Research on international law, armed conflict, and civilian harm. Professor at Carleton U, Legal Studies. Cyclist, hiker, looking forward to sabbatical.
Christiane Wilke
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Heading to Berlin airport after a five stop, four city family visit to Berlin, Greifswald, Bad Oeynhausen and Münster. Ready to sleep for a week.
Christiane Wilke
Layers of information in an archival document:
- What is said
- What is not said
- What is alluded to
- What is omitted intentionally
(and unintentionally)
- What is misleading
- What is ambiguous
- What is highlighted
- What is downplayed
- What is weaponized
- What is unintelligible today
...
The introductory post below provides an overview of the theme of the collection
opiniojuris.org/2025/12/08/i...
Is the aerial perspective automatically dehumanizing? I compare the work of Forensic Architecture in humanizing the victims on the ground with the use of the aerial perspective by state militaries. Aerial images require interpretation and are vulnerable to being read out of context.
Democratic consultants: To replicate Mamdani’s success with the young people we must appeal to their short attention spans with memes and TikTok
Mamdani (actual quote): In the fifth century in what we now know as Ireland, a British warlord named Coroticus had laid waste to the countryside
Find the light at the end of the tunnel and move towards it. Hoping for the best for all of us for 2026!
We had a great ski today on the Ottawa West Winter Trail.
The aerial perspective can be used to see and contest patterns of destruction. But it can also be used to not look too closely, to look away, to not look the victims in the eye, to paraphrase Mohammed Al Kurd. Seeing is never simple. It involves ethics and judgement.
How do we look at violence? How does our vantage point shape what and whom we see?
My new post on @opiniojuris.bsky.social analyzes the promise and limits of the aerial perspective for seeing war crimes and genocide.
opiniojuris.org/2025/12/10/s...
Healthcare under attack in Afghanistan. Excellent analysis by Shabnam Salehi on why we need to pay attention to the recent Pakistani attack on an addiction treatment centre in Afghanistan. theconversation.com/strike-on-af...
