Our Voices
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Ending solitary confinement in immigration detention: a guide to litigation and advocacy strategies
Tags Share Egregious abuse of solitary confinement is found throughout the U.S. immigration detention system. From 2017 to 2021, the United States imprisoned immigrants in solitary confinement over 14,500 times. In 2017, the average duration of placement was 33 days; in 2022, the average was 22 days, with a high duration of 242 days. The…
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This Week’s Spotlight on Human Rights
Tags Share DHS Says it Won’t Eliminate Oversight Offices but is Still Pursuing Layoffs The Homeland Security Department is no longer planning on shuttering three oversight offices whose entire workforces were told in March that they were being laid off. Officials are still going through with reductions in force, however, leading to continued questions from…
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CNN: Trump appointee grilled in court about shuttering Homeland Security offices tasked with civil rights oversight
Tags Share A federal judge said that she had concerns about being “hoodwinked” by plans put forward in her courtroom Monday by a Trump appointee to rebuild three offices focused on civil rights oversight within the Department of Homeland Security that were eviscerated with mass layoffs set to take effect this week. US District Judge…
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Cameroon: RFK Human Rights Condemns Sustained Attacks against REDHAC
Tags Share We strongly condemn the Cameroonian government’s ban on the activities of and sustained attacks against the Network of Human Rights Defenders in Central Africa (REDHAC, by its French acronym), led by RFK Human Rights Award Laureate Maximillienne Ngo Mbe. We call on the government to lift the ban, unseal REDHAC’s offices, and desist…
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This Week’s Spotlight on Human Rights
Tags Share Maine Gov. Janet Mills to Receive Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award Maine Gov. Janet Mills will receive an award from the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights. RFK Human Rights announced Thursday that Mills is one of three recipients of its 42nd annual Human Rights Award. The other two are Elizabeth Oyer, a former…
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Bangladesh: The Interim Government Must Ensure the Ordinance on Enforced Disappearances Aligns with International Standards Following Robust Public Consultations
Tags Share We – the undersigned human rights organisations – express our serious concerns about Bangladesh’s draft Enforced Disappearance Prevention and Redress Ordinance 2025. While it is critical to enact a law to hold perpetrators accountable for enforced disappearances, the current draft contains provisions that fail to adhere to international standards. The Interim Government took…
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RFK Human Rights Joins World Press Freedom Day Celebrations in Brussels
Tags Share At the invitation of UNESCO’s Global Media Defence Fund, RFK Human Rights joined other media freedom stakeholders from around the world to commemorate the 2025 World Press Freedom Day in Brussels, Belgium, from May 5 to 7, 2025. The celebration was organized under the theme Reporting in a Brave New World: The Impact…
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#TunisiaExit – Unpacking Tunisia’s Restriction on Citizens’ Access to the African Court
Tags Share In early March, Tunisia officially revoked its citizens’ abilities to file cases against the government in Africa’s human rights court. On March 7, 2025, Tunisia notified the African Union (AU) of its decision to withdraw the Article 34(6) declaration that allows individuals and non-governmental organizations to file cases against it before the African Court…
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Venezuela: Exigimos información sobre la suerte y paradero de Eduardo Torres, defensor de derechos humanos de PROVEA, así como el respeto y garantía de sus derechos
Tags Share Las organizaciones firmantes expresamos nuestra profunda preocupación por la vida, integridad, libertad y seguridad de Eduardo Torres, defensor de derechos humanos e integrante del Programa Venezolano de Educación-Acción en Derechos Humanos (PROVEA), quien se encuentra desaparecido desde el viernes 9 de mayo. Tras concluir una reunión en Parque Central de Caracas, Eduardo mantuvo una conversación telefónica…
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Ms. Magazine: ‘You Must Give It All You Got’: Ethel Kennedy’s Playbook for Enacting Meaningful Social Change
Tags Share Writing in a heartfelt Ms. Magazine tribute, our president Kerry Kennedy honored the life and legacy of her mother, Ethel Kennedy, who passed away in October 2024. The article highlights Ethel’s lifelong dedication to human rights, from challenging dictators to fighting child labor and torture. Her guiding principle, “You are only on this…
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NBC Boston: Rumeysa Ozturk shares concern for hundreds of women still in ICE custody in Louisiana
Tags Share After 45 days in federal custody, Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk has returned to Massachusetts following a judge’s order for her release from a Louisiana ICE detention facility. Her case has drawn national attention to the harsh conditions in privately run immigration centers. Ozturk has since spoken out on behalf of the 900…
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One Student’s Fight for Florida’s Future Coastline
Tags Share Florida’s gulf coast is home to many natural wonders: diverse estuaries, lush mangrove forests, expansive beaches, and so much more. Having grown up surrounded by wetland ecosystems in St. Petersburg, Ava Thompson chose to dedicate her studies to preserving her home state’s ecology. Now a junior at Florida State University, Thompson is studying…
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