Laurence Ralph named William D. Zabel ’58 Professorship of Human Rights

July 16, 2024

It is our great pleasure to announce that Professor Laurence Ralph has been named the William D. Zabel ’58 Professorship of Human Rights. This Professorship was recently established in recognition of William D. Zabel lifetime work. The JPB Foundation made this gift to Princeton to attract and retain world-class faculty pursuing academic work related to social justice. Ralph is jointly appointed in the Department of Anthropology and the School of Public and International Affairs, and is the co-director of the Center on Transnational Policing

Ralph is the author of the award winning books Renegade Dreams: Living Through Injury in Gangland Chicago and the Torture Letters: Reckoning with Police Violence. His newly published book Sito: An American Teenager and the City that Failed Him is a deeply personal story of violence, grief, and the American justice system, exploring the systemic issues that perpetuate gang participation in one of the wealthiest cities in the country, through the story of one teenager. Ralph is the editor-in-chief of flagship journal Current Anthropology.

Warm congratulations Laurence on the named professorship!