- In this series, we've looked
at several human rights campaigns
and the strategies that helped make a difference.
We've heard about a campaign in California
to end the sentencing of juvenile offenders
to life in prison without the possibility of parole;
how domestic workers and their allies
won a new international treaty
to guarantee basic labor rights;
how a coalition of organizations helped bring
Charles Taylor to justice for war crimes in Sierra Leone;
and how activists helped to protect the lives of civilians
during an ongoing war in the Central African Republic.
To wrap our series, I want to sum up some
of the key lessons for successful human rights advocacy.
First, the facts.
Documentation is a powerful tool.
We need to be able to show the scale of human rights
abuses and their impact to persuade others to act.
It can be especially powerful
when research dispels popular myths.
Information gives us credibility with governments,
UN diplomats, and other advocacy targets.
Second is building coalitions.
There's power in unity.
When organizations come together around a single goal,
they're much more powerful.
Bringing together national and international groups
can strengthen the work immeasurably.
Local organizations are directly connected to the issues
and know the situation on the ground,
while international groups can often speak out more freely
and reach policymakers at a global level.
Third, involve those affected.
We saw how the story of Sara Kruzan,
who was sentenced at 16 to life in prison without parole,
helped to motivate legislators to look
at juvenile justice in a different way.
Or in Indonesia, how the story of a young man
locked up for mental illness
flagged the issue of shackling.
The voices of people most affected by abuses
can lead to better understanding and better solutions.
Fourth is timing.
This is important and involves being attuned
to the context and taking advantage of any opportunity.
In the campaign to bring Charles Taylor to justice,
for example, we saw how activists used a meeting
between US President Bush and Nigerian President Obasanjo
to get Taylor put on trial for war crimes.
Fifth is to give solutions.
It's not enough to bring attention to the problem.
We have to articulate concrete solutions,
actions that people with power can take
to prevent and end human rights abuses.
These have to be practical and realistic.
They're often small steps along the way
to an end goal that is more bold and ambitious.
And sixth is many points of leverage.
We often don't know what will create the tipping point.
Advocacy is an art, not a science.
Sometimes we think we know what will lead to change,
but we hit an unexpected obstacle, or outside interests
that are too powerful to overcome.
So it's smart to work on multiple fronts,
looking for a range of ways
to put pressure on our targets.
Persistence.
Human rights victories are rarely won overnight.
Often you have to be prepared for the long haul.
In California, activists failed for three years
until they finally got a bill passed
to end life without parole for juveniles.
Domestic workers struggled for almost a decade
to get their rights recognized by individual governments
and in a new international treaty.
The good news is that progress is possible.
This series has shown that with the right strategies,
human rights advocates can change laws,
end discrimination, and save lives.
We can create new policies, protect the most vulnerable,
and bring dictators to justice.
Thanks for watching.