Amnesty International is a global movement of more than 3 million supporters, members and activists in more than 150 countries and territories who campaign to end grave abuses of human rights. Its vision is for every person to enjoy all the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. It is independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion and are funded mainly by our membership and public donations. (Amnesty International USA)
With over 16 million subscribers, aolfriends is one of the more popular sites for getting updated on human rights issues happening around the country and around the world. It is also a great petition site with petitions supporting environmental protection and human and civil rights.
Avaaz—meaning “voice” in several European, Middle Eastern and Asian languages—launched in 2007 with a simple democratic mission: organize citizens of all nations to close the gap between the world we have and the world most people everywhere want.
The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute chronicles the civil rights movement and is a wonderful source of information both to visit in person and on-line to learn about the movement in general and specifically about the role that Birmingham played in the civil rights movement.
Common Dreams is a nonprofit, progressive, nonpartisan citizens’ organization founded in 1997. A powerful online voice for change, with millions of monthly readers around the world, commondreams has become one of the most read progressive websites, using the latest technology to bring the progressive community together online. They publish breaking news from a progressive perspective, and the latest ideas, opinions and in-depth analysis by some of the world’s best progressive writers, thinkers and activists.
Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international medical humanitarian organization working in nearly 70 countries to assist people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe.
The Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR) is the largest, oldest Interfaith Peace organization in the United States and is dedicated to the promotion of nonviolent conflict resolution. FOR pursues a vision of a free and “demilitarized” world in which the Earth’s resources sustain life and promote the well-being of all people. To do so, it challenges economic exploitation, works to eradicate racism and religious intolerance, and calls attention to imperialistic U.S. foreign policy. As it continues to speak truth to power, FOR engages in an ongoing interfaith dialogue to shift the collective unconscious from a fear-based military culture to a peaceful world community grounded in faith and nonviolent justice.
The Highlander Research and Education Center is a residential popular education and research organization based on a 106-acre farm in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, twenty-five miles east of Knoxville, Tennessee.
Since its founding in 1932 by Myles Horton, Highlander has gathered workers, grassroots leaders, community organizers, educators, and researchers to address the most pressing social, environmental and economic problems facing the people of the South. Highlander sponsors educational programs and research into community problems, as well as a residential Workshop Center for social change organizations and workers active in the South and internationally. Generations of activists have come to Highlander to learn, teach, and prepare to participate in struggles for justice.
Highlander’s work is rooted in the belief that in a truly just and democratic society the policies shaping political and economic life must be informed by equal concern for and participation by all people. Guided by this belief, we help communities that suffer from unfair government policies and big-business practices as they voice their concerns and join with others to form movements for change.
Over the course of its history, Highlander has played important roles in many major political movements, including the Southern labor movements of the 1930s, the Civil Rights Movement of the 1940s-60s, and the Appalachian people’s movements of the 1970s-80s.
The Human Rights Action Center is a non-profit based out of Washington, D.C. that works on the issues of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Aung San Suu Kyi. Using the arts and new technologies, they work creativity to develop new strategies to stop human rights abuses. They also have wonderful youtube videos on human rights.
The Human Rights Center (at the University of Minnesota Law School) is a wonderful resource for human rights education. Besides having perhaps the most extensive on-line library of HR education resources in the country they also have a k-12 human rights education tool-kit called “This Is My Home” (TIMH)
Human Rights Watch is one of the world’s leading independent organizations dedicated to defending and protecting human rights. They:
The International Civil Rights Center and Museum, in Greensboro, NC, is a wonderful place to visit in person and on-line to learn about the 1960’s civil rights movement, in general, and the sit-in movement specifically. the Center has turned the Woolworth’s building where the sit-in occurred that sparked months of sit-ins across the country.
Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-4146
Besides being a wonderful place to visit, the King Center website has wonderful civil rights and human rights education resources for public school teachers.
MoveOn.org advocates for grassroots involvement in US politics. It took an active stance against the Iraq war and supports causes like universal health care, green businesses, campaign finance reform and less dependence on oil.
The National Civil Rights Museum, in Memphis, TN, is located at the Lorraine Motel (site of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.) and offers a compelling overview of the major activities of the civil rights movement as well as in-depth exhibits of the assassination story. The museum also awards the National Freedom Award every year. Dorothy Cotton is the 2010 recipient of the National Freedom Award.
The Southern Poverty Law Center (in Montgomery, Alabama) was founded in 1971 as a small civil rights law firm. Today, the Center is internationally known for its tolerance education programs, and its legal victories against white supremacist groups. In addition, SPLC is the location of the Civil Rights Memorial , which honors the achievements and memory of those who died during the Civil Rights Movement, a period framed by the momentous Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision in 1954 and the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King in 1968. The memorial serves as a vehicle for education and reflection about the struggle for equality.
The Tuskegee Human and Civil Rights Multicultural Center, in Tuskegee, Alabama, was established in 1997, originally and primarily, to serve as a permanent memorial to the victims and survivors of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study. The men of the Study requested an apology from the federal government in a press conference held at Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church in Notasulga, Alabama. During the press conference, Study survivor Herman Shaw said, “…we want to build in Tuskegee…recognizing our contributions and others from Macon County have made to this country.” The vision of Mr. Herman Shaw and that of civil rights attorney Fred Gray, encompassed the rich history of the entire community. Under this new vision would be the acknowledging of the three cultural groups- Native Americans, European Americans, and African Americans- that have contributed to the reshaping of Macon County. Its exhibits give an illuminating view across three cultures interacting in one place over the course of four centuries.
United for Human Rights (UHR) is an international, not-for-profit organization dedicated to implementing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at local, regional, national and international levels. Its membership is comprised of individuals, educators and groups throughout the world who are actively forwarding the knowledge and protection of human rights by and for all Mankind.
It is an on-line resource that has human rights information, a petition site for taking action and human rights videos.
This website has up-to-date information on the status of the conventions, what the United Nations is doing regarding human rights, and the status of UN human rights working committees.
Driven by the needs and interests of its membership, the Network has focused much of its efforts on building organizational capacity and skills at the grassroots level. The Network has also provided direct financial assistance to dozens of members to attend human rights trainings sponsored by other organizations. Building on our previous work, during 2010 US Human Rights Network’s major area of work focused on ensuring civil society engagement with the US Government Universal Periodic Review before the U.N.
USHRN Core Purpose/Mission: To build a human rights movement in the US that:
The William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation, at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, fosters reconciliation and civic renewal wherever people suffer as a result of racial discrimination or alienation, and promotes scholarly research, study and teaching on race and the impact of race and racism.