The AJWS community has a lot to say about what's happening in the world. Read our insights about the struggle for justice and human rights around the globe.
Many young people in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) can’t recall a memory of living in peace — because there simply hasn’t been one. “I’ve only seen peace in films. But I’ve never seen it myself. It’s complicated in our country, but peace is something I dream of,” says Parfait Muhani, an activist living …
The Sri Lankan economic crisis that began in 2019 was so severe that, at one point according to the World Food Programme, over 30% of Sri Lankans were not getting enough to eat. Inflation soared. Sri Lankans faced a shortage of life-saving medical supplies. People waited in long lines for hours to purchase gasoline. The …
Lucy Wanjiku Njenga always believed she was meant for something more than the life she was born into: “I saw myself getting from a place of poverty to success — I knew there was something else waiting for me.” Lucy was born and raised in Dandora, one of the poorest and most dangerous neighborhoods of …
Samreen grew up Lucknow, India, in a household where her mother wasn’t allowed to do anything without her father’s permission. But when her father passed away, Samreen began to question the patriarchal norms that ruled her family. When she connected with AJWS partner Sadbhavna Trust, her world opened entirely. Sadbhavna Trust runs leadership workshops and …
For years, I spent the High Holidays in Fire Island. Beginning in the mid-1920s, this barrier reef about 60 miles from Manhattan has served as a haven for gay New Yorkers. Although it’s a raucous social scene from Memorial Day to Labor Day, the feverish party vibe dissipates by mid-September when Fire Island Jews—gay and …
María Herrera did not expect to be quoted in international newspapers, meet with the Pope or see her name on TIME Magazine’s list of the 2023 world’s 100 Most Influential People. Fifteen years ago, she was busy caring for her family and running a jewelry and clothing business. Her life forever changed when two of her …