NYU Debate on Targeted Killing
A few months ago, New York University hosted a public debate on targeted killings among three of its prominent faculty members. The discussion, which is now available on video, involved Philip Alston, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions, who has written critically of the United States’ drone program from an international law perspective; Jeremy Waldron, a political, moral, and legal philosopher, who has criticized targeted killings from a moral perspective; and Lawfare’s own Rick Pildes, who needs no introduction to this audience. Rick organized his
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A few months ago, New York University hosted a public debate on targeted killings among three of its prominent faculty members. The discussion, which is now available on video, involved Philip Alston, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions, who has written critically of the United States’ drone program from an international law perspective; Jeremy Waldron, a political, moral, and legal philosopher, who has criticized targeted killings from a moral perspective; and Lawfare’s own Rick Pildes, who needs no introduction to this audience. Rick organized his remarks around what he characterized as various “myths” that run through much of the public debate about targeted killings. The debate took place back in December, but the YouTube video only just became available. Rick’s opening remarks begin around 31 minutes in.
Benjamin Wittes is editor in chief of Lawfare and a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. He is the author of several books.
