IANGEL’s Rights & Leadership Award was established in 2015 to honor exemplary leaders promoting women’s rights and gender equality. In 2018, the Rights & Leadership Award was named for Amel Zenoune-Zouani, an Algerian law student who was murdered by fundamentalists in 1997 for refusing to give up her studies. The award in Amel’s memory keeps her in our hearts and minds, reminds us of the sacrifices made in pursuit of gender equality, and inspires us to continue the hard work ahead.
Honorees receiving the IANGEL Rights & Leadership Award have achieved professional excellence in their field and have –
- made an outstanding contribution to the promotion and protection of women’s rights;
- exhibited courage in overcoming injustice and advancing gender equality;
- opened doors for women to opportunities that historically were closed to them; and/or
- shown dedication toward social justice and have used to advocacy and the rule of law to achieve their goals.
IANGEL bestows the Rights & Leadership Award annually at its Anniversary Gala.
Congratulations to our 2024 Amel Zenoune-Zouani Awardees!
IANGEL is excited to announce our 2024 Amel Zenoune-Zouani Rights and Leadership Awardees: Zubaida Akbar and Hafidha Chekir. We faced a tough decision from a very competitive and impressive pool of nominees, so we selected two exceptional advocates for gender justice to receive our award. Zubaida Akbar is a leading women’s rights and civil society activist from Afghanistan, tirelessly working to defend the human rights of Afghan women and girls and marginalized communities in Afghanistan. Professor Hafidha Chekir is a pioneering feminist, labor activist and human rights defender from Tunisia who has dedicated her life to upholding women’s rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, migrants’ rights, and the rights of people with disabilities. We look forward to honoring them at our upcoming Anniversary Gala, date to be announced.
“Ms. Akbar is a role model for women human rights defenders fighting against the fundamentalist oppression of women everywhere.” – Karima Bennoune, 2016 Rights and Leadership Awardee
“Hafidha Chekir continues to inspire many generations of activists and jurists around the world.” – Bochra Bel Haj Hmida, Feminist activist, lawyer, former parliamentarian from Tunisia
2023
IANGEL presented the 2023 Amel Zenoune-Zouani Rights & Leadership Award to Zala Ahmad at our 10th Anniversary Gala, “Powering Hope”.
2022
IANGEL presented the 2022 Amel Zenoune-Zouani Rights & Leadership Award to Kelsie Joseph at our 9th Anniversary Virtual Gala, “Anger to Action”.
2021
IANGEL presented the 2021 Amel Zenoune-Zouani Rights & Leadership Award to Irma Herrera and Julienne Lusenge at our 8th Anniversary Virtual Gala, “Justice Rising”.
2020
IANGEL presented the 2020 Amel Zenoune-Zouani Rights & Leadership Award to Joan Haratani for her unwavering commitment to equality and justice at our 7th Anniversary Virtual Gala, “In It To Win It“.
2019
IANGEL presented the 2019 Amel Zenoune-Zouani Rights & Leadership Award to Dr. Riffat Hassan at our 6th Anniversary Gala dinner, “The Future is Ours”, for her decades of achievement as an internationally acclaimed scholar of the Qur’an, a pioneer of feminist theology in Islam, and a fearless advocate for the equal dignity of women.
2018
The Honorable Angela Bradstreet received the Amel Zenoune-Zouani Rights & Leadership Award in 2018 during the 5th Anniversary Gala event on March 8, 2018. Hon. Angela M. Bradstreet is a judge of the San Francisco Superior Court. Judge Bradstreet was honored for her unwavering championship of the advancement of women in the legal profession, her effective leadership for gender equality, and her dedication to mentoring the next generation of leaders for equality and justice.
2017
In 2017, Kim Thuy Seelinger received IANGEL’s Rights & Leadership Award at its 4th Anniversary Gala Luncheon, which was held at the City Club of San Francisco on International Women’s Day, March 8, 2017. Professor Kim Thuy Seelinger, of Berkeley Law’s Human Rights Clinic, received the award for her outstanding contributions as an advocate for global women’s rights, and trailblazing work in holding the former dictator of Chad accountable for rape as a war crime and violation of international human rights.
2016
Karima Bennoune, who has spent her career advocating and supporting democracy, equality, and human and gender rights and is the author of Your Fatwa Does Not Apply Here: Untold Stories from the Fight Against Muslim Fundamentalism received the Rights & Leadership Award at IANGEL’s 3rd Anniversary Celebration, Acts of Courage – Seeds of Hope.
2015
Two honorees, Yoana Tchoukleva and Andrea Carlise recevied IANGEL’s Rights & Leadership Award at our 2nd Anniversary Celebration, Generations of Inspiration. They were awarded for their passionate advocacy and contribution to gender equity, human rights, and inclusion.
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