Ann Fagan Ginger Celebrated by Bay Area WILPF Branches
Published on November, 55 2019
In October, longtime WILPF member Ann Fagan Ginger (front row, third from right) was honored by Bay Area branches for her human rights advocacy. Photo by E Williger.
By Barbara Blong
San Francisco Branch
Neither power outages nor fires dimmed the respect and admiration that brought folks out on October 27, 2019, when WILPF East Bay and San Francisco held a reception honoring long-term WILPF member Ann Fagan Ginger, a renowned lawyer, educator, and international human rights and treaty advocate. This event was the Bay Area’s October 2019 Solidarity Action on International Treaties.
Ann, Executive Director Emerita of Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute (MCLI), a sentinel for human rights in Berkeley, California, has successfully argued a civil liberties case in the US Supreme Court. She has provided expert testimony for several UN Human Rights Committees, taught courses on peace law and human rights at a number of law schools, and is now in the final editing of her 23rd book: Our 100 Human Rights.
When Ann spoke at our afternoon program, she pointed out that few of us are aware of all of our human rights, particularly those found in international treaties. Our 100 Human Rights makes UN treaties accessible and describes each of the rights in these documents: US Constitution Amendments, statutes passed by Congress, court opinions, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the UN Charter.
Walter Riley, MCLI Board President, spoke of Ann’s continued work for peace and justice law through MCLI's involvement in local issues of housing, homelessness, and sex workers.
Judith Mirkinson, president of the San Francisco Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild (NLG) and a WILPF member, acknowledged the relationship of international human rights and international law as the foundation of Ann's work and said that women attorneys today stand on Ann’s shoulders.
Past MCLI Board President Steven Bingham spoke of Ann’s concept of using international law in American courts, of her remarkable tenacity and follow through, as well as her books of history. He claimed: “Ann is a jewel in our midst!”
Many more people spoke and everyone at the October 27th celebration agreed wholeheartedly with Steven. Now we are happy to share our treasure Ann Fagan Ginger with all of you!
