Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights (formerly the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, or RFK Center) is an American

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

nonprofit

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

advocacy Advocacy is an Action (philosophy), activity by an individual or advocacy group, group that aims to influence decision making, decisions within political, economic, and social institutions. Advocacy includes activities and publications to infl ...

organization. It was named after

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), also known as RFK, was an American politician and lawyer. He served as the 64th United States attorney general from January 1961 to September 1964, and as a U.S. senator from New Yo ...

in 1968, a few months after his assassination. The organization of leading attorneys, advocates, entrepreneurs and writers is dedicated to a more just and peaceful world, working alongside local activists to ensure lasting positive change in governments and corporations. It also promotes human rights advocacy through its RFK Human Rights Award, and supports investigative journalists and authors through the RFK Book and Journalism Awards. It is based in New York and

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Robert F. Kennedy's daughter,

Kerry Kennedy Mary Kerry Kennedy (born September 8, 1959) is an American lawyer, author, and human rights activist. Kennedy is a daughter of former United States Senator Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy, and a niece of former U.S. President John F. Kenned ...

, serves as the organization's President.

History

The Robert F. Kennedy Memorial was originally established as a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

in Washington, D.C., in October, 1968. The

Kennedy family The Kennedy family () is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from County Wexford, Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P ...

and friends looked to memorialize Robert Kennedy's public service following his assassination on June 5, 1968, in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Fred Dutton Frederick Gary Dutton (June 16, 1923 – June 27, 2005) was a lawyer and Democratic Party power broker who served as campaign manager and Chief of Staff for California Governor Pat Brown, Special Assistant to U.S. President John F. Kennedy, and ...

, a long-time friend and Kennedy ally, was named executive director, and

Peter B. Edelman Peter Benjamin Edelman (born January 9, 1938) is an American legal scholar. He is a professor at the Georgetown University Law Center, specializing in the fields of poverty, welfare, juvenile justice, and constitutional law. He worked as an aide ...

, a member of Kennedy's senatorial staff, became associate director. The chairman of the executive committee was former U.S. Secretary of Defense

Robert S. McNamara Robert Strange McNamara (; June 9, 1916 – July 6, 2009) was an American businessman and government official who served as the eighth United States secretary of defense from 1961 to 1968 under presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson ...

. The Memorial was announced during a press conference at Hickory Hill in McLean, Virginia, on Tuesday, October 29, 1968. Kennedy's brother Ted led the press conference, stating that the organization would be a "living memorial" that would work in areas of poverty, crime, and education in America. He went on to say the Memorial would be "an action-oriented program that we think will carry on his concerns, his actions, his efforts to work on so many of the problems in this country that have no solutions". He was joined at the press conference by his sisters,

Patricia Kennedy Lawford Patricia Helen Kennedy Lawford (May 6, 1924 – September 17, 2006) was an American socialite, and the sixth of nine children of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. She was a sister of President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and Sena ...

and

Jean Kennedy Smith Jean Ann Kennedy Smith (February 20, 1928 – June 17, 2020) was an American diplomat, activist, humanitarian, and author who served as United States Ambassador to Ireland from 1993 to 1998. She was a member of the Kennedy family, the eighth of ...

, as well as dozens of Kennedy family friends and aides. Kennedy's widow

Ethel Kennedy Ethel Kennedy ( ; April 11, 1928 – October 10, 2024) was an American human rights advocate. She was the widow of U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, a sister-in-law of U.S. president John F. Kennedy, and a daughter of businessman Geor ...

did not attend the press conference, but was nearby, in a second-floor bedroom of Hickory Hill on doctor's orders, awaiting the birth of her eleventh child. She issued a statement saying it was the hope of her husband's family and friends that the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial would carry forward the ideals he worked for during his lifetime: "He wanted to encourage the young people and to help the disadvantaged and discriminated against both here and abroad, and he wanted to promote peace in the world. These will be the goals of the memorial." The memorial and other projects started in Kennedy's memory were later collectively renamed Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights.

