Understanding and Acting In Crisis

Report From Amnesty International USA's Annual General Meeting

Amnesty International USA's Annual General Meeting was the stage for a dynamic panel on Understanding and Acting in Crisis on April 6, 2003. The panel, organized by the Crisis Preparedness and Response Unit, the Membership Mobilization Department and the National Field Program, hosted over 60 activists, and prepared them to mobilize around international global crises, by analyzing the five common features of world crises.

The panelist mapped out the five common features of crisis:

The panel was opened and facilitated by Marty Rosenbluth, Amnesty USA's Israel/Occupied Territories & Palestinian Authority Country Specialist. Panelist Maryam Elahi, Human Rights Director at Trinity College provided the audience with a general overview and legal framework to better understand the five common features. Beth Ann Toupin, Amnesty USA's Iraq Country Specialist detailed Amnesty's current Crisis Response on the Iraq crisis, focusing on the five common features in her presentation. Ariela Blätter, Director of Amnesty USA's Crisis Preparedness & Response Unit, introduced the unit and gave an overview of past and current crisis work, and how the Section and global movement have been engaged in these five areas.

The panel then broke out into five groups, each representing one of the five common features of crises, and examined real life, but anonymous examples of civilian casualties/deaths, humanitarian disaster, refugee/internally displaced persons, impunity and clampdowns on civil liberties. Joe Kirchhof, Minnesota Legislative Coordinator, introduced these 'case studies', and outlined organizing techniques that groups could utilize to effectively mobilize around the crises in discussion. Marty Rosenbluth, Amnesty USA's Israel/Occupied Territories Country Specialist facilitated the follow-up discussion, leading groups through the process of creating an action plan on each of the case studies. At the end of the panel, and after each small group presented their action plan, Marty revealed the details of the real life example the case studies were based on.

Through this process, activists were able to learn about real-life situations-human rights defenders in Liberia, killings of Palestinian and Israeli children in Israel/Occupied Territories, the humanitarian crisis in Iraq and destitute refugees in Cote d'Ivoire. Activists left the room feeling empowered with knowledge about crises, what they can expect to happen in a crisis, and how they can work within Amnesty's response mechanism to prepare to respond to crises, whenever and wherever they occur.

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