And this year has given us much cause for hope. Saudi Arabia finally granted women the right to drive, after years of tireless work by campaigners like Havel Prize laureate Manal al-Sharif. Democracy made gains in places like The Gambia, a dictator has been ousted in Zimbabwe, and North Koreans are increasingly defecting for political reasons rather than economic ones, proof that Kim Jong-un’s power is waning because of increased flows of outside information.
If you choose to donate to HRF this Giving Tuesday, your contribution will be matched, enabling us to push back against authoritarianism and to support brave activists around the world.
When you contribute to HRF, 93% of your donation goes directly to our programs, which give dissidents vital support and promote free expression, access to information, the right to protest, and other individual rights. Your contribution will support:
- The Oslo Freedom Forum, our annual human rights conference that introduces activists to tech leaders, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, journalists, and more, so that they can get the support they need to supercharge their work.
- Flash Drives for Freedom, our initiative to send flash drives filled with information into North Korea, to give North Koreans a view of the outside world and counter the Kim regime’s propaganda.
- The Center for Law and Democracy, our team of lawyers who offer direct support to activists around the world; liberate political prisoners; regularly petition the U.N. to intervene in cases of arbitrary detention, free speech violations, and more; and contribute research that impacts international legal standards.
- Your Human Rights, a series of country-specific human rights guides written and published in consultation with local experts that educates the citizens of closed societies about their rights and how to defend them. So far, we have produced guides in 15 countries and 18 local languages.
Next year, HRF will put its energy and resources toward expanding these programs while taking on new projects. In early 2018, we’ll be sending the 100,000 flash drives we collected in 2017 into North Korea, making foreign content more accessible than ever before. We’re ramping up The Russia Download, our newsletter sharing real news about human rights violations in Russia, with more editions and deeper reporting. We’re hosting more conferences and launching a new program to support activists directly; stay tuned for more details on those projects.
Please double your impact and make your Giving Tuesday contribution today at hrf.org/donate.
You can find more information on our programs and achievements in our Annual Report, and should feel free to send suggestions or feedback to [email protected].
Thank you for your support.