07/01/2026
We are excited to announce the plenary speaker for the 2026 Harry Potter Academic Conference, Jeff Bachman! Dr. Bachman will be speaking on "Understanding Genocide in the World of Harry Potter to Better Understand Genocide in Our World."
Jeff Bachman is Cohen Endowed Chair in Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Keene State College. He is also Co-Editor-in-Chief of Genocide Studies and Prevention: An International Journal. He is the author of three books: 'Harry Potter and Genocide: An Introduction to Genocide Studies Through the World of Harry Potter' (2026), 'The Politics of Genocide: From the Genocide Convention to the Responsibility to Protect' (2022), and 'The United States and Genocide: (Re)Defining the Relationship' (2017). He is also the editor or co-editor of four volumes: 'The Routledge Handbook of Genocide Studies' (2026), 'A Modern History of Forgotten Genocides and Mass Atrocities' (2024), 'Genocide Studies: Pathways Ahead (2024), and Cultural Genocide: Law, Politics, and Global Manifestations' (2019).
Plenary abstract: The appropriate use of the term “genocide” to describe events is hotly contested and politicized. Meanwhile, studies have shown that students who have attended schools with genocide education requirements have demonstrated weak genocide content knowledge. Moreover, Holocaust and Genocide Studies curricula tend to focus on a limited number of “consensus” cases, which tend to reinforce particular understandings about what genocide is and, therefore, is not. As a scholar of genocide and mass atrocities, Dr. Bachman believes that much can be learned about the study of genocide by situating key, emerging, and contested concepts in the world of Harry Potter (including Fantastic Beasts), while making such ideas, concepts, and debates accessible to readers of all ages.
