Amnesty International USA

AI Works

Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide, voluntary movement of people who campaigns for human rights. Our vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights & other international standards. Our mission is to undertake research & action to prevent & end grave abuses of the rights to physical & mental integrity, freedom of conscience & expression, & freedom from discrimination, within the context of our work to promote all human rights.

THE BEGINNING

In late 1960, British lawyer Peter Benenson read a newspaper story abut two Portuguese students sentenced to seven years in jail. Their crime? Raising their glasses in a toast to freedom. Outraged, Benenson published an article called "The Forgotten Prisoners" in the London Observer on May 28, 1961. In his article Benenson asked readers to write letters demanding the release of the students & other "prisoners of consceince" around the world. The response was so overwhelming that by the end of the year-long "appeal for amnesty," groups of letter writers had formed in a dozen countries. Amnesty International was born. In 1977, Amnesty International won the Nobel Peace Prize for having "contributed to securing ground for freedom, for justice, & thereby also for peace in the world."

TODAY

More than 2.2 million Amnesty International members in more than 150 countries worldwide are leading the struggle to defend human rights & save lives. They create public pressure to stop abuses by organizing campaigns on specific issues & developing programs of action for specific countries. By writing letters, lobbying government officials, publicizing abuses & organizing events, AI members actively fight for human rights. Over 370,000 of AI's worldwide members are in the United States, & many people to one of AIUSA's 1,700 local & student groups.

AIUSA members meet regularly in hundreds of communities across the country to write letters & organize actions to protect individuals at risk of arbitrary detention, torture & ill treatment, death threats & execution, Through our online Human Rights Action Center, tens of thousands of online activists receive e-mail alerts & sign electronic letters of protest when someone is at risk of a severe human rights violation. They also access online information on pending legislation & opportunities to focus their action where it can make a difference.

OUR WORK

Amnesty International campaigns on a diverse range of issues worldwide, including freeing individuals at risk; ending torture, unlawful detentions & other human rights abuses occurring within the context of the "war on terror"; stopping violence against women; abolishing the death penalty; & attaining justice for the people of Darfur.

Amnest International regularly conducts intensive & far-reaching analyses of human rights around the world. Findings are released to the international community to publicize important issues, advocate for change, & hold human rights violators accountable for their crimes.

OUR RESULTS

Amnesty International campaigns get the job done. Since 1961, pressure from your letters, faxes &, recently, e-mails has helped free more than 40,000 political prisoners worldwide. Our campaign against torture led the United Nations to adopted the Convention against Torture. Our pursuit of international justice spurred the arrests of former Chilean dictator Pinochet & the fromer Yugoslavia's Slobodan Milosevic. We have successfully campaigned for the rights of rape victimes in South Africa to receieve treatment for HIV/AIDS.

YOUR PART

Every day, people turn to Amnesty International to protect their human rights. And for more than 40 years, AI has been there, opening prison doors, confronting those who torture, rape & kill, & speaking for those whose voices have been silenced. With over 370,000 members, AIUSA is now the largest country section of Amnesty International, & our work here benefits people of conscience around the world. Join us in our defence of human rights for all. You can make a differnce. Write a letter, sign a petition, become a member, make a donation or log on at www.amnestyusa.org.

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL USA
5 Penn Plaza, 16th Floor
New York, NY 10001
www.amnestyusa.org
Tel: 212-807-8400
Fax: 212-627-1451
1-800-AMNESTY