Awards

Human Rights Award

The Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award was created by

Kathleen Kennedy Townsend Kathleen Hartington Kennedy Townsend (born July 4, 1951) is an American attorney who served as the sixth lieutenant governor of Maryland from 1995 to 2003. She was the first woman to serve in that role. A member of the Democratic Party, she ran ...

in 1984 to honor individuals around the world who show courage and have made a significant contribution to

in their country. In addition to receiving a financial award, laureates work with the organization on human rights-related projects. Since 1984, awards have been given to 43 individuals and organizations from 25 different countries. The 2009 award was presented by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

. In 2009, the RFK Human Rights began a partnership with the

California International Law Center The University of California, Davis School of Law is the professional graduate law school of the University of California, Davis. The school received ABA approval in 1968. It joined the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) in 1968. UC Dav ...

(CILC) at the

University of California, Davis School of Law The University of California, Davis School of Law is the professional graduate law school of the University of California, Davis. The school received ABA approval in 1968. It joined the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) in 1968. UC Dav ...

focusing on the crisis in

Darfur Darfur ( ; ) is a region of western Sudan. ''Dār'' is an Arabic word meaning "home f – the region was named Dardaju () while ruled by the Daju, who migrated from Meroë , and it was renamed Dartunjur () when the Tunjur ruled the area. ...

Laureates

Ripple of Hope Award

Each year, the Robert F. Kennedy Ripple of Hope Award honors exemplary leaders across

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

, and

entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...

who have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to

social change Social change is the alteration of the social order of a society which may include changes in social institutions, social behaviours or social relations. Sustained at a larger scale, it may lead to social transformation or societal transformat ...

and worked to protect and advance equity,

justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

, and

Laureates

Book Award

The Robert F. Kennedy Book Award was founded in 1980, with the proceeds from

Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. Arthur Meier Schlesinger Jr. ( ; born Arthur Bancroft Schlesinger; October 15, 1917 – February 28, 2007) was an American historian, social critic, and public intellectual. The son of the influential historian Arthur M. Schlesinger Sr. and a ...

's biography, ''Robert Kennedy and His Times''. Each year, the organization presents an award to the book which "most faithfully and forcefully reflects Robert Kennedy's purposes – his concern for the poor and the powerless, his struggle for honest and even-handed justice, his conviction that a decent society must assure all young people a fair chance, and his faith that a free democracy can act to remedy disparities of power and opportunity."

Winners

* 2024 - ''Black Folk: The Roots of the Black Working Class'' by Blair LM Kelley * 2023 - ''The Third Reconstruction: America's Struggle for Racial Justice in the Twenty-First Century'' by Peniel E. Joseph * 2022 - ''The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together'' by

Heather McGhee Heather Charisse McGhee (born June 6, 1980) is a New York Times bestselling author and policy advocate. She is a former president and currently a trustee emeritus of Demos, a non-profit progressive U.S. think tank. McGhee is a regular contributor ...

and ''America on Fire: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Rebellion Since the 1960s'' by Elizabeth Hinton * 2021 – '' Unworthy Republic:The Dispossession of Native Americans and the Road to Indian Territory'' by Claudio Saunt * 2020 – '' Dying of Whiteness: How the Politics of Racial Resentment Is Killing America's Heartland'' by Jonathan Metzl * 2019 – '' American Prison: A Reporter's Undercover Journey into the Business of Punishment'' by

Shane Bauer Shane Bauer is an American journalist, best known for his undercover reporting for ''Mother Jones'' magazine. He has won several awards including the Harvard's Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting and the National Magazine Award for Best ...

* 2018 – ''Not a Crime to Be Poor: The Criminalization of Poverty in America'' by Peter Edelman / ''The Blood of Emmett Till'' by

Timothy Tyson Timothy B. Tyson (born 1959) is an American writer and historian who specializes in the issues of culture, religion, and race associated with the Civil Rights Movement. He is a senior research scholar at the Center for Documentary Studies at Du ...

* 2017 – '' Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by

Matthew Desmond Matthew Desmond is a sociologist and the Maurice P. During Professor of Sociology at Princeton University, where he is also the principal investigator of the Eviction Lab. Desmond was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2022. He was ...

