FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Catherine Chang, Operations Coordinator
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
E: catherine@ijdh.org
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti Welcomes Brian Concannon as Returning Executive Director
Boston, MA (November 10, 2021) – On Monday, the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) welcomed Brian Concannon Esq., IJDH’s founder, as its returning Executive Director. Concannon succeeds Franciscka Lucien, who previously informed the Board of her decision to step down from leadership of IJDH as of November 5.
Concannon originally served IJDH as Executive Director for fifteen years before stepping down in November 2019. He is a lawyer and activist who has dedicated his career to advancing human rights in Haiti. He lived in Haiti from 1995 to 2004, where he co-managed the Bureau des Avocats Internationaux (BAI), a public interest law firm and IJDH’s sister organization, and served as a UN Human Rights Officer. He left Haiti in 2004 after the US-sponsored coup d’etat overthrew Haiti’s democracy and demonstrated that no progress in Haiti was sustainable unless the US and other powerful countries were compelled to respect the country’s sovereignty and democracy. From 2019 to 2021, Brian served as the Executive Director of Project Blueprint, where he led the effort to promote a progressive, human rights-based US foreign policy by bringing the perspectives of people impacted by US actions abroad into policy discussions.
“I appreciate all of Franciscka’s hard and skilful work as Executive Director. I look forward to rejoining the entire IJDH community – colleagues at the Institute and at BAI, collaborators throughout the world, and IJDH’s wonderful financial supporters – to continue this work fighting the root causes of instability and injustice in Haiti.”
About IJDH: The Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDH) is a US-based human rights non-profit organization. Established in 2004, it is a partnership of human rights advocates in Haiti and the US, dedicated to tackling the root causes of injustice that impact basic human rights in Haiti. In partnership with its Haiti-based sister organization, the Bureau des Avocats Internationaux (BAI), IJDH advocates, litigates, builds constituencies, and nurtures networks to create systemic pathways to justice for marginalized communities in Haiti. For more information about IJDH, please visit www.ijdh.org.