April, 03 2019, 12:00am EDT
The 24th Annual 'Get on the Bus' Event Draws Hundreds of Human Rights Activists to NYC
On Friday, April 5th, human rights activists of all ages will travel to New York City to participate in Amnesty International USA's 24th annual "Get on the Bus for Human Rights" event, a day of human rights education and activism.
WASHINGTON
On Friday, April 5th, human rights activists of all ages will travel to New York City to participate in Amnesty International USA's 24th annual "Get on the Bus for Human Rights" event, a day of human rights education and activism.
"For 24 years, dedicated activists have been mobilizing their efforts to spread the word about human rights abuses around the world, and to hold governments accountable", said Kelly Turley, co-coordinator of Amnesty International Local Group 133 from Somerville, MA and member of the Get on the Bus leadership team. "From Somerville to New York, we are working to amplify to voices of prisoners of conscience and of community members targeted by their governments. We are rallying in order to shed the light of our collective candle on them".
The event will feature a musical performance by Nazia Shaheed, a welcome address by Margaret Huang, executive director of Amnesty International USA, and presentations by Melanie Dulfo of the International Committee of Human Rights in the Philippines, Lhamo Dolma, activist and daughter of Tibetan filmmaker and former prisoner of conscience, Dhondup Wangchen, and other leading human rights activists.
The morning portion of the day will take place at Cooper Union, with actions taking place outside Permanent Missions to the UN in the afternoon. A full schedule of the day is available here and a full list of speakers is available here. Information on the cases is accessible here.
BACKGROUND
Amnesty International Local Group 133 in Somerville, MA began "Get On The Bus" in 1996, and continues to lead the event each year. Get on the Bus draws hundreds of student activists and community participants each year.
This statement can be found online at: https://www.amnestyusa.org/press-releases/the-24th-annual-get-on-the-bus-event-draws-hundreds-of-human-rights-activists-to-nyc
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Amnesty International is a global movement of millions of people demanding human rights for all people - no matter who they are or where they are. We are the world's largest grassroots human rights organization.
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