2021-2023 Aryeh Neier Fellowship Opportunity
Human Rights Watch / American Civil Liberties Union Foundation
Application Deadline: October 9, 2020

The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation (ACLU) and Human Rights Watch (HRW) invite applications for the Aryeh Neier Fellowship. The fellow will work with both organizations on joint initiatives to strengthen respect for human rights in the United States.
For nearly 100 years, the ACLU has been our nation’s guardian of liberty, working in courts, legislatures, and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States.  Whether it’s ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBT community, advancing racial justice, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote or the right to have an abortion, the ACLU takes up the toughest civil liberties and civil rights cases and issues to defend all people from government abuse and overreach. With more than one million members, activists, and supporters, the ACLU is a nationwide organization that fights tirelessly in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and Washington, D.C., for the principle that every individual’s rights must be protected equally under the law, regardless of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, national origin, record of arrest or conviction.

Human Rights Watch is an international human rights monitoring and advocacy organization known for its in-depth investigations, its incisive and timely reporting, its innovative and high-profile advocacy campaigns, and its success in changing the human rights-related policies and practices of influential governments and international institutions.
Human Rights Watch and the ACLU created the fellowship in 2002 with generous funding from the Open Society Institute to honor the legacy of Aryeh Neier. As executive director of the ACLU and then of Human Rights Watch, Aryeh Neier helped develop both organizations into powerful forces for justice and human rights.
A special committee from both organizations will select the fellow, who will begin the two-year fellowship in September 2021. They will most likely be placed in the New York City offices of Human Rights Watch and the ACLU, spending a year at each; however, the fellow should be open to placement in the organizations’ offices in other locations in the US.

Responsibilities: Monitor human rights developments; Conduct field research in the United States; Draft reports and/or other materials on human rights conditions; Engage in advocacy aimed at publicizing and curtailing human rights violations; Assist with the development of litigation strategies; and Carry out other tasks as may be required.

Qualifications:

Education: Candidates must hold a J.D. from a US law school or have a J.D. granted by June 2021.

Experience: Academic or work experience related to some aspect of the protection of human rights and civil liberties in the United States.

Related Skills and Knowledge: Take and/or pass the bar exam prior to commencing the fellowship in September 2021. Eligibility to practice law in the US during the second year of the fellowship. Exceptional analytical skills, and an ability to write and speak clearly and persuasively. Self-motivation with the ability to take initiative and follow through on projects to completion. Ability to work independently as well as within a team. Proficiency in one language in addition to English is preferred. A demonstrated commitment to human rights and justice.

Salary: The fellow will receive $60,000 in the first year, with a salary increase in the second year.

Application Deadline: Please apply immediately or by 11:59 PM ET on October 9, 2020 by visiting our online job portal at https://careers.hrw.org and attaching a CV/resume, letter of interest, and a brief writing sample (unedited by others). No calls or email inquiries, please. Only complete applications will be reviewed. Due to the large number of applications, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted further.
Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted to submit the following: two letters of recommendation and an official law or graduate school transcript.
Successful applicants should be available for an interview from late November to mid-December 2020.
Please direct inquiries, including technical difficulties with your application submission, to fellowship@hrw.org.  Due to the large response, application submissions via email will not be accepted and inquiries regarding the status of applications will go unanswered. 
For more information, please see the FAQs: Fellowship FAQs.
This job description provides a general but not comprehensive list of the essential responsibilities and qualifications required.  It does not represent a contract of employment.  The ACLU/HRW reserves the right to change the job description and/or posting at any time without advance notice.

Human Rights Watch and the ACLU are strong because we are diverse. We do not discriminate in hiring practices and actively seek a diverse applicant pool. We encourage candidates of all abilities, ages, gender identities and expressions, national origins, races and ethnicities, religious beliefs, sexual orientations, and those with criminal records to apply. We welcome all kinds of diversity. Our employees include people who are parents and nonparents, the self-taught and university educated, and from a wide span of socio-economic backgrounds and perspectives on the world. Human Rights Watch and the ACLU are equal opportunity employers.

The ACLU comprises two separate corporate entities, the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU Foundation. Both the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU Foundation are national organizations with the same overall mission and share office space and employees. The ACLU has two separate corporate entities in order to do a broad range of work to protect civil liberties. This job posting refers collectively to the two organizations under the name "ACLU".