A Summer Internship with Amnesty International

Courtesy of Amnesty International

Courtesy of Amnesty International

By Alexandra LeClaire, Contributing Writer

This summer I was the office administration intern at Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) in Washington, D.C.  Amnesty International is one of the world’s largest and most well-known human rights organizations.  Founded in 1961, Amnesty International’s scope has grown from working to free prisoners of conscience to fighting for human rights for all.  AIUSA achieves its goals through publishing unbiased reports on human rights abuses, which raises awareness of these issues and by mobilizing its nearly 350,000 members to sign petitions, make phone calls and participate in demonstrations.  AIUSA is currently running campaigns to abolish the death penalty, end torture, fight for individuals at risk and secure reproductive and sexual rights for all.

In my role as office administration intern, I made sure the office was running smoothly on a daily basis.  I acted as a receptionist, managed the mailroom, was the IT liaison, and assisted my supervisor on larger projects.  One of my largest projects this summer was helping organize the all-staff retreat.  I worked on securing transportation for some of the staff to travel to Virginia and helped organize different activities at the retreat.  Another large project I worked on was organizing a luncheon for the AIUSA director when he visited to meet interns at the DC office.

After college, I hope to work for a human rights non-profit, so my internship this summer helped me envision what that type of work could possibly entail.  I was able to network with many AIUSA staffers and discuss the best ways to obtain employment with an NGO after graduation.  I also was able to participate in different workshops relevant to non-profit management and organization. For example, the workshops on organizing for campaigns and on strategic social media use were particularly informative and useful. I enjoyed my internship with AIUSA, and would encourage Gettysburg students to consider non-profit internships.

Author: Web Editor

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