* 2016 – '' Once in a Great City: A Detroit Story'' by

David Maraniss David Maraniss ( ; born August 6, 1949) is an American award-winning journalist and author, currently serving as an associate editor for ''The Washington Post''. Maraniss is the author of numerous books, ranging from politics to sports. He has w ...

* 2015 – ''The Crusades of Cesar Chavez'' by Miriam Pawel * 2014 – ''The Great Dissent'' by Thomas Healy and special recognition to '' March: Book One'' by

John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American civil rights activist and politician who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...

Andrew Aydin Andrew Aydin (born August 25, 1983) is an American comics writer, known as the Digital Director & Policy Advisor to Georgia congressman John Lewis, and co-author, with Lewis, of ''March'', Lewis' #1 ''New York Times'' bestselling autobiographical ...

, and

Nate Powell Nathan Lee Powell (born 1978) is an American graphic novelist and musician. His 2008 graphic novel ''Swallow Me Whole'' won an Ignatz Award and Eisner Award for Best Original Graphic Novel. He illustrated the ''March'' trilogy, an autobiographical ...

* 2013 – ''

The Price of Inequality ''The Price of Inequality: How Today's Divided Society Endangers Our Future'' is a 2012 book by Joseph Stiglitz that deals with income inequality in the United States. He attacks the growing wealth disparity and the effects it has on the econom ...

'' by

Joseph Stiglitz Joseph Eugene Stiglitz (; born February 9, 1943) is an American New Keynesian economist, a public policy analyst, political activist, and a professor at Columbia University. He is a recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (2 ...

* 2012 – ''The Justice Cascade'' by

Kathryn Sikkink Kathryn A. Sikkink (born 1955) is an American author, human rights academic, and scholar of international relations working primarily through the theoretical strain of constructivism. She is currently a professor at Harvard Kennedy School. Aca ...

* 2011 – ''

The Big Short ''The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine'' is a nonfiction book by Michael Lewis about the build-up of the United States housing bubble during the 2000s. It was released on March 15, 2010, by W. W. Norton & Company. It spent 28 weeks on '' ...

'' by

Michael Lewis Michael Monroe Lewis (born October 15, 1960) Gale Biography In Context. is an American author and financial journalist. He has also been a contributing editor to '' Vanity Fair'' since 2009, writing mostly on business, finance, and economics. ...

* 2010 – ''Ordinary Injustice'' by Amy Bach * 2009 – '' The Dark Side'' by

Jane Mayer Jane Meredith Mayer (born 1955) is an American investigative journalist who has been a staff writer for ''The New Yorker'' since 1995. She has written for the publication about money in politics; government prosecution of whistleblowers; the Un ...

* 2008 – ''Going Down Jericho Road'' by Michael Honey * 2007 – ''The Great Deluge'' by

Douglas Brinkley Douglas Brinkley (born December 14, 1960) is an American author, Katherine Tsanoff Brown Chair in Humanities, and professor of history at Rice University. Brinkley is a history commentator for CNN, Presidential Historian for the New York Historica ...

* 2006 – ''Mirror to America'' by

John Hope Franklin John Hope Franklin (January 2, 1915 – March 25, 2009) was an American historian of the United States and former president of Phi Beta Kappa, the Organization of American Historians, the American Historical Association, the American Studies ...

* 2005 – ''

Perilous Times ''Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime from the Sedition Act of 1798 to the War on Terrorism'' is a 2004 book by American Constitutional law scholar Geoffrey R. Stone, reviewing the treatment of the United States First Amendment during times of ...

'' by Jeffrey Stone and ''We Are All the Same'' by

Jim Wooten Jim Wooten may refer to: * Jim Wooten (journalist) * Jim Wooten (politician) See also * James Wooten, transportation entrepreneur {{hndis, Wooten, Jim ...

* 2004 – '' Ultimate Punishment'' by

Scott Turow Scott Frederick Turow (born April 12, 1949) is an American author and lawyer. Turow worked as a lawyer for a decade before writing full-time, and has written 13 fiction and three nonfiction books, which have been translated into more than 40 la ...

