On January 29, 2017, Human Rights Watch hosted its Film Club Special Screening and Discussion of When Two Worlds Collide. The movie was followed by a Q&A with HRW's Jose Miguel Vivanco, Director of the Americas Division, Atossa Soltani, Amazon Watch Founder, and Filmmaker Heidi Brandenburg, moderated by Keely Badger, Film Club Committee member.

A contemporary apocalyptic story of a man, of a people, and of the fate of one of our planet’s most valuable natural resources, the Amazonian Rainforest. In this documentary, audiences are taken into the line of fire between opposing Peruvian leaders who will stop at nothing to keep their goals intact. On one side is President Alan Garcia who begins aggressively extracting oil, minerals, and gas from untouched indigenous Amazonian land. He is met with fierce opposition from indigenous leader Alberto Pizango, whose speeches against Garcia’s actions prove a powerful rallying cry to his supporters. When Garcia continues to ignore their pleas, a tense war of words erupts into deadly violence.A contemporary apocalyptic story of a man, of a people, and of the fate of one of our planet’s most valuable natural resources, the Amazonian Rainforest. In this documentary, audiences are taken into the line of fire between opposing Peruvian leaders who will stop at nothing to keep their goals intact. On one side is President Alan Garcia who begins aggressively extracting oil, minerals, and gas from untouched indigenous Amazonian land. He is met with fierce opposition from indigenous leader Alberto Pizango, whose speeches against Garcia’s actions prove a powerful rallying cry to his supporters. When Garcia continues to ignore their pleas, a tense war of words erupts into deadly violence.

Aero Theatre
1328 Montana Avenue 
Santa Monica, California 90403

5:00 pm | Doors open
5:30 pm | Film Screening, followed by panel discussion 
7:30 pm | Reception with drinks and food

The Return examines this unprecedented reform through the eyes of those on the front lines—prisoners suddenly freed, families turned upside down, reentry providers helping navigate complex transitions, and attorneys and judges wrestling with an untested law. At a moment of reckoning on mass incarceration, what can California’s experiment teach the nation?

Join us after the movie for a Q & A with the movie’s directors, protagonists, and HRW’s Children’s Rights senior advocate to discuss the current state of California’s justice system and upcoming changes. The screening and discussion will be followed by a reception with the panelists.

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On January 31, 2016 Human Rights Watch hosted the Los Angeles Premiere and Discussion of Salam Neighbor, a movie following some of the tens of thousands of Syrian refugees living in Jordan. Salam Neighbor follows Zach and Chris, two Americans who head to the edge of war, just seven miles from the Syrian border, to live among 85,000 uprooted refugees in Jordan's Za'atari camp. As the first filmmakers allowed by the United Nations to register and set up a tent inside a refugee camp, Zach and Chris plunge into the heart of the world's most pressing humanitarian crisis.

The movie was followed by a Q&A with the film’s co-director Zach Ingrasci, and producer Salam Darwaza, along with Human Rights Watch's Refugee Program Director Bill Frelick, for a discussion moderated by Asli Bali, Professor of Law at UCLA.

Human Rights Watch invites you to the Los Angeles Premiere of The Trials of Spring at the American Cinematheque Aero Theater in Santa Monica on September 20th, 2015. This gripping movie focuses on the instrumental role women activists played in the Egyptian uprising and under the current military repression.

Join us after the movie for a panel discussion featuring Producer Beth Levison, Human Rights Activist Hend Nafea, UC Riverside Associate Professor Sherine Hafez, and HRW's Middle East & North Africa Division Executive Director Sarah Leah Whitson.

General tickets are $30 and Student tickets are $15. Tickets are unreserved and seating is first-come, first-served.

For more information and to buy tickets, please visit: http://ttos.bpt.me/

SAVE THE DATE

Tuesday, November 17, 2015 at 6:30 pm

The Beverly Hilton, Beverly Hills

For over 35 years, Human Rights Watch has been at the forefront of the international human rights movement, investigating human rights abuses and exposing the truth to create deep-rooted change.

The Voices for Justice Annual Dinner honors courageous individuals who protect and defend human rights around the world.

Please join us as we celebrate some of the most important human rights achievements of the past year.

For more information, to become a sponsor, or to purchase tickets, please contact MTA Events at 818.906.0240 or hrw@mtaevents.com.

"An amazing and important film with the potential to change the way we think about the problem of youth homelessness." - Alex Kotlowitz, author of There Are No Children Here

Human Rights Watch invites you to the screening of The Homestretch. This inspirational documentary explores the severely overlooked crisis of youth homelessness in the United States, by giving a voice to three teens fighting to build a more hopeful future. The film successfully exposes the striking flaws in domestic policies as they relate to juvenile justice, immigration, foster care and LGBTQIA rights.

The movie will be followed by a Q&A with Director Anne de Mare, HRW's LGBT Director Graeme Reid and LA County Office of Education's Melissa Schoonmaker. All guests are invited to attend a drink and taco reception.

The Human Rights Watch Los Angeles Book Club will read and discuss the book Playing the Whore: The Work of Sex Work by Melissa Gira Grant. This book argues for an overhaul in the dominant thinking about the work and rights of another group of women who are commonly considered to be in need of rescue: sex workers.  The book is available in print and e- formats (and it is a brisk read, at 136 pages). For more information or to RSVP please contact Patricia Billings at her Women's Rights Committee Book Club email readwomensrights@gmail.com.

The 2014 Voices for Justice dinner was a wonderful celebration where we honored Shin Dong-Hyuk (North Korea) and Dr. M.R. Rajagopal (India) for their courageous and impactful work.  We also happily celebrated Sid Sheinberg's 20 year tenure on the International Board of Human Rights Watch. The personal and heartfelt tone for the night was set perfectly by our special guest, NBA basketball player and civil rights advocate, Jason Collins.  Thank you to everyone who supported this event which provides vital resources to civilians in conflict and to the work of Human Rights Watch. 

The Human Rights Watch Los Angeles Book Club will read and discuss the book Do Muslim Women Need Saving? by Lila Abu-Lughod. The book looks critically at popular literature and film on the generalized "Muslim Woman" and the common belief in the West that Muslim women need to be rescued. The book is available in print and e- formats (no audio book yet) and at public libraries. (We will contact the publisher to ask if they can offer a discount to members who want to purchase the book, which is only available in hard cover now; more on this as soon as we know.) For more information or to RSVP please contact Patricia Billings at her Women's Rights Committee Book Club email readwomensrights@gmail.com.

The Human Rights Watch Los Angeles Book Club will discuss Los 43, the disappeared, presumed killed, students in Mexico, and the broader problem of mass violence in Mexico, perpetrated by organized crime and government forces. We will consider how women are impacted by the violence, and how they are active in the struggle against it. There will be no book to read, just media articles and HRW reports; we will send links to these in an email shortly. We will also email a cheat sheet the day before the session and have printouts of the sheet at the session. For more information and to RSVP please contact Patricia Billings at readwomensrights@gmail.com