DECEMBER 2017
Annual Report
WWW.HUMANRIGHTSINSTITUTE.NET
DIRECTOR'S NOTE
Happy Holidays! On behalf of the Human Rights Institute (HRI) and Georgetown Law, we want to thank you for your continued support of Georgetown Law’s Human Rights Institute. HRI’s mission is to promote understanding of and respect for human rights and the practice of human rights law, and to develop Georgetown Law’s place as a global leader in human rights. To carry out its mission, HRI works closely with the broad range of human rights faculty and staff experts at the Law Center as well as leaders in the global human rights movement, and manages programs and projects to generate and advance the research, writing, and advocacy work of students, alumni, and faculty. HRI engages the human rights movement through its projects and research, which also provide opportunities for Georgetown Law students interested in pursuing a career as a human rights lawyer to gain knowledge, skills and experience. Last school year, students in HRI’s fact-finding practicum published a report on state violence against LGBT people in El Salvador. In addition to a myriad of other events, HRI also convened its 2017 Samuel Dash Conference on Global Criminal Justice: Accomplishments, Challenges, and Future Directions.
ANDREW SCHOENHOLTZ FACULTY DIRECTOR
This fall, HRI has focused on increasing its capacity and engagement with students. Nearly 200 students and faculty attended the annual Welcome Event in September. We also expanded the Human Rights Associates Program—giving 26 1Ls the opportunity to discuss pressing human rights issues and connect with practitioners in the field. Additionally this Fall, HRI hosted a record number of events—spanning from a large business and human rights panel, to an intimate discussion with a former prosecutor for the Khmer Rouge Trials. HRI will continue its student-focused programming in the Spring, including the 2018 Samuel Dash Conference on Human Rights. This year’s conference will focus on women’s rights, treating topics such as combatting violence against women and human trafficking, rights of the girl-child, and women human rights defenders advancing change in their communities. We hope to see you there. Sincerely,
ASHLEY BINETTI DASH-MUSE TEACHING FELLOW
HRI'S FACT-FINDING PRATICUM
HUMAN RIGHTS FACT-FINDING Each year, HRI works with a small team of students investigating a cutting-edge human rights issue, providing them the opportunity to develop the project's research methodology, conduct extensive interviews on the subject, draft a comprehensive report on their findings and recommendations, and engage in related advocacy. Professor Fanny Gómez Lugo taught last year's course and is again leading this year's practicum. She is the Senior Director for International Advocacy and Policy at Synergía – Initiatives for Human Rights, and previously served as the human rights specialist at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on the Rapporteurship on the Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Persons (2012-2016). The 2016-2017 Fact-Finding class, guided by Professor Gómez Lugo and 2015-2017 Dash-Muse Teaching Fellow Patrick Griffith, published Uniformed Injustice: State Violence against LGBT People in El Salvador, which documents the widespread discrimination and violence that LGBT persons face
in El Salvador at the hands of law enforcement officers, soldiers and justice system officials. The report, the product of months of research, includes interviews with over 50 human rights defenders, activists, victims, and government officials. The factfinding concludes that Salvadoran police and military officers both target LGBT people for violence and escalate routine encounters when they learn a victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity. LGBT victims are often prevented from filing complaints, or their allegations are never investigated. Professor Gómez Lugo and DashMuse Teaching Fellow Ashley Binetti are leading this year’s team, which includes Alicia Ceccanese (L'19), Juan Pablo Delgado (M.P.P.'19), Camille Gervais (LL.M.'18), Yashaswini Mittal (LL.M.'18), Danya Nayfeh (M.A.A.S., L'18), Makenna Osborn (L'19), Irene Sidabatur (LL.M.'18), and Amanda Strayer (L'19). The 2017-2018 mission will investigate violence and discrimination against LGBT persons in Guyana. Next year's practicum will focus on human trafficking. ❑
From left to right: Patrick Griffith (Dash-Muse Fellow ’15-’17), Megan Iorio (L'18), Ignacio Grazioso (LL.M.'17), Mary Kenah (L'18), Sophie Bones (LL.M.'17), Caitlin Anderson (L'18), Carlene Dooley (L'18), Jacob Travers (L'19), Ricardo Abend Van Dalen (L'18).
“I wanted hands on experience with a student-owned and student-led advocacy project, giving me invaluable skills in project management, leadership, and personal responsibility. [HRI’s Fact-Finding Practicum] definitely helped me grow as an advocate, and now I have a real sense of confidence and independence in my work.” - Sophie Bones (LL.M.’17), member of the 2016-2017 HRI Fact-Finding Practicum. "Many human rights advocates have learned by reading. Great human rights advocates have learned by doing. HRI's Fact-Finding Practicum offers a fantastic opportunity for students to learn human rights advocacy while actually planning and carrying out a successful factfinding mission. Students learn how to budget, interview, draft a human rights report, and engage in domestic and international advocacy. Through documenting human rights abuses, they not only gain a deeper understanding of these violations, but also become more sensitive to the plight of survivors." -Professor Fanny Gómez Lugo.
