Dear John,
A journalist receives anonymous death threats, faces legal persecution, and has their family harassed and forced into exile. A woman human rights defender in Afghanistan is driven into hiding by the Taliban after standing up for democracy and gender equality. A religious leader from Nicaragua is expelled and stripped of citizenship for defending religious freedom in the country.
For nearly two decades, Freedom House’s Emergency Assistance Program (EAP) supported individuals like these, providing aid to more than 17,000 people and organizations in at least 142 countries. The impact was clear: 96 percent of those who received support reported that they were more secure, and 86 percent were subsequently able to continue their work.
This critical project came to a halt in January when the new administration froze all programs funded by US foreign assistance. With other major funders also dialing back support, this moment calls for unprecedented collaboration to rethink human rights protection and develop better ways to meet the ongoing needs of courageous journalists, activists, and other rights defenders around the world.
