Every year the U.S. Department of State International Women of Courage (IWOC) Award recognizes women from across the globe who have demonstrated exceptional courage while advocating for everything from world peace to human rights. They bring great empowerment to women and girls, but often with personal risks and sacrifices. While the names of the awardees are kept confidential until just before the awards ceremony in Washington, DC with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Dr. Jill Biden, the Council and its International Visitor Programs will host three of the IWOC Awardees the week of March 11-15 in DFW.
Join us to be a part of a powerful and uplifting conversation about the strength and resilience of these women sharing their stories and what it means to be a woman of courage.
About the speakers:
Meaza Mohammed is a veteran Ethiopian journalist and is the founder of Roha TV, an independent YouTube-based news and information channel. Mohammed has been a strong voice advocating for investigation of and accountability for human rights violations during the conflict, also producing a documentary about the topic. Her activism has not been without risk, having been arrested on many occasions. Despite this, she remains committed to advocating for victims of gender-based violence and the crimes committed against them.
Yuliia “Taira” Paievska provided medical treatment to Ukraine’s Revolution of Dignity protestors in 2013, and also as head of Taira’s Angels, a volunteer unit of paramedics from 2014-2018. She is best known for secretly filming and smuggling out videos documenting war crimes committed by Russia’s forces in Mariupol. Despite her non-combatant status, she was most recently detained in March as she attempted to evacuate women and children from Mariupol. While imprisoned for three months, Paievska lived in a cell with 22 other women and endured torture and beatings. In spite of it all, she refuses to be silenced and continues to advocate for Ukrainian democracy and independence.
Bianka Zalewska is a Polish humanitarian and journalist who has been documenting Russian aggression in Ukraine since 2014. She hosts one of the most watched morning shows in Poland. She has survived and persevered through life-threatening injuries when her press car came under fire from Russian forces in 2014, and is a visible advocate for Ukrainian refugees, remaining unintimidated by Russian misinformation and ever-present threats.
About the moderator:
Christopher Walsh is Director, Freedom and Democracy at the George W. Bush Institute. In this role, Walsh manages communications, evaluation, and public policy research projects that advance freedom and democracy in the world. He also develops and implements efforts to make the Bush Institute a welcoming place for today’s generation of dissidents and democracy advocates, overseeing visits for training, inspiration, and insight. Prior to joining the Bush Institute Walsh worked with the International Republican Institute in Washington, DC As IRI’s program officer for Central and Eastern Europe, he coordinated political party building and civic advocacy programs in the Balkans and Turkey. A native of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Walsh is a graduate of American University with a B.A. in International Studies.
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