* 2003 – ''At the Hands of Persons Unknown'' by

Philip Dray Philip Dray is an American writer and historian, known for his comprehensive analyses of American scientific, racial, and labor history. Awards Dray's work ''At the Hands of Persons Unknown: The Lynching of Black America'' (by Random House Publ ...

and ''

A Problem from Hell ''"A Problem from Hell": America and the Age of Genocide'' (2002) is a book by American Samantha Power, at that time Professor of Human Rights Practice at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government, which explores the United States's understa ...

'' by

Samantha Power Samantha Jane Power (born September 21, 1970) is an Irish-American journalist, diplomat, and government official who served as the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development from 2021 to 2025. She was the 28th Unite ...

* 2002 – ''American Patriots'' by Gail Buckley * 2001 – ''Without Sanctuary'' by James Allen and ''Blood of the Liberals'' by

George Packer George Packer (born August 13, 1960) is an American journalist, novelist, and playwright. He is best known for his writings about U.S. foreign policy for ''The New Yorker'' and ''The Atlantic'' and for his book '' The Assassins' Gate: America in ...

* 2000 – '' Mandela: The Authorised Biography'' by

Anthony Sampson Anthony Terrell Seward Sampson (3 August 1926 – 18 December 2004) was a British writer and journalist. His most notable and successful book was '' Anatomy of Britain'', which was published in 1962 and was followed by five more "Anatomies", up ...

and ''No Shame in My Game'' by Katherine Newman * 1999 – ''Walking with the Wind'' by

and Michael D'Orso * 1998 – '' Race, Crime and the Law'' by

Randall Kennedy Randall LeRoy Kennedy (born September 10, 1954) is an American legal scholar. He is the Michael R. Klein Professor of Law at Harvard University and his research focuses on the intersection of racial conflict and legal institutions in American l ...

and ''The Soldiers' Tale'' by

Samuel Hynes Samuel Lynn Hynes (August 29, 1924 – October 9, 2019) was an American author. He won a Robert F. Kennedy Book Award for ''The Soldiers' Tale'' in 1998. Biography Hynes was born in Chicago, Illinois. He attended the University of Minnesota and C ...

* 1997 – ''Worse Than Slavery'' by

David M. Oshinsky David M. Oshinsky (born 1944) is an American historian, director of the Division of Medical Humanities at the NYU School of Medicine, and a professor in the Department of History at New York University. Early life and education Oshinsky graduate ...

* 1996 – ''Circumstantial Evidence: Death, Life, and Justice in a Southern Town'' by Pete Earley and ''The Politics of Rage: George Wallace, the Origins of the New Conservatism, and the Transformation of American Politics'' by Dan T. Carter * 1995 – ''Speak Now Against the Day'' by John Egerton * 1994 – ''Taming the Storm: The Life and Times of Judge Frank M. Johnson, Jr., and the South's Fight Over Civil Rights'' by

Jack Bass Jack Bass is an American author and journalist. He was born in Columbia, South Carolina to Nathan and Esther (Cohen) Bass in 1934 and grew up in the town of North as the youngest of seven children. He graduated from the University of South Caroli ...

and special recognition to Herbert Block for ''Herblock: A Cartoonist's Life'' * 1993 – '' Earth in the Balance: Ecology and the Human Spirit'' by Vice President

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...

* 1992 – '' Praying for Sheetrock'' by Melissa Fay Greene * 1991 – '' The Long Haul'' by

Myles Horton ] Myles Falls Horton (July 9, 1905– January 19, 1990) was an American educator, socialist, and co-founder of the Highlander Folk School, famous for its role in the Civil Rights Movement (Movement leader James Bevel called Horton "The Fath ...

and Herbert Kohl (educator), Herbert and Judith Kohl and ''The Burning Season: The Murder of Chico Mendes and the Fight for the Amazon Rain Forest'' by

Andrew Revkin Andrew C. Revkin (born 1956) is an American science and environmental journalist, webcaster, author and educator. He has written on a wide range of subjects including the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and ...

* 1990 – ''Among Schoolchildren'' by

Tracy Kidder John Tracy Kidder (born November 12, 1945) is an American writer of nonfiction books. He received the Pulitzer Prize for his '' The Soul of a New Machine'' (1981), about the creation of a new computer at Data General Corporation. He has recei ...

and ''Big Sugar'' by

Alec Wilkinson Alec Wilkinson (born March 29, 1952) is an American writer who has been on the staff of ''The New Yorker'' since 1980. According to ''The Philadelphia Inquirer '' he is among the "first rank of" contemporary American (20th and early 21st century ...

