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Testimony by Chapman sociologist Pete Simi leads to a judgment against hate group organizers
VICTIMS OF HATE GET THEIR DAY IN COURT
BY DENNIS ARP
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Testimony of Chapman sociologist Pete Simi leads to judgment against organizers of Charlottesville rally.
Two weeks into the high-profile trial of the white nationalists who organized the deadly Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Va., Chapman University sociologist and hate group researcher Pete Simi finally got his chance to testify as an expert witness.
REVEALING THE VIOLENT INTENT BEHIND THE RALLY
Much of the team’s report was gleaned from alt-right conversations on the chat platform Discord.
“When you go behind the scenes and look at where Unite the Right was planned on Discord, and you see the volume of references to using violence during the rally, it’s overwhelmingly clear that this event was organized for the purpose of committing violence,” Simi said.
The judgment has the potential to greatly deter the white supremacist movement, Simi said. But beyond that, the jury’s decision “underscores why the court system is so important,” he added. “It offers an opportunity to capture truth in terms of the historical record.”
On a personal level, the more than 1,000 hours of research time Simi spent poring over hateful conversations online and then testifying in court also produced some emotional scars, he said.
“A lot of what we went through is vile, toxic material advocating for various kinds of violence, in some cases using the crudest of images,” he said. “It’s something I’ve been immersed in for a long time, but it still takes an emotional and psychic toll. In essence, you’re exposing yourself to poison.”
So it matters that the effort wasn’t in vain.
“It’s worth it to expose that truth,” he said.
HE WAS MORE THAN READY FOR THE MOMENT
“Simi’s testimony was devastating,” the Slate online news magazine reported in its trial coverage. “He explained, in the most academic terms possible, the degree to which the performance artistry of the white supremacists is not accidental. It’s deliberate stagecraft, constructed to promote both violent spectacle and plausible deniability.”
The verdict against rally organizers “offers an opportunity to capture truth in terms of the historical record,” Pete Simi says.
Nine days later, a jury found Richard Spencer, Christopher Cantwell and other white supremacists and neo-Nazis liable of conspiracy for their role in the 2017 rally that injured dozens and killed Heather Heyer, who was hit by a car driven into a crowd of counter protesters. The jury awarded the plaintiffs more than $25 million in damages.
The result in the civil trial was particularly satisfying for Simi, an associate professor in Chapman’s Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences whose intensive research takes him deep inside the minds and motives of white supremacists. Simi, co-author of the book “American Swastika: Inside White Power Movement’s Hidden Spaces of Hate,” has lived with those espousing racist ideology to try to understand them better. He has compiled 20,000 pages of life histories from interviews with former members of white supremacist groups.
He also studies events like the Unite the Right rally, including online messaging before and after such events. For the trial of the rally organizers, he and sociology research colleague Kathleen Blee of the University of Pittsburgh compiled a 63-page research report showing how the defendants had worked together to promote the event while also trying to hide behind coded messaging full of dog whistles and doublespeak. “[The jury᾽s decision] underscores why the court system is so important. It offers an opportunity to capture truth in terms of the historical record.” Pete Simi
Chapman Professor Pete Simi, right, and University of Pittsburgh colleague Kathleen Blee developed a 63-page research report that decoded messaging used by the defendants before the Unite the Right rally.
WHERE QUANTUM MYSTERY TURNS INTO NEW DISCOVERIES
BY DENNIS ARP
Building on foundational research, Andrew Jordan works to expand the scope of the Institute for Quantum Studies.
Ever since high school, Andrew Jordan has been fascinated by the promise and possibilities of quantum mechanics. So much so that he has devoted his professional life to the study of matter and light on the atomic and subatomic scale.
Decades later, the field still amazes him.
“Part of the excitement is that things in nature can transcend our ability to grasp them at any kind of fundamental level,” said Jordan, an internationally recognized theoretical physicist who joined Chapman University in fall 2021 as co-director with Jeff Tollaksen of the Institute for Quantum Studies (IQS).
“You can get some experience with [quantum physics], and you can become used to it, but it’s still as mysterious as when you first encounter it,” Jordan added.
The mystery just adds to the allure, encouraging him to dive deeper into quantum research and teaching.
“Part of the vision for doing quantum foundations is to try different angles to understand concepts from different points of view,” Jordan said. “That can lead to different lines of approach to the same kind of phenomena.”
Now, as leader of a Chapman program that for more than a dozen years has attracted some of the best minds in the discipline to join in collaborative research, Jordan is working to build on IQS achievements – to transform curiosity into tangible advances that expand the scope and vision of the institute.
Thanks to the 2008 arrival at Chapman of renowned quantum physicist Yakir Aharonov, IQS is grounded in foundational topics like weak values and superoscillation. Aharonov, winner of the National Medal of Science, has pioneered mind-bending concepts, including that time can flow backward and subatomic particles are changed by far-away forces.
“Part of the reason I’m here is that I’m interested in those things too, but we’re working on lots of other things as well,” Jordan said. “For instance, quantum thermodynamics is a subject I’m excited about, and there’s a lot of activity going on with quantum metrology – the science of using quantum mechanics to do precise measurements.” Technologies based on such research might lead to the development of tiny gyroscopes that run on very little power, expanding options for navigation and making it more precise.