THE HUMAN RIGHTS ASSOCIATES PROGRAM
"I chose Georgetown Law specifically for its human rights program. HRAP gave me an outlet to explore human rights work in the legal field as a first-year student, and has helped me craft an idea of what I want my second and third years of law school to look like. The meetings allowed me to explore new areas of human rights, meet incredible advocates, and get a sense of what doors a law degree will open after graduation!" - Larson Binzer (L’20). The Human Rights Associates Program (HRAP)
sessions on: LGBT rights, immigration and
introduces Georgetown Law students to the breadth
asylum, human trafficking, prisoner rights, business
of human rights legal practice and cutting-edge
and human rights, a human rights career workshop, and
issues in human rights, and helps students prepare
secondary trauma and self-care for human rights
to practice human rights law. Through a selective
advocates, among others. Many visiting practitioners
application process, HRI ensures that the Associates
are Georgetown Law Alums, and a number are also
comprise a vibrant community committed to learning
alums of HRAP. In the spring, Associates have the
about and pursuing human rights work. This year,
opportunity to guide the direction of the program by
HRI admitted 26 outstanding first-year students.
identifying speakers and facilitating the group’s weekly meetings.❑
Participating in the Program gives students a unique opportunity to network with a range of practitioners in a seminar-style environment. There are also a number of skill sessions to help students prepare for their future career as human rights lawyers. This fall, under Dash-Muse Teaching Fellow Ashley Binetti’s leadership, the group has participated in
“Sometimes the human rights legal field feels overwhelming, but HRAP has been incredible for grounding me and translating a lot of abstract impressions into tangible concepts. To this end, it has been so helpful to hear from the people who actually do the work on the ground and know the field inside and out.” – Grace Benton (L’20).
"HRAP has been really helpful exposure to the gamut of human rights related professions. It has been great to be a part of a like-minded public interest community in a large school like GULC. The kindness and support from both my HRAP peers and faculty/speakers has been unexpected, but a huge comfort in the uncertainty of 1L." - Ellen Watlington (L'20).
"HRAP has been very useful in figuring out ways to both be a lawyer and a force for positive change in the world." - Eoin Whitney (L’20).
The Human Rights Associates Program convinced me to attend Georgetown Law. To become an effective human rights advocate, I need to understand the nature of the multidimensional field of human rights work and attain the skills necessary for success within it. HRAP offers me unique support in those endeavors. – Cara Palmer (L’20).
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HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTE 2017 EVENT HIGHLIGHTS UNIVERSAL. INALIENABLE. INDIVISIBLE. INTERDEPENDENT. INTERRELATED.
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Samuel Dash Human Rights Conference The Samuel Dash Human Rights Conference is an iconic convening at Georgetown Law. It annually brings together subject-matter experts to discuss pressing rights issues —educating law students and the public on current abuses and how they can improve respect for human rights. Professor Jane Stromseth, who recently spent two years as the Deputy to the Ambassador-at-Large in the State Department’s Office of Global Criminal Justice, was a force majeure in conceptualizing last year’s Dash Conference. Global Criminal Justice: Accomplishments, Challenges, and Future Directions was attended by an estimated 100+ students, faculty, outside guests and benefited from the participation of over 15 experts in three panel discussions on subjects including the U.S. role in advancing justice and accountability for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes; the International Criminal Court (ICC)’s role in the developing system of global criminal justice; and innovative models of justice, including domestic tribunals and hybrid courts, as well as efforts to document atrocities, build capacity, empower, and engage more effectively with directly affected communities. This year, HRI will again convene an exceptional group of speakers to enhance the protection of fundamental human rights. The April 6, 2018 Conference will focus on women’s rights, treating topics including combatting violence against women and human trafficking, rights of the girl-child, and women human rights defenders advancing change in their communities.
Georgetown Law Professor Jane E. Stromseth with Dean William M. Treanor, Chief Justice of the Gambia Hassan Bubacar Jallow and Gambian Ambassador to the U.S. Sheikh Omar Faye at the 2017 Samuel Dash Conference on Human Rights on April 3, 2017.
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Business and Human Rights Panel The Business and Human Rights Panel brought together Jennifer Stein (Foreign Affairs Officer, State Department, Office of Human Rights, Democracy, and Labor), Genevieve Taft (Director, Global Workplace Rights Department, The Coca-Cola Company), Katie Shay (L’12, Legal Counsel, Yahoo!), and Carlos Busquets (Director of Public Policy, Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition) to discuss the growing field of business and human rights, their experiences and best practices, as well as advice on navigating careers in this arena. Professor Mitt Regan, a member of the HRI Faculty Advisory Committee who also taught a practicum on business and human rights this fall, moderated the panel.
