Human Rights USA

Human Rights USA "is a human rights initiative of four partners: the Amnesty International USA Educator' Network, the Center for Human Rights Education, Partners in Human Rights Education (a joint project of the University of Minnesota Human Rights Center and Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights), and Street Law, Inc. Human Rights USA is funded by the Ford Foundation. Human Rights USA seeks to reach educators and students, social justice advocates and the general public to achieve a new level of awareness about the scope, relevance and meaning of human rights in the United States, commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to foster action to guarantee these rights. Human Rights USA’s primary activities include: 1) an intensive community and school-based human rights education and advocacy programs and activities in four sites; 2) national outreach to schools and social justice organizations; 3) maintaining a Resource Center with information and materials on human rights education; 4) providing an interactive Web site (www.hrusa.org); 5) conducting a media campaign to raise awareness of human rights in the United States; and 6) working with other organizations to create a national human rights network." []

• Kristi Rudelius-Palmer - Founding Member
• Edward O'Brien - Co-founder

Contact

Human Rights USA Resource Center

229 - 19th Avenue South, 437 Law Center, Minneapolis, MN 55455 []

DIFFERENT GROUP

The World Organization for Human Rights USA "began in 1996 as the World Organization Against Torture USA, a U.S. affiliate of the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT) network, made up of over 200 human rights groups worldwide, each focusing on securing domestic compliance with international human rights norms in their own countries.

"Human Rights USA was founded on the principle that the United States, as a world leader in efforts to enforce international human rights norms, should be held accountable to the same standards it promotes abroad. These include rights to protection from torture and gender-based violence, access to legal remedies (such as habeas corpus) to effectively challenge abuses of power, and observance of other core standards set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other human rights treaties, such as the Convention Against Torture."

"Since 1996, we have served as the U.S. affiliate of a worldwide network (the World Organization Against Torture (SOS Torture) network) of more than 200 groups monitoring human rights compliance by their own governments."

Links

Staff

Accessed November 2008:

• Morton Sklar, Executive Director
• Monique Beadle, West Coast Office Director
• Theresa Harris, Deputy Director
• Piper Hendricks, International Justice Project Director
• Elizabeth Badger, Refugee Project Director
• Lynsay Gott, Refugee Project Associate Attorney & Equal Justice Works Fellow
• Colleen Costello, Human Rights & Anti-Terrorism Project Associate Attorney
• Brenden Sloan, Executive Assistant

Donors (Past and Present)

Accessed November 2008:

• Ford Foundation
• MacArthur Foundation
• Moriah Fund
• National Endowment for Democracy (NED)
• Open Society Institute (OSI)
• Playboy Foundation
• Reebok Foundation
• Tides Foundation
• Urgent Action Fund for Women’s Human Rights

Directors

Accessed November 2008:

• Rick Wilson, Chair of Human Rights USA Board of Directors
• Richard C. Dieter, Vice President of the Board of Directors
• Lucie Morillon, Vice President of the Board of Directors
• Andrew Morton, Secretary/Treasurer of Board of Directors
• JoAnn Chase
• Nicholas Diamand
• Keith Harper
• Barbara K. Kagan
• Kathleen Lucas
• Jumana Musa
• Philomena Nwaokolo
• Mona Papillon
• Eric Sottas