Bio
I’m an attorney and fiction author. Having worked in human rights in South Africa, Europe, Brazil, and the U.S., I’ve learned how difficult the field can be. You could say that a turning point happened when I suffered from severe stress while working with asylum seekers in Cape Town. Frustrated with a system that required providing legal services to as many as fifteen deserving clients in a morning, I realized that my ideals were not turning out to be good for my well-being.
My friends and colleagues came to the rescue. With their help, I was able to parlay my personal setbacks into an empowerment project that is now considered a model for non-profits working with marginalized refugee communities.
Now I work at the U.S. Human Rights Fund in New York. My free time is divided between Brooklyn and the small farm where I grew up in New Jersey.
But I continue to believe that human rights are important. I hope that this blog will make a small contribution to understanding the role of human rights in our lives.
Boring Legal Disclaimer:
Fictionthatmatters.org is a personal website. Although Deji Olukotun works for the U.S. Human Rights Fund, this website is not endorsed by the Fund. Featured articles do not indicate a preference for certain organizations, nor do they suggest that an express or implied relationship with the U.S. Human Rights Fund will arise in the future. In other words, Deji reviews things on the site because he feels like it. Feel free to contact him with any questions regarding this policy.
