Director, Gender, Sexuality, and Identity (GSI) Program

Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) is the global organization’s presence in the United States. We engage people in the U.S. to fight injustice all around the world, while we also work to protect people’s human rights here in the U.S. Amnesty International USA has more than one million members and activists in all 50 states, who are part of a larger global movement of 10 million people in 150 countries. We are a democratically governed, grassroots membership organization, which means that our members vote on key policy issues and elect our Board of Directors. Some of our members are experts on specific human rights issues, parts of the world, or advocacy areas, and they serve as volunteer leaders. Others are volunteer leaders of local or student groups in towns, universities, states, or regions of the country. Amnesty International USA’s elected Board members, staff, and members work together to lead the organization.

The Director of the Gender, Sexuality, and Identity (GSI) Program leads the organization’s efforts within the United States to make impact on women’s rights, LGBTQI+ rights, and sexual and reproductive rights. This Director also manages our work on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights with an emphasis on sexual violence against Indigenous women in the USA. The GSI Program Director will create and implement a program strategy with stakeholders to make human rights impact and help achieve organizational goals through advocacy, coalition building, grassroots activism, and other effective tactics. The GSI Program Director will serve as AIUSA’s expert and spokesperson on issues covered by the program; create effective grassroots actions and materials to engage the public; influence state, federal, and multilateral officials and others; and oversee an annual work plan and budget. The program’s current focus areas are: defending the right to abortion in the USA, ending sexual violence against Indigenous women in the USA, and ending gender-based violence (GBV) in US foreign policy.

Essential Responsibilities

• Ensure that Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) are integrated into all aspects of the GSI program
• Sets specific goals and objectives for making human rights impact on GSI programmatic priorities and create and implement a strategy with internal and external stakeholders to achieve those goals and objectives
• Collaborate with stakeholders in selecting and implementing effective tactics—including advocacy, coalition building, and grassroots activism, media advocacy, social media advocacy, and public education—to achieve the program’s goals and objectives
• Influence local, state, and federal government officials to achieve the program’s goals and objectives
• Build and maintain strategic coalition presence and leadership in key advocacy spaces
• Build and maintain relationships across relevant communities, including with impacted people, legislators, advocates, and allied nongovernmental and policy organizations
• Conduct evaluations, monitoring and reporting on progress toward the program’s goals and objectives
• Ensure that the program’s human rights work also helps achieve the organizational goals and objectives in AIUSA’s Strategic Framework
• Represent AIUSA as a public spokesperson and in the media on relevant programmatic issues
• Recruit, train, and sustain AIUSA’s members and public in effective activism in support of the program’s goals and objectives by creating useful and compelling actions, training modules, and materials
• Engage with Amnesty International’s (AI) sections around the world to help achieve the program’s goals and objectives, including inputting on program-related issues to the global AI movement
• Represent AIUSA with the public, policymakers, and other external groups and individuals
• Collaborate with and provide support to AIUSA’s country and thematic specialists, especially the member leader-driven coordination groups on LGBTQI+ rights and women’s human rights.
• Support fundraising efforts for the program and AIUSA
• Develop and oversee the program’s annual work plan, budget, and any staff assigned to the program
• Other relevant duties as assigned by the National Director of the Programs
• Occasional evening and/or weekend availability required
• This role is remote but requires 10% - 20% travel, either domestically or internationally

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities

• Demonstrated relevant strategic planning and project management experience, with at least two years of senior program officer responsibilities or equivalent
• Demonstrated experience working and expertise on gender and sexuality, and related issues that the GSI Program covers
• Strong relationships within communities and coalitions relevant to the GSI Program
• Demonstrated experience as a successful advocate able to influence government officials
• Demonstrated experience as an on-the-record spokesperson
• Superior writing and public speaking skills
• Demonstrated experience working in a grassroots organization with member activists and growing an engaged and effective membership activist base
• Track record of collaborative work across organizations and coalitions; skilled at building alliances to achieve goals
• Exceptional initiative and follow-through skills that deliver measurable results
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work well as part of a team
• Deep, principled commitment to international human rights standards and the equal rights of all people worldwide

Education and Experience

• BA/BS and at least 10 years relevant experience, or MA/MS and 8 years relevant experience and/or sufficient relevant work experience; subject matter expert in field
• Demonstrated success in collaborating with diverse stakeholders—including impacted people, partners, activists and volunteers—in the development and implementation of impactful strategies
• Understanding of/experience working with Indigenous women in the USA a plus
• Demonstrated success in work to advance inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility
• Demonstrated success in using innovative, creative, and effective tactics, including grassroots tactics, to influence government decision makers
• Extensive experience working cross-organizationally to achieve shared goals
• Demonstrated expertise with human rights standards related to GSI Program areas
• Strong track record working with advocacy-oriented research and analysis
• Demonstrated commitment to human rights, inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility

Travel Requirements

• Ability to occasionally travel is required, e.g. lobbying activities in DC, staff retreats, annual AIUSA conference

• This role may will require 10% - 20% travel, either domestically or internationally

We recognize the valuable skills that can be gained through internships, fellowships, volunteer work, and non-traditional work experience. This experience helps build competencies and knowledge that may translate to our job openings. We seek a diversity of experience and skills for our workplace and encourage people from all backgrounds to apply to our openings.

HOW TO APPLY AND OUR EEO STATEMENT

All applications must be completed online, and we do not accept paper submissions. Please visit the AIUSA Careers Page to review all current job postings. You must complete the entire online application, and electronically sign, for an application to be considered “complete.” We send emails via Paycom so please check your spam folders for any updates. Please email talentacquisition@aiusa.org for technical difficulties ONLY.

Amnesty International USA is an equal opportunity employer. AIUSA encourages applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran status and record of arrest or conviction, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Black people, Indigenous people, people of color; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex people; women; people with disabilities, protected veterans, and formerly incarcerated individuals are all strongly encouraged to apply.

OUR COMMITMENT AS AN ANTI-RACIST ORGANIZATION AND TO INCLUSION, DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND ACCESSIBILITY (IDEA)

Dismantling white supremacy is central to the fight for human rights in the United States and around the world. As we mobilize staff and activists and work with partners to help transform the multiple systems where oppression operates in the world around us as part of our human rights mandate, anti-racism must be integral to our work. What does that mean for Amnesty International in the United States? It means using our people power to fight injustice and centering the voices and experiences of those most impacted by racist structures, beliefs, and laws. Fundamentally, it means doing our human rights work differently than it has been done before, because we know that who we work with, how we work, the work we do, and ultimately who we are, are all interconnected.

As an international, intercultural, intergenerational and intersectional movement of activists committed to protecting and advancing human rights for all, Amnesty is deeply committed to Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Accessibility (IDEA). To learn more about how we integrate IDEA into our programs and workplace, visit: https://www.amnestyusa.org/idea/

Remote and Hybrid Workplace Policy

Because the health and safety of our employees and candidates are a top priority, we are currently conducting our hiring process virtually.

Staff, office visitors, and event attendees to be up to date with COVID vaccines before entering AIUSA offices or attending AIUSA events or in-person meetings. If anyone wishing to enter the office or attend our events is not vaccinated, they will need to have tested negative for COVID within 24 hours of entry. We expect that all staff and visitors entering the office or attending AIUSA events will, by accessing our facilities, be attesting that they are vaccinated or that they have tested negative within 24 hours of entry.

Please review the job description, which will state whether a role is hybrid and remote. Some roles may require travel domestically and/or internationally.