Anthropological Witness

Anthropological Witness tells the story of Alexander Laban Hinton's encounter with an accused architect of genocide and, more broadly, Hinton's attempt to navigate the promises and perils of expert testimony. In March 2016, Hinton served as an expert witness at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, an international tribunal established to try senior Khmer Rouge leaders for crimes committed during the 1975–79 Cambodian genocide. His testimony culminated in a direct exchange with Pol Pot's notorious right-hand man, Nuon Chea, who was engaged in genocide denial.

Anthropological Witness looks at big questions about the ethical imperatives and epistemological assumptions involved in explanation and the role of the public scholar in addressing issues relating to truth, justice, social repair, and genocide. Hinton asks: Can scholars who serve as expert witnesses effectively contribute to international atrocity crimes tribunals where the focus is on legal guilt as opposed to academic explanation? What does the answer to this question say more generally about academia and the public sphere? At a time when the world faces a multitude of challenges, the answers Hinton provides to such questions about public scholarship are urgent.

Alexander Laban Hinton is Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and Global Affairs, Director of the Center for the Study of Genocide, and Human Rights UNESCO Chair on Genocide Prevention at Rutgers University. He is the author of more than a dozen books, including It Can Happen Here; Man or Monster?; The Justice Facade; and Why Did They Kill? Find him on X @AlexLHinton.

In Anthropological Witness, Alexander Hinton provides an engaging first-hand account of his experience testifying before the UN-backed court created to prosecute leaders of the Khmer Rouge regime, which controlled Cambodia from 1975–1979 and was responsible for the deaths of roughly 2 million people. I especially appreciated Hinton's deep knowledge of Cambodian society and culture, as well as the way he breathes life into major actors involved in international justice processes, which can sometimes appear impersonal and remote for outside observers.

Carole McGranahan, University of Colorado, co-editor of Ethnographies of U.S. Empire :

In Anthropological Witness, Alexander Laban Hinton comes face-to-face with Brother Number Two in court, successfully arguing for the role of anthropological research in establishing legal truths. Demonstrating how scholarly knowledge benefits society, it is public anthropology at its finest.

Mark Goodale, author of Reinventing Human Rights:

Alex Hinton's timely, accessible, and carefully crafted book is a deeply reflective contribution to wider debates over anthropology's continuing relevance in a world marked by structural violence, the weakening of international institutions, and persistent questions about the possibilities for justice.

Craig Etcheson, Harvard University, author of Extraordinary Justice:

Anthropological Witness is a masterwork.