Human Rights Career Paths HRI and the Office of Public Interest & Community Service (OPICS) collaborated to host "A Human Rights Career Path Primer for 1Ls." Dash-Muse Teaching Fellow Ashley Binetti presented on how to strategically map out a law school career with an eye towards human rights work; what it means to be a human rights lawyer and where human rights lawyers work; what human rights employers look for: the knowledge and skills you need to be competitive; what externship and internship opportunities you should be aware of; post-grad fellowships to keep in mind; and other useful human rights-focused career tips for identifying and creating opportunities, crafting stellar resumes and cover letters, and acing your interviews! HRI also updated its Human Rights Career Guide in November 2017. This comprehensive guide can be accessed on HRI's website.
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A Discussion with Alfredo Romero Alfredo Romero, Recipient of the 2017 RFK Human Rights Award, is the Executive Director of Foro Penal Venezolano (FPV). FPV was founded in 2005 to provide pro bono legal assistance to victims of arbitrary detention, due process violations or other human rights violations, including torture or cruel and inhuman treatment in Venezuela. Under Alfredo’s leadership, over 200 lawyers and 1,700 volunteers across the country are providing assistance to victims of human rights violations and their families. To date, FPV has provided assistance to more than 4,000 people. Mr. Romero visited with HRI students to discuss the human rights situation in Venezuela and how FPV works to protect civil and political rights.
Meeting Prosecutor Andrew Boyle For the past six years, Andrew Boyle has been employed by the UN as a prosecutor at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), more commonly known as the Khmer Rouge Trials. There, he has prosecuted cases at the investigatory, trial, and appellate stages against senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. Prior to joining the ECCC, he worked as an attorney at the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the Brennan Center for Justice, and in the chambers of a federal judge. Mr. Boyle visited Georgetown Law to speak about the Cambodian Genocide and the trials that seek justice for the myriad human rights abuses perpetrated by the Khmer Rouge.
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ADVENTURES IN HUMAN RIGHTS ADVOCACY... THE PINTO FELLOWSHIP AT RFK HUMAN RIGHTS “Following graduation, I sought the opportunity to contribute meaningfully to precedent-setting cases and to find a way to amplify the impact of local human rights defenders, and this Fellowship allows me to do just that. As a Pinto Fellow, I am learning how to litigate on the international level in collaboration with experienced human rights attorneys, including those on my team and at our partner organizations. It is incredibly rewarding to represent clients whose stories I have learned first-hand and to envision the impact of my work in communities that I have visited. I feel very grateful that Georgetown Law and the Pinto Family place such value in creating transformative opportunities like this one for young graduates—this Fellowship is truly unique in providing practical human rights litigation experience the first year out of law school and will undoubtedly serve as a launching pad for careers in human rights law.” – Caitlin Callahan (L’17), 2017-2018 Pinto Fellow, RFK Human Rights.
The Dale and James J. Pinto (L’76) Georgetown Law Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Fellowship at Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights in Washington, D.C was established in 2015 by the generosity of Dale and James Pinto. The year-long Fellowship provides a recent graduate with the opportunity to conduct research on human rights issues in the United States and around the world, and participate in the development of the strategies, legal actions, and advocacy of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights. “Human rights fellowships are a key avenue for our grads to continue to build the skills they learn at Georgetown and deepen their expertise,” said Georgetown Law Human Rights Institute Director Andrew I. Schoenholtz. “We are delighted that Dale and James Pinto have committed to supporting the next generation of human rights leaders in this way.” “We look forward to collaborating with Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights to provide opportunities for talented Law Center graduates who will work on important human rights issues,” said Georgetown Law Dean William M. Treanor. “We are deeply grateful to Dale and James Pinto for creating this wonderful opportunity for our students.” Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights was founded as a living memorial to Robert F. Kennedy in 1968. Ever since it has honored journalists, authors, and human rights activists who, often at great personal risk and sacrifice, are on the frontlines of the international movement for human rights and social justice. Partnering with these courageous and innovative human rights defenders, RFK Partners for Human Rights is the litigation, advocacy, and capacity-building arm of the organization. Combining a rights-based approach and extended multi-year partnerships with the RFK Award Laureates and other human rights activists, RFK Partners for Human Rights leverages its legal expertise, resources, and prestige to advance social justice goals around the world. ❑
William Juhn (L'16) served as the Pinto Fellow at RFK Human Rights from 2016-2017. He now serves the low-income Asian immigrant population as a Staff Attorney at the MinKwon Center for Community Action in New York. As part of the Strategic Litigation Team at RFK Human Rights, William helped submit petitions to international and regional human rights systems, including the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and the African Commission of Human and Peoples’ Rights, to protect civic space in SubSaharan African countries. He also worked on domestic criminal justice reform issues, including pretrial detention policies and police use of excessive force.
The Georgetown Law Human Rights Institute serves as the focal point for human rights activities at Georgetown Law and promotes Georgetown Law’s role as a leader in the field of human rights. HRI works closely with the broad range of human rights faculty at the Law Center and leaders in the global human rights movement, and manages programs and projects to advance the research, writing, and advocacy work of students, alumni, and faculty.
www.humanrightsinstitute.net