Celebrating, elevating, and standing up for human rights heroes and issues

Since 2009, we have awarded the Lantos Human Rights Prize annually to an individual or individuals who embody the spirit of Tom Lantos’ quest to carry the noble banner of human rights to every corner of the world and who have made a meaningful contribution to the fight for human rights in a particular country/region or for a specific group/issue. Lantos Prize laureates have included well-known human rights luminaries and political figures with whom Tom had an established relationship – such as His Holiness the Dalai Lama (2009), Professor Elie Wiesel (2010), Hillary Clinton (2013) and Shimon Peres (2014). The Prize has also been awarded to lesser-known human rights heroes whose causes have been spotlighted and further elevated through the Lantos Prize, such as “mother of the Uyghurs” Rebiya Kadeer (2015), Yazidi human rights champion Vian Dakhil (2016), and Bill Browder (2019), founder and driving force behind the Global Magnitsky movement. Most recently, the Lantos Prize has been awarded to Bryan Stevenson (2020), founder of the Equal Justice Initiative and author of Just Mercy, a trio of remarkable Afghan women (2021) – Judge Fawzia Amini, Roya Mahboob, and Khalida Popal – and professional basketball player turned activist Enes Kanter Freedom (2022). When our Lantos Prize laureates or other human rights champions have need of our aid, the Lantos Foundation has proven itself a bold defender.

• We were among the first human rights groups to publicly decry the illegal rendition of 2011 Lantos Prize laureate Paul Rusesabagina, real-life hero of Hotel Rwanda, and call for his release after he was kidnapped by the Rwandan government. We coordinated closely with his family, legal team, the U.S. Department of State and other human rights groups for nearly three years to advocate for his freedom. This included filing a Global Magnitsky submission urging the U.S. State and Treasury departments to sanction the Rwandan government officials responsible for his kidnapping, torture, and imprisonment. In March 2023, Paul Rusesabagina – who had been handed a 25-year sentence in a sham trial – was ultimately freed and reunited with his family in the United States.

• We filed an amicus brief with Freedom House in 2021 on behalf of Bill Browder, after he was unjustly sued for defamation by a Russian operative.

• We launched a campaign on behalf of jailed Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, who had been sentenced to 1,000 lashes, that rallied people around the globe to offer to take lashes on his behalf. The Saudi government did not lash Badawi again after we launched this campaign and has since abolished the practice of flogging entirely. Badawi finished his 10-year sentence and was released in March 2022, but the Saudi government has instituted a 10-year travel ban, making it impossible for him to reunite with his family in Canada.

• We continue to advocate for U.S. Administrations to intervene on behalf of jailed dissidents, such as the young Hong Kong democracy activists Joshua Wong (2019 Lantos Prize Laureate imprisoned since 2020) and Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza (imprisoned since 2022 and given a 25-year prison sentence in April 2023).

We launched “The Keeper” podcast in 2017 to further highlight the stories of key human rights figures and to give our supporters and the broader public an opportunity to better understand the most pressing human rights issues of our day. Since launching, we have produced more than 20 episodes with guests including prominent Chinese dissident Yang Jianli, leading human rights lawyers Irwin Cotler and Jared Genser, Russian democracy activist Vladimir Kara-Murza and Hong Kong activist-turned-exile Nathan Law. We have covered human rights issues ranging from the Chinese Communist Party’s repression of the Uyghur people; to the alarming rise of antisemitism globally; to Rwanda’s descent into dictatorship under Paul Kagame; and more. “The Keeper” has garnered thousands of listens and downloads, helping to bring these vital stories to a new and larger audience.

Through participation in international conferences and events, as well as regular opinion pieces published in major media outlets, Foundation President Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett has followed her father Tom’s example and has become a respected and powerful voice advocating for human rights and justice on the world stage.

• Dr. Lantos Swett traveled to Russia in 2010 to meet with human rights groups and gain first-hand insight into the politically motivated trial of Mikhail Khodorkovsky. She later testified about her experiences before the House Foreign Affairs Committee and remained an outspoken advocate for Khodorkovsky’s freedom until he was released in 2013. Since his release, we have continued to work closely with Khodorkovsky on issues related to the rule of law in Russia.

• The backsliding of democracy in Tom Lantos’ native Hungary has been another focus for Dr. Lantos Swett, who has frequently spoken about the need for the Hungarian government to respect the rule of law and uphold democratic values. This included returning the Hungarian state award of the Knight’s Cross in 2016 after the same award was conferred on an openly antisemitic and racist right-wing media figure.

• Recognized as a leading figure in the International Religious Freedom movement, Dr. Lantos Swett was nominated to serve as a member of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) and was ultimately elected as Chair and Vice-Chair of the Commission during her two terms. In this capacity, she traveled to locations around the world to observe the state of religious freedom in countries of concern, authored numerous opinion pieces for leading media outlets, and testified before Congress on several occasions.