On the AJWS storytelling team, we like to keep the spotlight on our grantee-partners. Staying true to our model of supporting grassroots leaders who know what needs to change, we share stories of problems and solutions that inspire us and coalesce into movements that make enduring human rights progress.
But every once in a while, there’s news about AJWS itself that we simply must tell you about. On February 9, we welcomed Tawanda Mutasah as AJWS’s new president and CEO, and it’s a time for celebration. In this issue of Stories of Hope, we introduce you to Tawanda with a profile that explains why we’re so excited. As you’ll read, Tawanda is a seasoned human rights leader, someone who began his journey by observing human rights abuses and built a career correcting them on the world stage.
Tawanda knows that the journey toward social justice faces innumerable obstacles these days, from the rise in authoritarianism to a U.S. federal government bent on turning back the clock on human dignity. Together with hundreds of grantees, staff, and our peerless community of advocates and supporters, Tawanda is ready to meet these challenges head-on — and with humility. When we spoke to him for this feature, Tawanda told us bluntly, “I’m firmly convinced that structural realities do not absolve me from taking responsibility for what I can do better.”
If you’re part of the AJWS community, you know what it means to accept that responsibility. We are fortunate to have a leader who’s been acting on it for a lifetime.
Welcome, Tawanda!
A Lifelong Advocate for Human Rights Takes the Helm: Welcoming Tawanda Mutasah
More Stories of Hope
- Earlier this month, we celebrated Purim — retelling how one courageous woman stood up to evil and saved the Jewish people. This story resonates with Sokhna Djitte, a young slam poet from Senegal who has claimed her voice thanks to two AJWS grantees. Read her gorgeous reflection on power and Purim here.
- In Uganda, gender-based violence against women is extremely widespread, but only 1% of offenders face conviction. AJWS partner Women’s Probono Initiative is working to shift this devastating imbalance — and help women fight for justice. Read more about their courageous work.
- In Kenya, longtime AJWS partner Samburu Women Trust just launched the NAAPU Indigenous Women Fund — a fund to empower and support grassroots Indigenous women’s organizations across the country. Learn more, and join us in congratulating SWT on this amazing initiative.
Children in Oaxaca, Mexico, learn how to grow vegetables with the support of AJWS grantee Union de Organizaciones de la Sierra Juarez, Oaxaca (UNOSJO). UNOSJO weaves Zapotec cultural practices into the curriculum, underscoring the connections between culture, land and food. Photo by Jonathan Torgovnik (2017).
Speak up with the AJWS Action Network
Unchecked gang violence and the absence of a stable, democratic government have thrown Haiti into crisis. Haitian women and girls have suffered disproportionately, subjected to sexual abuse and gender-based violence.
But there is hope. AJWS’s advocacy team has been working with U.S. Rep. Yvette Clark and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen to write a powerful resolution in support of Haitian women and girls. The Haitian Women and Girls Resolution formally condemns the situation for women and girls in Haiti and calls for urgent measures to secure their human rights and political participation. Please urge your members of Congress to cosponsor it today.
Even as the world sinks deeper into violence and chaos — we will never lose our hold on hope. That’s a promise.
Until next month,
Your friends at AJWS
