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.
Disappeared. It’s a benign word we use for a lost object, gone without a trace. Something we most likely misplaced by accident. But when ‘disappeared’ describes another human being, it is no longer passive. It’s an act of violence—abduction, imprisonment, and often murder. People don’t simply get lost; they are ‘disappeared’ so that they’re never …Read More
January 12th, 2010 was a traumatic day for every person in Haiti. 10 years ago, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake shook the country. This disaster killed 316,000, injured 1.5 million, devastated the capital city of Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas, and left 1.5 million homeless and vulnerable. For days, citizens worked together to rescue people before professional …Read More
As 2019 drew to a close, we asked our partner organizations: What did they want to tell you about building a better world in the New Year? Their answers — which they filmed all around the world — were filled with passion, dedication and hope for 2020. This year, AJWS supported 487 social change organizations in 19 countries. Watch our …Read More
I’ve spent my career largely in public service, most recently as head speechwriter for First Lady Michelle Obama. And having grown up with little Jewish background, for most of my life, if you had asked me what Judaism meant to me, I would have said something like, “working for social justice is how I do …Read More
This week, the world is watching as the Burmese State (Myanmar) stands accused of crimes of genocide against the Rohingya people, a religious and ethnic minority in Burma persecuted because of their identity. I had the privilege of joining several AJWS Rohingya allies and grantees to bear witness to this historic trial. The Gambia has …Read More
As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving at a time of climate crisis, I am pausing to share my gratitude to Indigenous Peoples and others around the world who live close to nature, care for the earth and battle climate change. Through my travels for AJWS, I have been fortunate to meet, break bread with and …Read More