Zoe Lee /
Burma Task Force – Justice For All /
Chicago, IL, USA /
Our organization is a small one, and at first, I thought, not a very influential one. But I suppose that depends on your definition of influential. In the sense that it cannot produce widespread and sustained change, perhaps it is not influential. However, in the sense of influence as impact on lives, I think it does make a difference, and a meaningful one, even if small. Recently, Abdullah, one of our employees who is a Rohingya refugee in a camp in Myanmar, sent me a few photos of the recipients of our organization’s small grants. It was heartening. While the UN works in the same manner, providing small grants for victims of conflict in Ukraine, we do the same for those fleeing Myanmar who are not permitted to open bank accounts in Bangladesh. It’s a constant reminder that the human rights industry has a short attention span, and as crises pile upon crises, some people are forgotten.
On a less heartening note, in the past few weeks I have been drafting a memo for Senator Markey regarding a project our organization has been working on—providing education for the Rohingya. Now I’m aware that there are struggles in all fields, but the struggles of the human rights industry are slightly different. The work can be fulfilling, but there is also tension. This tension is often competition. Who gets the attention and the funding? Who gets the ear of the senator? Attempting to manage these relationships with other organizations and making it clear that the relationship is a collaboration or partnership rather than a competition is another issue that requires management in this industry.
Indeed, human rights organizations need attention to exist, that is how funding comes by, but oftentimes it feels as if that constant seeking of attention is perhaps detrimental to our relationships with other organizations. When you ask to attend their events and push your agenda rather than theirs, it feels disrespectful. Sometimes it is not the time or the space to do so and we ought to respect that.
There are moments of discouragement, but there are equally moments of hopefulness. Let us focus on those moments.