In honor of National Volunteer Month, we will introduce some of our dedicated AIUSA volunteers. In this blog, Elise Auerbach shares her experiences as a longtime AIUSA member and country specialist.
Amnesty International USA is unique in the range of opportunities it offers members to take leadership roles in the effort to promote human rights. Among these roles are country and thematic specialists, experts who support AIUSA’s work on specific countries or issues.
In 1995, after several years of membership in local AIUSA groups in Chicago, I wanted to “up my game” and take on a weightier role as a country specialist. Because of my academic specialization in the Near East/Middle East, it made sense to join the Middle East Coordination Group, at first working on Jordan and eventually moving to Iran in 2000.
While Iran is currently facing one of the most consequential crises in many decades, working as AIUSA’s Iran Country Specialist for all these years has meant careening from one crisis to another, encountering many obstacles, and also achieving some meaningful, though hard-fought victories, working in collaboration with Amnesty International staff, other member activists, and allied organizations.
One hard-fought case
One memorable campaign was on behalf of a brilliant young physicist, Omid Kokabee. In January 2011, he was a doctoral researcher at the University of Texas at Austin who was arrested while visiting his family in Iran. He was unjustly accused of national security offenses, subjected to a grossly unfair trial, and sentenced to a long prison term.
Several AIUSA groups took on his case, and we worked closely with organizations, including the Committee of Concerned Scientists, the American Physical Society and Scholars at Risk. We asked all living physics Nobel Prize laureates to sign a letter calling for Omid’s release, and we collected thousands of petition signatures and letters from AIUSA activists.
We presented these to the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations in New York in October 2014, when we were granted an unprecedented meeting with Mission staff. Omid was eventually released in 2016 after more than five years of campaigning on his behalf.
18 years of Nowruz actions, thousands of letters sent to prisoners
As an AIUSA country specialist, I’m invested in shining a light on human rights in Iran by educating, organizing, and mobilizing activists in the U.S. to take action and show solidarity with impacted communities and individuals at risk. One meaningful time to raise awareness is on Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, which occurs on the first day of spring, March 20.
For the past 18 years, AIUSA has organized an annual Nowruz action. We select seven cases of Iranian prisoners of conscience and send Nowruz greetings to them and their families, reminding them they are not forgotten.
Over the years, thousands of Nowruz cards have been sent, and thankfully, several of the people to whom we wrote have been released from prison.
Supporting over 200 asylum seekers
Some of my most meaningful and rewarding work has been supporting Iranians applying for asylum or other forms of immigration protection and relief in the United States. Under international and U.S. law, people who fear being returned to their country of origin have the right to apply for asylum and to have their applications fairly adjudicated. We have very strict and detailed protocols at AIUSA on handling requests for assistance in these cases, and I only assist on a case if I am convinced that the applicant is credible and has demonstrated they face a high risk of experiencing human rights violations if returned to Iran.
I have worked on about 200 cases over the years, writing declarations of support and sometimes testifying in immigration court. Many of the cases were successful, with the applicants being granted asylum or withholding of removal.
This work has become increasingly difficult since January 2025. In the past, most Iranians seeking immigration relief were not held in detention; now nearly all of them are, making it more difficult for their attorneys to prepare their cases. The system is also seriously overburdened with a backlog of cases. However, AIUSA country specialists provide a crucial service by producing expert declarations completely pro bono.
I always tell people that we cannot expect instant gratification when working on Iran cases, but that persistence does indeed pay off—sometimes. Importantly, the Iranian authorities have relented only after focused and persistent campaigns by activists. Moreover, people persecuted in Iran have stressed how much they appreciate international solidarity and knowing that people in other countries are supporting them. We need to remember how meaningful our activism is to Iranians, even if tangible results can sometimes seem elusive.
Our work continues through the recent crisis
At the time of writing, it feels like the world is on fire, and the human rights situation for people in Iran is even more dire than ever. The people of Iran face a severe double threat: the military campaign conducted by the U.S. and Israel has resulted in thousands of civilian casualties in Iran, as well as damage to civilian infrastructure, including medical facilities and universities. At the same time, the Iranian authorities have been taking advantage of an Internet shutdown to carry out mass arrests of anyone expressing disagreement with the government and have increased the pace of executions. In recent weeks, Iran has executed a number of people for their involvement in protests after grossly unfair trials where confessions extracted under torture were used as “evidence.”
Now is certainly not the time for us to abandon our work to ensure that the people of Iran can enjoy all the rights to which they are entitled. I am grateful and privileged to continue to do my part.
Are you interested in getting involved in AIUSA’s regional and thematic work?
Join AIUSA’s Regional and Thematic Coordination Group Action Network.