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Guns sold in a Walmart in Louisiana. Photographs taken during research missions to Louisiana in 2018 and 2019. Amnesty has been conducting research on gun-related domestic violence and its impact on women, and in particular women with intersectional identities. The research examines the laws on gun ownership in situations of domestic violence and the gaps in the legal framework, but it focuses on implementation and its discriminatory impact. The main focus of this work is on how inadequacies in the criminal justice system, including policing and prosecution, fail to ensure protection of survivors of violence as well as, in some cases, actively harming them. In particular, the research focuses on negative impacts on survivors with intersectional aspects of their identity such as Black women, undocumented women, Indigenous women, women living in poverty, LBTI women, etc. The research also seeks to examine how gender stereotypes and patriarchal attitudes shape agencies’ response to domestic violence.

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Vote Recommendation: Amnesty International USA Recommends a YES Vote on the Build Back Better Act and Supports Funding for Community Violence Intervention Programs

On November 18, 2021, Amnesty International USA wrote to members of the House of Representatives to urge them to vote…

November 18, 2021

Photo by ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images

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Human Rights on Capitol Hill – November 2021 Newsletter

Amnesty International USA is proud to join human rights groups, refugee resettlement agencies, veterans groups, and Afghan-Americans for lobby days…

November 10, 2021

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Joint Statement: Biden Administration Must Meet With Palestinian NGOs Targeted by Israeli Authorities, Demand Gantz Rescind Appalling “Terrorist” Designations During DC Visit

In a joint statement released today, Amnesty International USA, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), and Human Rights Watch…

November 5, 2021

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Amnesty USA joins over 100 NGOs to call for the Biden Administration expedite Afghan evacuations

On October 28, 2021, Amnesty International USA’s Executive Director Paul O’Brien joined with senior executives from over 100 other civil…

November 1, 2021

NEW YORK, USA – FEBRUARY 28: United Nations Security Council holds an urgent meeting on the recent escalation in the northwest of Syria in New York, United States on February 28, 2020. (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

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Joint Statement: Biden Administration, UN Security Council Must Ensure Inclusion of Critical Human Rights Monitoring in MINURSO

In a joint statement released today, Amnesty International USA and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights called on the Biden Administration…

October 25, 2021

A vehicle of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) drives on the Moroccan side of the border crossing point between Morocco and Mauritania in Guerguerat located in the Western Sahara, on November 25, 2020, after the intervention of the royal Moroccan armed forces in the area. – Morocco in early November accused the Polisario Front of blocking the key highway for trade with the rest of Africa, and launched a military operation to reopen it. (Photo by Fadel SENNA / AFP) (Photo by FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images)

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Amnesty International Calls on Biden Administration to Push For Western Sahara Human Rights Monitoring in UN Resolution

Today, Amnesty International USA wrote to the Biden administration regarding the upcoming United Nations Security Council debate on renewal of…

October 19, 2021

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images

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Human Rights on Capitol Hill – October 2021 newsletter

Just weeks after a devastating earthquake in August that killed, injured, and displaced hundreds of thousands in Haiti, the Biden…

October 7, 2021

A vehicle of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) drives on the Moroccan side of the border crossing point between Morocco and Mauritania in Guerguerat located in the Western Sahara, on November 25, 2020, after the intervention of the royal Moroccan armed forces in the area. – Morocco in early November accused the Polisario Front of blocking the key highway for trade with the rest of Africa, and launched a military operation to reopen it. (Photo by Fadel SENNA / AFP) (Photo by FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images)

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The Human Rights Crackdown in Western Sahara and the Need for Action by the Biden Administration

Classified as a non-self-governing territory by the United Nations, Western Sahara has been under de-facto annexation by Morocco since the…

September 27, 2021

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Biden Must Raise Human Rights in Talks with Modi

Amnesty International urges President Biden to raise critical human rights issues in his upcoming meeting with Indian Prime Minister Modi.…

September 23, 2021

MSF supported hospital bombed by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition in Haydan in Sa’da. The small hospital, in the Haydan district in Saada Province, was hit by several airstrikes beginning at 22:30 last night. Hospital staff and two patients managed to escape before subsequent airstrikes occurred over a two hour period. One staff member was slightly injured while escaping. With the hospital destroyed, at least 200,000 people now have no access to lifesaving medical care.

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Amnesty International USA Calls on Congress to Prioritize Human Rights in National Defense Authorization Act Legislation

On September 22nd, 2021, Amnesty International USA wrote to the U.S. House of Representatives in response to continuing advancement and…

September 23, 2021

Photograph shows riot police in Keady, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. They stand next to armoured vehicles wearing helmets and holding riot shields.

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UK: President Biden must raise concerns with Prime Minister Johnson regarding Northern Ireland legacy proposal

On September 17, 2021, Amnesty International USA wrote to the Biden administration to draw attention to the plans announced by…

September 20, 2021

TOPSHOT – Afghan people climb atop a plane as they wait at the Kabul airport in Kabul on August 16, 2021, after a stunningly swift end to Afghanistan’s 20-year war, as thousands of people mobbed the city’s airport trying to flee the group’s feared hardline brand of Islamist rule. (Photo by Wakil Kohsar / AFP) (Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images)

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Human Rights on Capitol Hill – September 2021 Newsletter

The U.S. government must commit to providing protection and safe passage to all Afghans left behind, who face risk of…

September 6, 2021