Things are changing — slowly but surely — in the world of legal empowerment and legal aid. In Sierra Leone, the Parliament recently enacted “one of the most progressive legal aid laws in Africa—with an innovative approach to providing access to justice for all that will reinforce the rule of law,” as noted by the…
This Friday, I want to feature something a little different. Not an organization, but a little-known new UN Resolution which is truly groundbreaking. In a number of countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, access to legal services (even when accused of a crime) is unfortunately not a guaranteed human right. In the U.S., our…
An incredible new movement of young people – women and men – in Afghanistan is arising to change the status quo around women’s rights in the country. This movement is called Young Women for Change (YWC), a non-profit consisting of volunteer advocates throughout Afghanistan which was founded in April 2011. YWC was co-founded by Noorjahan Akbar and Anita Haidary,…
Yesterday, I ran into a truly amazing new organization – Namati: Innovations in Legal Empowerment. Frequently here, I have written about the need for a legal empowerment and access to justice movement, and a greater focus on funding programs that provide legal services to the poor, especially community based paralegals and outreach workers. Namati is…
I absolutely love organizations, initiatives, people and ideas that combine law and innovation, or take a creative approach to a legal issue. I recently discovered the Yale Visual Law Project and fell in love with the group’s idea and execution. Based at Yale Law School, The Yale Visual Law Project produces short documentary films on legal…
Today, I’d like to feature a new online initiative called FITE: Financial Independence Through Entrepreneurship. FITE is a global empowerment platform powered by Kiva.org. FITE is intended to provide women entrepreneurs access to small loans that will help them start or grow a business, and to help educate the public about the benefits of empowering…
Today, I am excited to feature Sakhi for South Asian Women, an excellent community-based organization in New York committed to ending violence against women of South Asian origin. Sakhi works to empower women, particularly survivors of domestic violence, and uses an approach of direct service, advocacy, leadership development, and organizing. According to their website: Founded…
Based in New York, Sanctuary for Families provides domestic violence victims, sex trafficking victims, and their children with a range of comprehensive services. I love Sanctuary for Families because the non-profit truly embodies the holistic perspective that I see a strong need for. Although their services are currently in New York, their model provides an…
Lately, I have been researching legal aid organizations around the world to learn more about other access to justice models that provide effective legal assistance to the poor. Thankfully, I stumbled upon the gem that is BRAC: who knew they had a ‘legal empowerment‘ arm? BRAC’s Human Rights and Legal Services (HRLS) program provides legal…
The Iraqi Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) is a unique organization not only because it specifically focuses on Iraqi refugees, who have been forced to flee for their lives due to war and sectarian violence in their country, but also because of its model of mobilizing law students and attorneys to provide legal representation. The Iraqi…
