Former U.S. Congressman Jim Marshall became the fourth president of the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) on September 14, taking the oath of office and telling an audience at USIP’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., that he and the Institute’s staff are committed to the mission of “peace for the United States and for the world.”


Watch the full video from the event

Former U.S. Congressman Jim Marshall became the fourth president of the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) on September 14, taking the oath of office and telling an audience at USIP’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., that he and the Institute’s staff are committed to the mission of “peace for the United States and for the world.”

“I’m delighted to be on board,” he said.

Marshall, a Democrat with strong ties to both sides of the political aisle, represented the congressional district around Macon, Georgia, from 2003 to 2011 in the U.S. House of Representatives, serving on the House Committees on Armed Services, Agriculture and Financial Services. He also served as the mayor of Macon from 1995 to 1999.

A business and finance lawyer, Marshall was a law professor at Mercer University in Macon for 16 years and taught at Princeton University in 2011. He is also a decorated combat veteran of the Vietnam War, having served as an Airborne-Ranger reconnaissance platoon sergeant in the U.S. Army. In 2006, he was inducted into the Army Airborne Rangers’ Hall of Fame.

Marshall is a 1972 graduate of Princeton and earned a law degree from Boston University in 1977.

In his September 14 remarks, Marshall referred to the USIP presidency as an opportunity “to make a contribution.” The son and grandson of Army generals, he recalled a family history of American military service dating back to the Revolutionary War. With the beginning of his leadership at USIP, he observed, “I would say that the Marshall family is trending in the right direction.”

Marshall was selected by USIP’s Board of Directors in July. He succeeds Richard H. Solomon, a U.S. ambassador and senior State Department official who led the Institute as president for the past 19 years. During that period, USIP evolved from a small educational and analytical organization into an operational agency with offices in Kabul and Baghdad, as well as a presence in Pakistan and Libya. The other past USIP presidents are Robert F. Turner (1986-87), a University of Virginia constitutional and national security law professor, and Samuel W. Lewis (1987-92), a former U.S. ambassador and Middle East specialist. All of the previous USIP presidents attended Marshall’s swearing-in ceremony.

Created by Congress in 1984, the Institute is the nation’s independent, nonpartisan conflict management center and works to help prevent and mitigate international conflicts without resort to violence. A quasi-governmental agency, USIP plays a leading international role in training, education and implementing programs to manage conflict through nonviolent means and maintain peace in post-conflict settings.

Marshall was introduced by J. Robinson West, the chair of USIP’s Board of Directors. West said the former Congressman was seen as “as a leader who could take the Institute to the next stage in its growth and development.”

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II (D-Mo.), a Congressman from Missouri and the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, delivered an invocation and later administered the oath of office. Cleaver called Marshall “what is becoming a rare breed of members of Congress—and that is a moderate,” adding, “His spirit is a spirit of peace.”

The event also featured a tribute to Solomon, who guided the Institute into an array of peacebuilding and conflict management activities in international conflict zones and in the development and opening last year of a headquarters building on the western end of the National Mall and near the nation’s war memorials. USIP Board of Directors Vice Chair George E. Moose credited Solomon with an “inspiring vision” for the Institute’s programs and architecturally acclaimed building.

In his address, Marshall took note of the week’s tragic violence at U.S. diplomatic facilities in North Africa and the Middle East, particularly the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that claimed the life of Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other U.S. personnel.

He recalled an experience as mayor of Macon he had in securing the removal of a high fence topped by barbed wire that had separated a public housing project from Mercer University—a fence that sent, he said, “absolutely the wrong signal.” He added, “It’s the sort of thing on a small scale that you would hope we could do globally: Take down barbed wires, and substitute for that understanding and some peaceful, positive relationships.”

The new USIP president also quoted reflections on the nature of peace from a range of historical figures, including Albert Einstein, Presidents John F. Kennedy and Dwight D. Eisenhower, Napoleon, the 14th Dalai Lama and Indira Gandhi.

At USIP, Marshall drew on his 2008 Law Day address at Mercer University, a speech in which he appealed for better integration among already interdependent peoples through “education, negotiation, compromise, complicated international agreements, and legislation, plus the development and use of effective, non-violent international processes for dispute resolution…throughout the globe.”

Those attending the swearing-in event included Marshall’s wife, Macon lawyer Camille Hope; members of Congress; former and current senior U.S. officials; and foreign diplomats based in Washington.

Latest Publications

What a Transitional Government in Haiti will Require to Succeed

What a Transitional Government in Haiti will Require to Succeed

Thursday, March 28, 2024

By: Nicolás Devia-Valbuena;  Keith Mines

After weeks of consultations, and amidst a near total breakdown of law and order in Haiti, a Caribbean Community (CARICOM)-led effort to create a new transitional governing council may be nearing completion. The council’s establishment would allow for the entry of a multinational security force that would then be able to join with the Haitian National Police and restore order. Some have suggested the inclusion of “enablers” for the new security force — air support, drones, intelligence. But to gain the trust of the Haitian people, the new governing council will need its own popular “enablers,” a systematic way to include many more sectors of Haitian society that are currently ignored or deliberately excluded from governance.

Type: Analysis

Global Policy

Promoting Peace and Stability in the Americas through Religious Freedom

Promoting Peace and Stability in the Americas through Religious Freedom

Thursday, March 28, 2024

By: Knox Thames

The Western Hemisphere is generally known for protecting freedom of religion or belief. With a few notable exceptions, the countries of the region all enshrine religious freedom at the constitutional level and protect it through laws and policies. But in recent years, authoritarian governments in South America have increasingly viewed religious actors as threats to their regime’s survival and tried to control or crush independent religious activity.

Type: Analysis

Religion

Moscow Concert Hall Attack Will Have Far-Reaching Impact

Moscow Concert Hall Attack Will Have Far-Reaching Impact

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

By: Mary Glantz, Ph.D.;  Gavin Helf, Ph.D.;  Asfandyar Mir, Ph.D.;  Andrew Watkins

On Friday, terrorists attacked the Crocus City Hall outside Moscow leaving 140 people dead and 80 others critically wounded. Soon after, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack. The terrorist group, which is headquartered in Iraq and Syria, has several branches, including in South and Central Asia. Press reports suggest the U.S. government believes the Afghanistan-based affiliate of the Islamic State, ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K), was behind the attack. The Biden administration has publicly noted that it had warned the Russian government of the terrorism threat in early March in line with the procedure of “Duty to Warn.”

Type: Analysis

Global Policy

What Does the U.N. Cease-Fire Resolution Mean for the Israel-Gaza War?

What Does the U.N. Cease-Fire Resolution Mean for the Israel-Gaza War?

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

By: Robert Barron

On March 25, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) passed Resolution 2728, calling for an “immediate” cease-fire in Gaza. The motion’s passage came after weeks of back and forth and posturing among the UNSC’s permanent and rotating members. The exact phrasing of the resolution and its relevance to the situation on the ground, as well as bilateral and multilateral relations — particularly U.S.-Israel ties — have been the subject of heavy public and media attention since Monday, raising questions about the resolution’s subtext, intent and limitations. USIP’s Robert Barron looks at these questions.

Type: Question and Answer

Global PolicyPeace Processes

Angela Stent on the Terror Attack in Moscow

Angela Stent on the Terror Attack in Moscow

Monday, March 25, 2024

By: Angela Stent

While ISIS has claimed responsibility for the devastating terror attack in Moscow, Putin has baselessly tried to shift the blame to Ukraine, says USIP’s Angela Stent: “[Putin] wants to use this to increase repression at home … and also to pursue a more aggressive path in Ukraine.”

Type: Podcast

View All Publications