Jessica Stern

Jessica Stern is the Director of Programs at the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. As the first researcher on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) human rights at Human Rights Watch, she conducted fact-finding investigations and advocacy around sexual orientation and gender identity in countries including Iran, Kyrgyzstan, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States. As a Ralph Bunche Fellow at Amnesty International, she spearheaded anti-racism initiatives and documented police brutality. She was a founding collective member and director of Bluestockings, then New York’s only women’s bookstore. She is a member of the board of directors of Queers for Economic Justice and an advisor to the New York Women’s Foundation. She is frequently quoted in the Mail & Guardian, Al Jazeera, the Associated Press, ColorLines, Reuters, Agence France Presse, Deutsche Welle, Voice of America, The Guardian and The BBC.