CHICAGO – The office of Northwestern law Prof. Douglas Cassel has an air of chaos, reflecting the political cultures of countries about which he teaches. Bookshelves are crammed with texts on international law and human rights in both English and Spanish. Heaps of papers, most shoved into file folders, hide the computer and the desktop.

Cassel’s visitors and Law School students, including human rights lawyers from places such as Indonesia and Colombia, have to sidestep piles of papers and books on the floor if they want to discuss an assignment or Cassel’s work as the director of NU’s Center for International Human Rights.

But now, his visitors might wade through the mess want to discuss his staunch objection to the war in Iraq.

The conflict has been a primary focus of Cassel’s recent advocacy efforts and an important topic of discussion in his classroom. He has written more than a dozen articles about the war and delivered more than 30 speeches on the topic.

The topic directly relates to Cassel’s curriculum, which teaches international law students to be effective human-rights activists in countries controlled by oppressive leaders and writes articles speaking out against international law and human rights violations.

Cassel said his objections to the war center on international law, rather than human rights, but he still feels it is important to use his voice to help educate people.

“I think the war is unjustified — we aren’t facing any imminent threat,” he said. “It faces the threat of a large number of casualties. There are already thousands of people who have lost their lives. All of this could have been avoided by better diplomacy.”

Cassel has taught at the center since it was formed in 1998. It is part of the Law School’s goal to expand its international presence, said Dean David Van Zandt.

“It came about because we believe increasing globalization in communities and economic activity reflects and leads to a globalization of human rights,” he said.

The center offers two courses and runs an international law concentration for students seeking master’s degrees. Five students graduated last year after completing the concentration. The center also conducts practical work in the area of human rights, organizing conferences for leaders to discuss issues and problems and participating in some activist efforts.

“We teach human rights laws and international criminal law,” Cassel said. “Students involved in (the center) do research projects, advocacy projects in those areas in support of human rights around the world.”

Although Cassel makes his opinions known on the Iraqi conflict clearly known, students said they feel comfortable working with him.

“If we (did not hold) the same position (on the war), we wouldn’t worry,” said Rinno Arna, a Law School student from Indonesia. “This class is free.”

Although some professors try to keep their political views hidden to avoid influencing students, Cassel said he thinks it’s important for the classroom to be an open forum, and he makes sure students know they won’t be graded on whether they agree with him.

The international students said having a professor also also is an activist gives them insight into the work they will be doing once they return to their countries.

“Sometimes if he’s going to explore some human rights theory it’s in a manner not only as a professor, but sometimes as a lawyer, sometimes as an activist,” said Budi Santoso, a lawyer for Independent Legal Aid Institute in Indonesia and student at the center. “It’s helpful … because he cares not only about the theory itself but how to implement it in practical uses.”

Arna said learning about activism is important, but the center also provides students with a more diverse perspective.

“It’s not only a teaching program and about how to be a good human-rights activist and lawyer,” she said. “But also how to think broadly about countries because if we only learn from our own country we will have a narrow perspective.”

Cassel said he agrees the center provides a variety of viewpoints important for learning, especially for students from the United States.

“It’s tremendously educational for NU students to learn about far different views of the world, learn about realities,” he said. “They are encouraged by the people who aren’t always in the safety of the classroom, but out there having lives on the line.”

Visiting fellow Juan Castrillon’s life literally was on the line when Cassel brought him and his family to the center in 2001. Paramilitaries fighting in Colombia’s civil war were threatening Castrillon and his family because of his involvement with human-rights projects, Castrillon said.

Castrillon is working on his doctorate while he is away from Colombia, and plans to return there to advocate human rights when it becomes safe.

“Cassel has supported human-rights organizations in Colombia for at least 20 years,” Castrillon said. “He gave me good direction about how we can do our jobs better in Colombia.”

Although wars in Iraq and Colombia are important issues, Cassel continues to work on other topics such as terrorism and civil liberties, the Inter-American Human Rights System and the International Court of Justice.

Cassel said he soon will hire an assistant director to help with the center’s growing initiatives. Van Zandt said he wants to expand the center because of its role in the Law School’s international goals.

“We want to provide more opportunities for studies in (the center), get more help for doing international rights,” he said.