Journalists for Human Rights
Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) is Canada's largest international media development organization. Based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, JHR was founded in 2002 by Benjamin Peterson and Alexandra Sicotte-Levesque in 2002.[1] JHR's mission is to inspire and mobilize media to cover human rights stories in ways that help communities help themselves. The organization's vision is for everyone in the world to access their human rights.
Formation
JHR believes that "Creating rights awareness is the first and most necessary step to ending the abuse of human rights. By mobilizing the media to spread human rights awareness, JHR informs people about human rights, empowering marginalized communities to stand up, speak out, and protect themselves."[2] JHR has partnered with over 400 media organizations in 29 different countries to train over 17,650 journalists. Their human rights stories have reached over 76 million people.
JHR employs a rights-based "reciprocal change" approach, a process that involves local media partnerships and consultations with editors and owners, working journalists, students, civil society and other relevant stakeholders within a region.[3]
JHR is currently led by Rachel Pulfer, its Executive Director.[4] It has ongoing programs in Mali, Kenya, and works with Syrian journalists in Turkey, Tunisia, South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Canada.
Media coverage and Partnerships[edit]
JHR has received media attention in Canada, from The Globe and Mail,[13][14] The Toronto Star, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and CTV.ca.[15] In 2012, JHR partnered with CBC and Global News to send journalists from those networks to JHR projects to act as short-term journalism trainers. In May 2013, CTV's senior editor and news anchor Lisa LaFlamme mentored a network of JHR affiliated journalists in Goma (Eastern DRC), the centre of ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis since 1998.[16]
JHR partners with The Alva Foundation and Massey College on the Gordon N. Fisher-JHR Fellowship. The annual fellowship is part of the Southam Journalism Fellowships program at the University of Toronto's Massey College.
JHR partners with the Canadian Association of Journalism to present an annual award for human rights reporting and an award for an emerging Indigenous journalist. JHR also presents an annual award to a news organization or team for the best human rights coverage in Canada.