National Priority Workshops

National program priorities are human rights areas on which AIUSA will concentrate action and resources to make a direct impact over a given two-year cycle. As AI has evolved from mandate to mission, it has become increasingly useful to identify national program priorities to guide strategy development and collaboration among AIUSA's various programs and structures. All departments, programs, regions, and membership structures devote some energy and resources toward carrying out these national priorities. These 2 hour primer workshops open to all AGM participants provide a basic overview of AIUSA's human rights priority areas. Learn how your group can participate in AIUSA's work on these issues!

10:00 am - 12:00 pm       Economic, Social, Cultural Rights (ESCR) Workshop

Advancing economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR) is a core part of the AI movement's human rights and organizational strategies for the next six years. Key objectives include developing effective research methodologies; carrying out a global campaign; building strategic alliances with people and NGOs in excluded communities; and developing and implementing a capacity building strategy for all AI members and staff. In keeping with the movement, AIUSA has made capacity building an organizational development priority.

This workshop will touch on how ESCR capacity building is unfolding at the international level, including some of the pilot projects that have already been carried out in this area. It will provide an overview of the key objectives of AIUSA's ESCR capacity building plan for the next two years, including the role that various AIUSA structures and programs can play in implementing them. It will cover the "basics," such as what are ESCR and how are they enforced? It will conclude with an ESCR-focused activity that will help participants get a handle on AI's work in this area.

10:00 am - 12:00 pm       WORKSHOP: Campaign Against Discrimination (Part 1) Amnesty International's Stop Violence Against Women Campaign

On March 5, 2004 Amnesty International launched a landmark international campaign to Stop Violence Against Women (SVAW). The SVAW Campaign will focus on violence against women in the home and violence against women in conflict and post-conflict situations. Through this campaign, Amnesty International is calling on all governments as well as private actors, institutions and individuals, to take immediate steps to put a stop to violence against women and to redress the suffering it causes. Join members of AIUSA's Women's Human Rights Program Steering Committee and staff in an interactive workshop and hear about the highlights of the campaign and how you can get involved.

10:00 am - 12:00 pm       WORKSHOP: Death Penalty Abolition

What are the challenges and opportunities that come with retaining death penalty abolition as a human rights priority for AIUSA? How can we mobilize AIUSA's membership to actively support our ongoing anti-death penalty initiatives? How can AI's other human rights work be integrated with this priority? Where can AIUSA have the most impact on the death penalty issue? How do we assess and develop benchmarks for success? This interactive workshop will provide AIUSA members with an opportunity to evaluate these questions and gain a more thorough understanding of what our organization has done thus far. This will also be an opportunity for activists to provide feedback and guidance on what we need to do and where we need to go in the next few years in order to abolish the death penalty once and for all. Participants will learn how their groups can participate in AIUSA's work in this priority area and will assist the Program to Abolish the Death Penalty in developing overarching goals and measurable objectives.

10:00 am - 12:00 pm       WORKSHOP: War on Terror

The U.S. led "War on Terror" has been used by many in the U.S. and around the world as a cover for human rights violations. While many have been focused on the USA PATRIOT Act and other initiatives, Amnesty International has also been focused on the proliferation of similar legislation around the world. The idea that one must sacrifice certain liberties in order to gain security has been used to mask a massive roll back in human rights standards worldwide. Ben Jealous, Amnesty International's Director of USA programs, will discuss the PATRIOT Act and other legislation, executive orders and regulations that have been used to promulgate the U.S.'s "War on Terror" and what actions AI members can take. Alex Arriaga, AIUSA's Director of Government Relations, will look at the way in which the "War on Terror" has been adopted and co-opted by other nations to further their own agendas. Finally, Farah Brelvi, Vice Chair of AIUSA's Board of Directors, will place the U.S. "War on Terror" in a broader context and discuss the impact of the initiative on AI's work around the world.

NATIONAL PROGRAM PRIORITY WORKSHOPS: PART II

This is a second opportunity to participate in workshops providing a basic overview of AIUSA's human rights program priority areas.

1:30 pm -3:30 pm       Campaign Against Discrimination: Combating Discriminatory Policies

This workshop will address AIUSA's current work related to law enforcement accountability and discriminatory policies and practices particularly affecting people of color and LGBT communities in the US. At the workshop we will discuss the findings of AIUSA's current research on of these issues and explore possible avenues for Amnesty members to take action in their communities.

1:30 pm -3:30 pm       Death Penalty Abolition Workshop (See description from 10:00 session)

1:30 pm - 3:30 pm       Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESCR) Teach-in (See description from 10:00 session)

1:30 pm - 3:30 pm       WORKSHOP: Let's Plan a Media Event Winning Media Strategies for Human Rights Activists

Learn how to harness the power of the media with strong, effective messaging that will help secure positive media coverage for human rights issues in your region. Letters to the editor and opinion pieces are only the beginning. There are numerous simple tactics to access media outlets frequently overlooked by the human rights community. Get tips on how to become more media savvy. Use innovative, strategic communications techniques to beef up your outreach and to elevate the promotion of basic human rights issues in the media.