Defender
-
Hafez Abu Sayed Seada
Biography Established in 1985, under Hafez Abu Sayed Seada’s leadership, the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights investigates, monitors, and reports on violations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Seada defends victims; strives to create understanding of, and popular support for, the defense of human rights; and works to change laws and government practices that…
-
Koigi wa Wamwere
Biography Koigi wa Wamwere is one of Kenya’s best-known political prisoners. Author of several books, plays, and poetry, wa Wamwere was born to a poor family in a forest community, did well in school, and was awarded a scholarship to study at Cornell University, where he graduated in 1973. He returned to Kenya to work…
-
Senal Sarihan
Biography Mother, lawyer, feminist, wife, playwright, director, teacher, union organizer, editor, advocate, leader, Senal Sarihan has challenged the status quo her entire life. As a member of the teachers union’s cultural unit, she wrote and directed plays. She joined the Executive Committee of the newly founded Turkish Teachers Association in 1967, where she wrote pro-union…
-
Polit Waar
In 2013, only two years after its independence, the promising future of the youngest country in Africa, the Republic of South Sudan, was compromised by political crises, struggles, and conflicts. Five years later, the country emerged from its civil war and embarked on the pathway of peace, reconciliation, and nation-building. Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights…
-
Linda Sarsour
Linda Sarsour was born in 1980 in Brooklyn, New York, the eldest of seven children of Palestinian immigrants. Her father owned a small market in the Crown Heights neighborhood—he called it Linda’s. She entered an arranged marriage at age 17 and had three children by the time she was in her mid-20s. But motherhood did…
-
Keith Ellison
In 1963, Keith Ellison was born to a Catholic family in Detroit, Michigan, the third of five sons. From a young age, he was greatly influenced by his family’s involvement in the civil rights movement, including his grandfather’s work as a member of the NAACP in Louisiana. After graduating from Wayne State University with a…
-
Dean Obeidallah
Born in New Jersey, Obeidallah is the son of a Palestinian father and a Sicilian mother—an atypical upbringing that has fueled his comedy-filled life. And he has been using his wit and wisdom to educate and entertain ever since. A former attorney, he’s the host of SiriusXM radio’s “The Dean Obeidallah Show,” making him the…
-
Dalilah Muhammad
Muhammad was born in 1990 to Muslim parents in Jamaica, Queens, New York. She began running as a child and has shown no sign of slowing her pace. When she was only 4 years old, representatives from the NY Novas Track Club in Brooklyn witnessed Muhammad’s long jumps, encouraged her to join the team, and…
-
Aaron Maybin
Born in Baltimore City, Maryland, in 1988, Maybin competed as an All-American linebacker at Penn State University before being chosen as the 11th overall pick in the 2009 NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills. After a five-year career with the New York Jets and the Cincinnati Bengals, he chose to leave the NFL in 2014…
-
Dalia Mogahed
Mogahed was born in Cairo, Egypt, and was just 4 years old when her family immigrated to the United States. Her upbringing was very traditional, and being a good student was priority number one. Yet, by the time she was 17, in addition to her studies, activism had captured her heart. She earned her undergraduate…
-
Abubacar Sultan
Sultan was just 24 years old when he began his work on behalf of children in his homeland of Mozambique. He was a teacher at the start of the brutal civil war in Mozambique (1985-1992) which left 2 million children dead, 250,000 displaced, 200,000 orphaned, and numerous others drafted into the fighting as child soldiers.…
-
Adolfo Pérez Esquivel
Pérez Esquivel was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1931. Despite family poverty, he attended school and trained as an architect and sculptor—his large-scale murals and other work reflect his faith in humankind and foundational belief in God. He was also a professor of architecture for 25 years. But he worried about human rights abuses…
Share