Human Rights First’s Post

Russian democracy advocate and our senior advisor Vladimir Kara-Murza was unjustly sentenced to 25 years in prison after a sham trial for speaking out against Russia’s war on #Ukraine. Tell your representatives to bring him home: https://bit.ly/FreeVKM. #FreeKaraMurza #FreeThePress

Human Rights First’s Innovation Lab is excited to announce the completion of our first hackathon. Produced in partnership with Howard University, "Code the Vote" convened–on campus and remotely–over 100 emerging technologists, social scientists, designers, researchers and advocates to combat the biggest threats to our elections: weaponized disinformation, voter suppression tactics, and out-of-control algorithms that are dividing our communities. Over the course of two days, participants worked to “gamify” election protection, generating new ideas and designing tools to safeguard the vote and protect democracy. The 122 hackathon participants came from 27 states (and the District of Columbia), four Canadian provinces, and 11 other countries. They are students or recent graduates of sixty colleges and universities. The winning team of four, Mike Patraw, Jason Yoon, Rishav Raj, and Tina Pai, conceived of and developed 'Debate Bot,' an app designed to combat political apathy and misinformation through an interactive game that educates users about the candidates. With trivia sections and data analytics, Debate Bot offers a comprehensive and engaging way to navigate political information. The Innovation Lab looks forward to continuing to engage with all of the hackathon participants–and other partners– in efforts to bring new thinking to the work of protecting democracy. Congratulations to this year’s winners and all the participants!

Our @AmandaLStrayer recently attended a workshop for New Tools to Fight Foreign Bribery where panelists discuss new foreign anti—bribery tools that promise progress in engaging new actors in the fight against corruption.

Russian authorities arbitrarily arrested our senior advisor and human rights defender @vkaramurza for opposing Putin’s regime and its invasion of #Ukraine. He now serves an unjust 25-year prison sentence. Urge your representatives to #FreeKaraMurza: https://bit.ly/FreeVKM

Today, Human Rights First released "Kharkiv’s Local Heroes: A Case Study of Human Rights Defenders in War." This report highlights the critical work of human rights defenders (HRDs) in northeastern Ukraine amidst escalating conflict. During our June 2024 visit to Kharkiv, we documented their efforts to evacuate civilians from heavily shelled villages. HRDs face air raids, missile strikes, power outages, psychological stress, and conscription threats daily. Global recognition and support for their work is urgently needed. Our Senior Advisor Brian Dooley reports from Ukraine. Read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/gGJ9N-iS

We are pleased to announce the 2024 recipients of Human Rights First Pro Bono Star Award and Community Star Awards! Recipients of the Pro Bono Star Award are legal professionals who have shown exceptional commitment to providing asylum seekers with high-quality legal representation. Recipients of our Community Star Award are community partners that show up for our clients when it is needed most. We are honored to celebrate their outstanding contributions to our community! Congratulations to all 2024 Pro Bono Star Award recipients: Sona Rewari – Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP Suzanne Haynie – Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP Evan Mayor – The Walt Disney Company Alexis Gilman – Crowell & Moring Tai Williams – Crowell & Moring Lauren Fleming – Crowell & Moring Amber Gonzales – Crowell & Moring Jessica Watt – Ballard Spahr LLP William McDaniel – Ballard Spahr LLP Mayra Troendle – Ballard Spahr LLP Edmund Nyarko – Ballard Spahr LLP Colin Kane – Ballard Spahr LLP And congratulations to our Community Star Award winner, New Neighbors Partnership! https://lnkd.in/efFjHA5x

"We are very grateful for the opportunity this country gave us." On #WorldRefugeeDay, meet Arbana Xharra, an investigative journalist from Kosovo who received asylum in the U.S. for her and her family. Refugees and asylum seekers belong. The U.S. was built on ideals of hope, refuge, and opportunity for all. Today on World Refugee Day, we urge our lawmakers to prioritize safe, humane solutions that ensure that people seeking safety — like Arbana and her family — are welcomed with dignity.

#Juneteenth is both a celebration of freedom and a call to action. We must ensure that all voices are heard in our democracy. Let's call on Congress to pass vital voting rights legislation and make the promise of Juneteenth real for everyone.

According to our newly released report with @IEquality and @NIJC, roughly one third of people in @ICEgov & @CBP jails reported sexual and physical abuse or harassment on account of their LGBTQ identity. Read the report: https://lnkd.in/ecm8aEHb Urge @SecMayorkas to end detention and protect LGBTQ lives: https://lnkd.in/e8Dzgcea