In addition, research by Jordan that was published last year in the journal Nature Communications illuminates a weak value amplification technique that can be used to precisely measure the properties of light guided by waveguides fabricated on a Silicon chip about the size a quarter. By using light instead of electricity, the chip might be used for everything from stabilizing lasers to aiding with the remote sensing of objects.
The mission of Chapman University's Institute for Quantum Studies is high-level research and teaching but also increasing public understanding of quantum concepts, says Andrew Jordan, co-director of the institute.
A GLOBAL COMMUNITY OF WORLD-CLASS THINKERS
The IQS culture of creative breakthroughs first attracted Jordan to Chapman years ago, when he was a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Rochester. In 2012, he became an IQS affiliated scholar, joining a collaborative global community that also includes Nobel laureates Sir Anthony Leggett, David Gross and François Englert, as well as celebrated cosmologist Paul Davies.
But even as that community grows and the opportunities for high-level research expand, Jordan says the team will continue to fulfill another IQS mission: to promote quantum literacy with engaging public talks.
A recent example is Davies’ presentation “What's Eating the Universe? And Other Cosmic Questions,” delivered during Homecoming.
“It’s our goal to not only educate our students but also the general public about important discoveries and the world we live in,” Jordan said.
To enlighten, yes, but not necessarily to demystify.
“Because we’re often mystified ourselves,” Jordan said with a smile. “It’s more about sharing the mystery.”
ENDOWMENTS POSITION CHAPMAN AS A HUB OF PRESIDENTIAL STUDIES
BY DAWN BONKER
Multimillion-dollar donations from Emeritus Chairman of the Board Doy B. Henley and James H. and Esther M. Cavanaugh have established a pair of endowed chairs in presidential studies at Chapman University, ensuring the university’s strong commitment to the study and teaching of the U.S. presidency, its history, influence and global impact. The gifts will advance a field of study with lasting significance and contribute to a greater understanding of the American experience, said Jennifer Keene, Ph.D., dean of the Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, where the chairs are centered.
“These two endowed chairs are recognition of the enduring importance and relevance of the humanities and social sciences. We cannot understand politics or the world today without an appreciation of how the American presidency has evolved historically,” Keene said. Moreover, such scholarship will be a profound benefit for Chapman students, who also have the unique advantage of benefiting from the resources of the Nixon and Reagan presidential libraries in Southern California, Keene says. Both donors said their gifts were inspired by their commitment to deepening students’ understanding of the democratic process and the vital role that public service and citizenship play in American life. “A nonpartisan center of research and scholarship dedicated to the study of the American presidency has never been more important for the future of our country. These faculty and programs will equip students with the skills they need to solve problems, serve with integrity and turn their passions into meaningful careers that support the greater good,” Henley said. “It’s a privilege to help provide this opportunity for students and scholars alike.”
James H. Cavanaugh, Ph.D., chairman of the Nixon Foundation Board of Directors and a key advisor in the Nixon and Ford administrations, spoke to Chapman’s commitment to elevating faculty and student research. “This is an exciting time to support such important work at Chapman University. Both faculty members are renowned scholars in this field and exemplify the best of Chapman,” Cavanaugh said. Two nationally recognized scholars have been selected as inaugural holders of the chairs.
Lori Cox Han, Ph.D., a presidential scholar, author and professor of political science at Chapman, will hold the Doy B. Henley Endowed Chair in American Presidential Studies, made possible by a $2 million gift from Henley. Luke Nichter, Ph.D., an author and scholar of American history
previously of Texas A&M University, will hold the James H. Cavanaugh Endowed Chair in Presidential Studies, created by a $2 million gift from the Cavanaughs. For Han, this new role opens opportunities to further her research and writing. She has authored several books on the presidency, and the third edition of her book “Presidents and the American Presidency” will be published with Oxford University Press in 2022. “Through campus events, including a speaker series, conferences and research opportunities for students, I want American presidential studies at Chapman to model civil discourse at a time in our history when a more substantive understanding, beyond political personalities, is needed on the role presidents play in governing,” Han said. Nichter is a New York Times bestselling author of five books, including “Richard Nixon and Europe: The Reshaping of the Postwar Atlantic World.” He also served as editor for two books by presidential historian Douglas Brinkley. Nichter’s next book is tentatively titled “The Making of the President, 1968: Lyndon Johnson, Hubert Humphrey, Richard Nixon, George Wallace, and the Election that Changed America.” “Chapman is getting into a space that others have not in recent years and so has a chance to really build a flagship in the region and become something that can be known nationally as well,” Nichter said.
160 Years: The Faces of Chapman
As we close our celebratory 160th year, we honor those who best embody the spirit of Chapman. Innovators, bold leaders, those who demonstrate kindness and compassion or help solve problems locally or around the globe –you are truly the best of Chapman. Your legacy has made Chapman what it is today, and your inspiration will drive us forward into the future.
Generous support from James. H. Cavanaugh and Doy B. Henley, from left at top, created the endowed chairs in presidential studies, to be held by Lori Cox Han and Luke Nichter, below.
1861 2021