* 1989 – '' A Bright Shining Lie'' by

Neil Sheehan Cornelius Mahoney Sheehan (October 27, 1936 – January 7, 2021) was an American journalist. As a reporter for ''The New York Times'' in 1971, Sheehan obtained the classified ''Pentagon Papers'' from Daniel Ellsberg. His series of articles reve ...

and ''Rachel and Her Children'' by

Jonathan Kozol Jonathan Kozol (born September 5, 1936) is an American writer, progressivism in the United States, progressive activist, and educator, best known for his books on public education in the United States. Education and experience Born to Harry Ko ...

* 1988 – '' Beloved'' by

Toni Morrison Chloe Anthony Wofford Morrison (born Chloe Ardelia Wofford; February 18, 1931 – August 5, 2019), known as Toni Morrison, was an American novelist and editor. Her first novel, ''The Bluest Eye'', was published in 1970. The critically accl ...

and ''Song in a Weary Throat'' by

Pauli Murray Anna Pauline "Pauli" Murray (November 20, 1910 – July 1, 1985) was an American civil rights activist, advocate, legal scholar and theorist, author and – later in life – an Episcopal priest. Murray's work influenced the civil r ...

* 1987 – '' Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference,'' by

David J. Garrow David Jeffries Garrow (born May 11, 1953) is an American author and historian. He wrote the book ''Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference'' (1986), which won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for Biogr ...

* 1986 – '' Common Ground: A Turbulent Decade in the Lives of Three American Families'' by

J. Anthony Lukas Jay Anthony Lukas (April 25, 1933 – June 5, 1997) was an American journalist and author, best known for his 1985 book ''Common Ground (Lukas book), Common Ground: A Turbulent Decade in the Lives of Three American Families''. ''Common Ground'' i ...

and ''Reaping the Whirlwind: The Civil Rights Movement in Tuskegee'' by Robert Norrell * 1984 – ''Children of War'' by

Roger Rosenblatt Roger Rosenblatt (born 1940) is an American memoirist, essayist, and novelist. He was a long-time essayist for ''Time'' magazine and ''PBS NewsHour''. Career Roger Rosenblatt began writing professionally in his mid-30s, when he became literary e ...

* 1983 – ''Let the Trumpet Sound: The Life of Martin Luther King, Jr.'' by

Stephen B. Oates Stephen Baery Oates (January 5, 1936August 20, 2021) was an American historian. He was a professor of history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He specialized in the American Civil War era and authored numerous books. Early life and e ...

* 1982 – ''The Child Savers'' by Peter S. Prescott * 1981 – ''Civilities and Civil Rights: Greensboro, North Carolina, and the Black Struggle for Freedom'' by William Chafe

Journalism Award

The Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award was established in 1968 by a group of reporters covering Kennedy's presidential campaign and "honors those who report on issues that reflect Kennedy's concerns including human rights, social justice and the power of individual action in the United States and around the world." Entries include insights into the causes, conditions and remedies of injustice and critical analysis of relevant public policies, programs, attitudes and private endeavors. Led by a committee of six independent journalists, the Awards are judged by more than fifty journalists each year. Previous winners include

World News World news or international news or even foreign coverage is the news media jargon for news from abroad, about a country or a global subject. For journalism, it is a branch that deals with news either sent by foreign correspondents or news agen ...

anchor

Diane Sawyer Lila Diane Sawyer (; born December 22, 1945) is an American television broadcast journalist known for anchoring major programs on two networks including ''ABC World News Tonight'', ''Good Morning America'', ''20/20 (U.S. TV series), 20/20'', and ...

Other initiatives

Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights also promotes a video contest, titled Speak Truth to Power. It is co-sponsored by the American Federation of Teachers and the Tribeca Festival.

References

External links

* {{Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award laureates Robert F. Kennedy Foundations based in the United States Human rights organizations based in the United States Organizations established in 1968