Amnesty International Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Amnesty International Mourns the Death of U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy
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Human Rights Organization Heralds Rights Champion
Contact: AIUSA media office (202) 544-0200x302
(Washington, DC)--Larry Cox, Amnesty International USA's executive director, issued the following statement on the sad passing of U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy:
"Amnesty International is saddened by the death of Senator Ted Kennedy. The world has lost an active supporter of human rights around the globe, especially in the United States. He worked tirelessly on behalf of people whose voices were never heard, whose plights were hidden from view and whose well-being was ignored. In that regard he consistently championed the cases of individual prisoners of conscience, who benefitted from his relentless determination to ensuring their freedom.
"The senator played a main role in passage of historic human rights legislation including the Immigration & Nationality Act of 1965 and the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which expanded employee rights in discrimination cases.
"From advancing reforms on immigrant detention, to championing healthcare as a right for all Americans, to pushing for torture victims' relief, to pressing for humanitarian aid for refugees around the world including the most recent conflict in Sri Lanka, to defending the rule of law, Senator Kennedy always knew and acted to end the misery of those who were suffering.
"His absence will be hard to miss. But the Kennedy family legacy of helping the disempowered remains vital and vibrant."
Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 2.2 million supporters, activists and volunteers in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.
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For more information, please contact the AIUSA media office at 202-544-0200 Ext- 302 or visit: www.amnestyusa.org.
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