A LIFELONG INFLUENCE

Project Tanganyika had a lasting impact on many of its participants, significantly influencing their work later in life.

David Zarembka ’66 entered the Peace Corps after graduating. He moved to Kenya following his tenure there and eventually founded the African Great Lakes Initiative, which promotes peace “at the grassroots level in the Great Lakes region of Africa,” according to its website. In 2011, Zarembka published a book about politics in the region.

Late human rights activist and historian Alison Des Forges ’64, who traveled to Tanganyika with Worth in 1963, became a prominent figure in issues related to Africa. Des Forges served as a senior adviser in the Africa division of Human Rights Watch. For her work as an activist and her book “Leave None to Tell the Story: Genocide in Rwanda,” Des Forges was awarded the MacArthur “Genius Grant” in 1999.

“For Alison, it became her life’s work,” Worth said. “It was a wonderful opportunity that had an impact in the work we did later.”

When his time with Project Tanganyika concluded, de Lissovoy chose to stay in Africa, hitchhiking to Rhodesia, South Africa, and Cairo. While working for a Rhodesian newspaper, he was arrested in South Africa for interviewing President of the African National Congress Albert Luthuli and returned to Harvard following his deportation.

Within a year, de Lissovoy left Harvard to join SNCC and went to Georgia to participate in the American Civil Rights Movement.

“The freedom movements in Africa made me aware of what was going on in the United States, so that led me to join up with SNCC,” he said.

De Lissovoy credited Project Tanganyika for preparing him for his work in American Civil Rights and for providing its participants with a transformative experience.

“I think the kids learned far more than they gave,” he said.

—Staff writer Eliza M. Nguyen can be reached at enguyen@college.harvard.edu.