Help Sustain the Ellsberg Initiative for Peace & Democracy
Help Sustain the Ellsberg Initiative for Peace & Democracy
America’s most famous whistle-blower, Daniel Ellsberg devoted his life to the non-violent struggle for peace, truth, and democracy. In 1971 he risked his freedom by releasing to the press and public a 7,000-page top-secret history of the Vietnam War — the Pentagon Papers — exposing decades of government lies and deceit. Ellsberg’s principled activism reminds us that dissent can be the highest form of patriotism and citizenship.
The inspiration for the Ellsberg Initiative was sparked by UMass’s acquisition of Ellsberg’s papers in 2019 and the subsequent launch of a series of related projects: a year-long student seminar, the creation of the Ellsberg Archive Project, a multi-part podcast and a two-day international conference marking the 50th anniversary of the release of the Pentagon Papers. On January 21, 2023, UMass awarded Ellsberg an honorary doctorate—a long-overdue tribute to his lifetime of civic courage and commitment.
Now, in the face of growing threats to democracy, free speech, and social justice, we feel a special urgency to move forward with our plan to create a permanent Ellsberg Institute. A fully-endowed institute would enable UMass to carry forward Daniel Ellsberg’s legacy with future generations of students, scholars, and the public.
Our mission is to promote public awareness, scholarship and activism on the overlapping causes that define Ellsberg’s life and legacy — peace, government accountability, democratic and human rights, nuclear disarmament, and social and environmental justice.
We’re asking you to support our mission.
Last spring, the Initiative welcomed Varshini Prakash (UMass ’15) as our week-long “Activist-in-Residence.” Prakash, co-founder of the Sunrise Movement, delivered a public lecture “UMass to Sunrise: Building the Youth-Led Movement for Climate Justice” and led workshops and class visits across campus.
In our Third Annual Ellsberg Lecture, acclaimed activist-educator Bill McKibben delivered a talk titled Back to the Wall, Face to the Sun: Where We Stand in the Climate Fight. We also hosted a major conference in April 2025 exploring the history and legacies of the American war in Vietnam on the occasion of its 50th anniversary of the war’s end.
Bill McKibben, 3rd Annual Ellsberg Lecture Focus for This Year: Democracy
In 2025–2026 we are concentrating our efforts on democracy—its defense and renewal amid rising authoritarianism, the erosion of democratic norms, and growing attacks on higher education and truth-telling.
Throughout the year, the Ellsberg Initiative will host a series of public programs and webinars exploring the frontlines of the struggle: the future of journalism and a free press; the role of libraries, universities, and scholars in safeguarding knowledge and open debate; and the ongoing existential danger posed by nuclear weapons, climate collapse, and war. The 2025 Ellsberg Lecture was delivered by the acclaimed journalist and author Farai Chideya.
Your contribution helps make these programs — and more — possible.
As Ellsberg himself said before his death in 2023:
“With democracy in peril at home and abroad—and civilization itself threatened by the prospects of environmental catastrophe and nuclear war—I welcome the UMass effort to create a permanent Ellsberg Institute for Peace and Democracy.”
We hope you will support this vitally important initiative.
Thank you!
Chris Appy
Director, Ellsberg Initiative for Peace and Democracy
Professor of History, University of Massachusetts Amherst
