Founded in 1961 by Peter Beneson, Amnesty International is an organization that works to strengthen the rights of women, children, workers, minority groups, and disabled people world-wide. Amnesty believes strongly that every being should be able to live by the rights included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a document released in 1948 by the United Nations General Assembly that includes a list of rights that are of natural belonging to every person, regardless of race, gender, age, etc. Some of these rights include equality, life, liberty, security of person, and multiple freedoms (i.e. freedom of religion, freedom of opinion, etc.)
To date, Amnesty has accomplished a great deal, such as releasing tens of thousands of prisoners of conscience (people imprisoned due to conscientiously-held beliefs i.e. religion, race, sexual orientation, etc.), acquiring the support needed to establish the United Nations Convention Against Torture, and abolishment of the death penalty in ⅔ of countries across the globe.
Since opening its doors in August 2004, Fossil Ridge High School has had an Amnesty International club that works alongside the organization to help them in their mission. If interested, contact Jacqueline Speight-Haas in room W105 or at [email protected].
If you wish to donate to Amnesty International to aid in their mission, visit their official website at www.amnestyusa.org. Any donation made before September 30 up to $300,000 will be doubled by Amnesty.