Amnesty International
Protecting justice, freedom, truth, and dignity Wesleyan Senior Lisa-Marie Brandt spent summer break last year in her hometown of Kingston, Jamaica. The colorful resort town is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbor protected by the Palisadoes. In this land of wood, water and fun, Lisa-Marie spent her vacation working at Jamaicans For Justice, a human rights organization based in the cities of Kingston and Montego Bay. According to LisaMarie, a main focus of the organization is to work toward ending police abuses against Jamaican citizens. Jamaicans For Justice works with The Jamaican Amnesty International when researching the human rights situation in the country. Lisa-Marie, an international relations and Spanish double major, has been a member of Wesleyan’s chapter of Amnesty International (AI) for four years and served as president of the group this year. Though Amnesty International is not specifically for international students, its membership is diverse and includes members from the U.S., Bulgaria, Nepal, Jamaica, and China. Founded in 1961 in the United Kingdom by Peter Benenson, Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organization established to protect human rights worldwide. In 1977 the organization won a Nobel Peace Prize. Today with more than 2.2 million supporters, activists, and volunteers in over 150 countries, the group’s purpose is to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth, and dignity are denied. 18
“Every day we hear about people all over the world being denied their basic human rights,” stated Wesleyan Junior Sadichha Sitaula, who serves as the AI club treasurer. “Women and children are victims to a lot of injustices and violence.” According to the biology and chemistry student from Nepal, as part of Amnesty International USA, the Wesleyan club is given the opportunity to act now, to stand up for human rights, and to support millions of other activists and volunteers who are united for this common cause. “This organization,” she said, “truly makes me feel like I am contributing to this great cause and helping raise awareness in my local community.” On campus, the group increases awareness of international issues using teach-ins, movie nights, emails, and articles in the student newspaper, Wesleyan Word. They have tackled issues such as violence against women in the democratic republic of the Congo and Zimbabwe, the conflict in Darfur, the death penalty, the use of torture in the war on terror, and the plight of individuals at risk and prisoners of conscience. The focus is global. Brandt said, “We urge the student body to use its freedom and voice to help others through lobbying and petitioning. We work to ensure that people with the capacity to help are aware of these situations and know how to act.” The targets of the group’s petitioning may be major corporations, elected representatives, or even heads of state in the U.S. and abroad. In 2007, for example, Wesleyan’s AI club hosted Act out and Write out for Darfur, a mass letter writing campaign to stop
genocide in Darfur. By writing letters to the governments of the United States and Sudan, the students aimed to join a larger national initiative to increase awareness of the crisis and influence international public policy. Recognizing the club’s efforts that year, Wesleyan students awarded Amnesty International with the 2008 Student Government Award for Philanthropy. Wesleyan Sophomore Marta Kurshmova from Bulgaria sees the club as a direct connection to her double major of political science and economics, giving her an opportunity to become better informed on real world problems. Wesleyan AI sends delegates to the Amnesty International Southern Regional Conference every year and in fall 2008 hosted the Georgia Statewide Conference in Taylor Amphitheatre. To raise money for travel, conferences, and mailing petitions, the group organizes small fundraising events. During Macon’s annual Cherry Blossom Festival arts and crafts fair, for example, the group staffs a merchant booth where members sell items from their native countries and help children create sand art for a minimal cost. “I am passionate about this organization because it speaks for the voiceless and ignored in the time of their most dire need,” Brandt said. “AI is effective and has earned a solid reputation internationally for that efficacy. It has grown from a small group of individuals in the United Kingdom who wrote letters to free prisoners of conscience to a major international organization with a strong clear voice for human rights, all while staying true to its purpose and goals.”