to work there when they’re done…The main emphasis is to build a commitment of nonviolent resolution to conflict. It could be between individuals, groups or countries. You can apply the methods to all levels—people just need to listen.

Another point to emphasize is to build skills to do it (achieve a nonviolent resolution). When there is a difference of wants and needs emotions take over. I like to use the American phrase: ‘We’ve got a situation here.’ The program is geared toward taking emotions out. For example, in the 1967 Egypt-Israel War. The leaders went to Camp David and the (U.S.) president said, ‘What do you really want here?’ Egypt wanted their land back and Israel wanted security, so they decided to create a demilitarized zone. U.N. (United Nations) troops were put in to make sure they were keeping up with the bargain. An example at the individual level would be watching television. One person wants to watch one thing and another person wants to watch another thing. You must ask, ‘Do you really need to watch it now?” Maybe, you could watch one thing that’s happening live while taping the other to watch later. What people want and need are different. It comes down to saying, ‘Let’s talk about what you really want and figure out ways to get what you really need.’  

What have you done while you have been in Marquette?
I’ve given lectures to introductory anthropology and sociology classes (at NMU). I gave a main lecture at the university earlier this week. I have a couple of community lectures to give, too.

What are common themes of your lectures?
I almost think of it as preaching because it’s something I feel is my calling to do. Most people think what you need is strength to achieve short-term victories, but it doesn’t help in the long run when you look at places like Iraq. Violence doesn’t have a good track record. Nonviolence has a good record. It doesn’t always work, but it can be very effective in many cases. Look at the independence of India, the civil rights movement for African Americans, the end of apartheid, the fall of the Soviet Union and what happened in the Philippines.

Nonviolence woks because there is a spiritual element underlying it. Gandhi said the means must be consistent with the end. I use Iraq as an example. America’s actions toward Iraq should be out of a high regard for the Iraqi people. Motive is important. Instead of wanting to bomb and impose sanctions, think of ways to act as a friend. If you love some, you don’t beat them. Where does ‘I won; you lost,’ get you? Nonviolence can get good consequences.

I’ll be talking at a Lutheran Church in Marquette about why war persists and why we haven’t gotten smart enough not to do it.

What would you like to see happen in the United States?
I like to have a Department of Peace. I imagine Dennis Kucinich’s argument is to do these types of things (using nonviolent means to reach conflict resolution). You can’t rely on other government departments. They’re up to their necks in work—need to create a new one to focus on it. It’s not wanting to win (declare victory) over a person. It’s wanting the best for them.

What will you take from NMU back to your school in Africa?
Even though it wouldn’t work (because of the high theft rate), it would be great if everyone had their own laptop. It’s also great to have common areas on campus where students can get together and work. I’ve been impressed with the quality of questions from the students.  

Do you plan to visit NMU again?
I think it would be a good idea to start a peace studies program at NMU. I’d be happy come back and help with the planning.

Do you have any final thoughts?
In preparing to come here, I realized it’s not just a matter of nonviolence. It’s really about saying, ‘I have respect for this person. It doesn’t mean I’ll give up what I want, but I care about the other person.’