profile image for Kristofer Petersen-Overton

Kristofer Petersen-Overton

  • Adjunct Lecturer
Academic Division: History & Society
Professor Petersen-Overton holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY). He specializes in violence, structural injustice, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. His writing has appeared in Social Text, Contemporary Political Theory, The Journal of Political Science Education, Arab Studies Quarterly, The Guardian, Politics/Letters, and WarScapes, as well as the edited collections We Will Not Be Silenced (AK Press, 2017) and Peace Philosophy in Action (Palgrave MacMillan, 2010). He is the co-translator of Lex Icon (Ugly Duckling Press, 2024), by the Portuguese writer Salette Tavares.

Professor Petersen-Overton is currently writing a book on the concept of atrocity in Western political thought and co-designing a "Reacting to the Past" role-playing game for college instruction on Karl Marx and the League of the Just.

He is an editor at Sputnik & Fizzle, a small press that publishes work by artists, scholars, and activists.

Academic Degrees

  • Ph D, Graduate Center of the City University of New York
  • MS, Aalborg University
  • BA, San Diego State University

Academic Interest / Expertise

Political theory (ancient, modern, contemporary), violence and atrocity, structural injustice, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, political responsibility, ignorance, green political thought, music and politics, etc.

Courses

  • Degree Courses 2024

    • FCI 1000 FOUNDATIONS OF CRITICAL INQUIRY
    • HSS 2030 US POLITICS
    • POL 4606 ANC ATHENS&BIRTH POL THOUGHT
    • CSP 2015 POLITICAL THOUGHT
  • Degree Courses 2023

    • FCI 1000 FOUNDATIONS OF CRITICAL INQUIRY
    • HSS 2030 US POLITICS
    • CSP 2015 POLITICAL THOUGHT

Publications

Journal Articles

  • Petersen-Overton, K.J. (2023). The Harmonious Classroom: Teaching Political Theory With Period Music. The Journal of Political Science Education. Taylor & Francis. link
  • Petersen-Overton, K.J. (2022). Perpetuation as perpetration: Wrongful benefit and responsibility for historical injustice. Contemporary Political Theory. Vol: 21, Page: 545–566. link
  • Petersen-Overton, K.J. (2011). Academic Freedom & Palestine. Arab Studies Quarterly. Vol: 33, Issue: 3/4. Pluto Journals. link
  • Petersen-Overton, K.J. (2008). Counting Heads: Israel’s Demographic Imperative. Interdisciplinary Journal of International Studies.

Books

  • Petersen-Overton, K.J. (2023). Lex Icon. Ugly Ducking Presse. link

Book Chapters

  • Petersen-Overton, K.J. (2017). A Problem Grows in Brooklyn: We Will Not Be Silenced: The Academic Repression of Israel's Critics. Page: 84-97. AK Press. link
  • Petersen-Overton, K.J. (2010). Retooling Peace Philosophy: A Critical Look At Israel’s Separation Strategy: Peace Philosophy in Action. Page: 43-76. Palgrave-MacMillan. link

Other

  • Petersen-Overton, K.J. (2024). Memories of Gaza. Social Text. link

Presentations

  • The Harmonious Classroom: Teaching Political Theory With Period Music Petersen-Overton, K. American Political Science Association, Los Angeles, CA (2023)
  • The Bull of Phalaris: Atrocity and Political Theory Petersen-Overton, K. Association For Political Theory, Irvine, CA (2019)
  • Overlooking Atrocities: On Liberal-Democratic State Violence Petersen-Overton, K. American Political Science Association, Boston, MA (2018)
  • Thresholds of Atrocity: Liberal Violence and the Politics of Moral Vision Petersen-Overton, K. American Political Science Association, San Francisco, CA (2017)
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Professional Services

  • Reviewer, Journal Article Journal of Social Philosophy (2016 - Present)