1978
Founding of Human Rights First
Lawyers Committee for International Human Rights, later renamed Human Rights First, is founded by the International League for Human Rights and the Council of New York Law Associates.
1980
Championing the Refugee Act
The organization helps draft and secure the passage of the Refugee Act of 1980, the first law to bring the country’s refugee and asylum policies into compliance with international law.
1984
The El Salvador Justice Case
When four American churchwomen are killed in El Salvador, their families turn to LCHR to seek justice, and our staff undertake fact-finding missions and testify before Congress. This leads to the U.S. withholding 20% of its military aid to El Salvador pending a satisfactory resolution of the case. Within six months, five El Salvadoran National Guardsmen are found guilty, the first conviction of Salvadoran military personnel for human rights abuses.
1988
Lawyer-to-Lawyer Network
Our organization initiates the Lawyer to Lawyer network -- which grows to 8000 lawyers in 130 countries -- to provide the international legal community a way to press for the release of imprisoned lawyers.
1992
Creation of Witness
Inspired by the video that proved police beat Rodney King, we work with Peter Gabriel to create Witness, which provides video tools to document human rights abuses.
1998
International Criminal Court
Our organization plays a major role in the establishment of the International Criminal Court.
1999
Fair Labor Association
We help establish the Fair Labor Association, bringing together civil society, colleges, and more than 60 major companies including Nike, Adidas, and Under Armor, to set human rights standards for workplaces across industries.
2003
Organizational Rename
To underscore the breadth of our constituencies and our work, we change our name to Human Rights First.
2005
McCain Amendment
Human Rights First and our coalition of retired military leaders successfully advocate for the McCain Amendment, banning “cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.”
2009
Banning Torture
Our coalition of retired flag officers advocate for the banning of torture, then stand with President Obama when he signs an Executive Order to do it.
2015
Torture Report
Using the release of the Torture Report to build support, Human Rights First works with Senators McCain and Feinstein to craft the strongest anti-torture law in U.S. history.
2019
Innovation Lab
We launch our Innovation Lab, an incubator of high-technology tools to support human rights defenders and uncover human rights abuses.
2022
Global Magnitsky Act
Human Rights First is instrumental in the reauthorization and permanent extension of the Global Magnitsky Act, which we have used to recommend corrupt actors or human rights abusers for sanction by the U.S. government.
