Organization Details

Witness is a global pioneer in the use of video for advocacy. But we have always stressed that video alone cannot fuel human rights progress. Human rights defenders who are properly trained to make video part of an integrated action plan play a critical role in helping to ensure that rights are respected.

Witness was founded in 1992 by musician and activist Peter Gabriel and the Reebok Foundation for Human Rights as a project of the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights (now Human Rights First).

Rooted in the principle that "a picture is worth a thousand words," Witness give frontline human rights defenders video camera and other technology, along with training in its effective defenders uses, so that personal stories of abuse can be transformed into powerful tools for justice. In partnership with nongovernmental organizations around the world, Witness has tackled issues ranging from sex trafficking and abusive labor practices to prison reform and the human toll of environmental degradation. Witness partners have exposed atrocities committed in the former Yugoslavia and El Salvador, forced labor in Burma, and sweatshops on U.S. soil.

Witness video projects are not intended for passive viewing. They are meant to provoke action. Since 1992, Witness' partner footage has been a valuable human rights tool, providing a much needed perspective in the ongoing quest for justice.

Address

80 Hanson Place
Brooklyn, NY 11217

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