| Statement |
I am submitting my candidacy for consideration to the Local Station Board at KPFA. Currently I hold the post of Western Regional Director of Amnesty International, USA (AIUSA).
Before AIUSA, I led the National Legal Sanctuary for Community Advancement (NLSCA), as both President and Senior Counsel. I founded NLSCA, non-profit post 9/11 organization dedicated to ensuring the human rights of Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian (MEMSA) peoples, as a direct response to the unfettered and overreaching policies of the Bush Administration. NLSCA emerged as one of the lead advocates for the MEMSA community. Only one media outlet, Pacifica, stood apart in its ability to provide balanced, courageous and insightful coverage of my client's stories.
KPFA has established credibility as a staple in the arena of advocacy, art, community building, education, and diversity. As a former Constitutional Law professor at John F. Kennedy School of Law and an Adjunct Professor at the University of San Francisco, my students heard repeatedly in my lectures the importance of the media. KPFA has been the strong voice in our community for expanding the perspective of the listenership through innovative approaches in
programming. It is a testament to dedication of the staff, management, board, volunteers, and membership of this station.
Incorporating varying views, backgrounds, and ideologies to meet the same ends is not a without challenge. I believe my strong commitment to fostering a collaborative approach to problem solving and building synergies among all parties, will be beneficial as KPFA continues this process. I would be honored to provide my years of experience as a consultant with the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and civil society in post war Iraq, and partnering with domestic governmental and non-governmental organizations to advance civil and human rights for all. In fact, in a keynote speech I delivered at a National Lawyers Guild event entitled "Radical Lawyering in Times of Crisis", http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/09/16/18447872.ph, I emphasized that the key to our success in representing our clients at NLSCA, was our collaborative and partnering approach.
I have testified before Congress, including the 2003 Amnesty International Racial Profiling Hearings, and I regularly conduct cultural Sensitivity Trainings with branches of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the FBI, Governors' Joint Terrorism Task Force, and other agencies. I have been honored and recognized with awards, such as the Top 100 Most Influential Lawyers in California in 2005 by the Daily Journal and Top 100 Leading Lawyers in 2006.
Most recently, in 2008, I was awarded the Public Service Contribution Award from the Iranian American Political Action Committee (IAPAC) and the Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition from Congressman Mike Honda of the U.S House of Representatives. I received my BA from the University of San Francisco, with attendance at Cambridge University, and a Juris Doctorate from
Tulane University.
Endorsed by Independents for Community Radio, www.indyradio.org., Dr. Jerry Gray, founder of Survivors International & Center for Justice and Accountability, Michael Baldonado, District Director of the EEOC.
Banafsheh Akhlaghi
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