Human Rights Certificate Capstone Seniors join together to celebrate the completion of their public history project on refugee resettlement in the NC Triangle (more info below).

This May, the Duke Human Rights Center at the Franklin Humanities Institute is excited to announce the graduation of 11 outstanding Human Rights Certificate Seniors. This cohort has committed a significant portion of their studies at Duke to understanding and defending human rights, in both theory and practice.

In addition to the Certificate, these students completed majors in Political Science, Public Policy, Chemistry, International Comparative Studies, Philosophy, History, Cultural Anthropology, and English.

Congratulations to our graduates!

To learn more about each of our graduates, check out our senior spotlights on Instagram.

This semester, Duke's Human Rights Certificate Seniors undertook a public history project documenting the history of refugee resettlement in the North Carolina Triangle. Through many interviews with refugees, resettlement agency staff, volunteers, and faith communities, the students created a website that highlights the mutually beneficial relationship between refugees and our community.

This website is currently being adapted into eight banners that will be displayed by resettlement agencies and exhibits in the Triangle—drawing attention to the impactful stories of those who have sought safety in our community and the people who have made their transitions possible.

During a time of unprecedented attacks to the federal refugee resettlement program, marked by severe cuts in funding to resettlement agencies and the complete halt of all new arrivals, understanding the positive impact of refugee resettlement in the Triangle has never been more important.

The following students will each receive funding from the Duke Human Rights Center to support their summer research. Keep an eye out for blog posts coming soon from each grant-recipient detailing their research, motivations, and experiences.

Gloria Bao, “Tie-T, the Chinese Butch: The Language and Identity of Chinese Sapphics” 

Matthew Joo, “Margins of Discourse: U.S. Bases and the Social Peripheries of South Korea” 

Jiae Kim, “Unspoken Legacies: Koryo Saram Women, Education, and Identity in Uzbekistan” 

Mariana Meza Mantilla, “Theorizing and Practicing Social Change: Systems Analysis, Resistance, and Reimagination Towards Justice in the U.S. Borderlands” 

Ella Patterson, “From Purge to Protest: The Lavender Scare and the Roots of LGBTQ Resistance” 

Samantha Richter, “Overcoming Political Barriers to Implementing Small-Scale Detention Centers in Europe: Insights from a Comparative Policy Analysis” 

Kulsoom Rizavi, “Tech Corporations, Union Busting, and the Battle for Southern Labor Rights”

The Human Rights Certificate

Looking for a way to incorporate human rights into your studies at Duke? Look no further than the Human Rights Certificate! The certificate consists of a gateway course, capstone course, and four electives of your choice — many of which are cross-listed in other departments. Our certificate students come from a wide range of majors and interests!

If you are interested in enrolling in the Human Rights Rights Certificate, contact Robin Kirk (rights@duke.edu) to express your interest in the program.