Zuleika Rivera
Zuleika is the Senior LGBTI Program Officer and works with human rights defenders in Latin America to support and strengthen their advocacy capacity at the domestic and international levels.
Before joining Race & Equality, Zuleika completed the J.D. Distinguished Fellowship of American University Washington College of Law at Lesbianas Independientes Feministas Socialistas (LIFS), an Lesbian, trans, and bisexual (LTB) organization in Lima, Peru where she served as a member of its legal team and conducted workshops on LTB rights for Peruvian civil society. Additionally, she was a research assistant at the Academy on Human Rights and International Law and the Anti-Torture Initiative. Zuleika was an intern at the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL) and the Study for the Defense of Women’s Rights (DEMUS), among other NGOs.
Zuleika received her law degree from American University Washington College of Law, where she focused on human rights and gender. She also holds an M.A. in International Relations from the School of International Service of American University and a B.A. in Political Science and Public Affairs from Syracuse University. She is admitted to practice law in the District of Colombia.
rivera@raceandequality.org
Carmen Herrera
In her role, Carmen consults for Race and Equality’s Legal Program, seeking to strengthen the organization’s legal actions in favor of both individuals and collective groups.
Carmen is a trained attorney with a master’s in political sociology. In her previous role, she contributed to documentation and litigation strategies at the Mexican national system, as well as developing advocacy strategies towards the Inter-American Human Rights Protection System. Her work focused on populations facing structural violence and discrimination, collaborating with organizations supporting these groups. She has also carried investigative and training processes in relation to these topics.
She has been part of a number of human rights organizations in Mexico, including the Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez Human Rights Center (Centro de Derechos Humanos Miguel Agustín Pro Juárez) & Attorneys for Justice and Human Rights (Abogadas y Abogados para la Justicia y los Derechos Humanos), where she worked in the regional project “Discrimination by ethnicity and gender in the Americas: The case of Indigenous Women.” She has also been leading judicial inspector at the Supreme Court in Mexico City and directed the Justice and International Law Regional Office for Central America and Central Mexico. She has worked alongside the Inter-American Institute for Human Rights in training lawyers in Latin America to incorporate gender and race/ethnicity approaches to their legal advocacy for cases of violence and discrimination against women and discrimination against Afrodescendants, respectively.
herrera@raceandequality.org
Elvia Duque
Elvia works on advocacy projects within the sphere of the Organization of American States, principally in favor of the ratification of the Inter-American Convention Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, and Related Forms of Intolerance.
Previously, Elvia worked for many years as the International Affairs Director at the organization Afroamérica XXI. In this role, she advocated for the Afro-Latino population and was the coordinator of many international projects for Afro-Latinos. Also, along with the organization Global Rights – Partners for Justice, she was one of the Afro-Latino leaders who helped to advocate for the creation of the Rapporteurship on the Rights of Persons of African Descent and against Racial Discrimination at the OAS. As a member of various Afro-Latino organizations, she has published numerous training materials and is the author of the book entitled Aportes del pueblo afrodescendiente. La historia oculta de América Latina. Elvia Duque studied Law at the Universidad Santiago de Cali and was born in Cali, Colombia.
duque@raceandequality.org
Christina M. Fetterhoff
Christina oversees the implementation of Race and Equality’s programs, and designs strategies to advance organizational goals in collaboration with civil society partners.
Before joining Race and Equality, Christina was a Fellow at Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights. Her interest in social justice issues in Latin America has led her to study transitional justice in Argentina, intern with an indigenous rights organization in Ecuador, and eventually become a Peace Corps Volunteer in Paraguay. While there, Christina worked with community leaders to expand local government services, especially for women and children.
Christina is also a Professorial Lecturer in Law at the George Washington University Law School. She received her J.D. from American University Washington College of Law, where she specialized in international human rights law and gender issues, and also holds an M.A. in Latin American Studies from Georgetown University and a B.A. in Political Science from Bryn Mawr College. She is admitted to practice law in the state of New York.
fetterhoff@raceandequality.org
Carlos Quesada
Until October 2014, Carlos served as Global Rights’ Director of the Ethnic and Racial Equality Program/Advisor on the Rights of LGBTI People. He is trained as a journalist and a lawyer. Carlos is working to combat racial and ethnic discrimination and discrimination based on different sexual orientations and gender identities in the Americas and in some countries in Africa. He has 30 years of experience working with the Organization of American States and its different bodies, including the Inter-American Human Rights Protection System, Summit of the Americas Process, General Assembly, and Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs. He conducts trainings, offers technical assistance, and monitors the UN system.
Carlos worked for the Commission for the Defense of Human Rights in Central America (CODEHUCA) as an Advocacy Director and he was the Latin America Program Officer for Penal Reform International.
He holds a B.A. in Mass Media and a Law Degree (J.D.) from the Universidad de Costa Rica. He also obtained an M.A. in Human Rights from the United Nations University for Peace.
quesada@raceandequality.org
