Press Releases

Ford Foundation Names Renowned Civil Rights Attorney Maya Harris to Lead Peace and Social Justice Program

NEW YORK, 17 June 2008—The Ford Foundation announced today that Maya Harris will become vice president for the foundation’s Peace and Social Justice program, which addresses human rights, democratic participation and good governance issues around the world.

Ms. Harris is currently executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California—the largest ACLU affiliate in the country—where she has distinguished herself in court victories protecting voting rights and civil rights, and where she has led ambitious public engagement campaigns.

"Maya’s extraordinary dedication to human rights, equal opportunity, and the rule of law make her an outstanding leader for our work on peace and social justice," said Luis Ubiñas, president of the Ford Foundation. "We are fortunate to have someone with Maya’s talent, record of accomplishment and vision, join the foundation during what is a critical time for human rights around the world."

Harris succeeds Mary E. McClymont, who served the Ford Foundation with distinction for 14 years over two separate periods.

"It is an honor to be joining the Ford Foundation at this critical time in our nation’s history," said Ms. Harris. "The foundation has long been at the forefront of social change and has pursued with vigor and integrity issues of equality, opportunity and freedom. I am deeply committed to building on this impressive record and working with staff and grantees around the world to support the mission and values of the foundation."

During five years with the ACLU, Ms. Harris directed campaigns to eliminate racial biases in the criminal justice system and in California’s public schools. She also led the organization’s policy work in areas of racial justice, police practices and the death penalty.

A respected litigator, in 2006 Ms. Harris served as lead counsel for the ACLU in League of Women Voters v. McPherson, a successful lawsuit restoring the voting rights of over 100,000 Californians who were wrongfully disenfranchised.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Harris served as dean of the Lincoln Law School of San Jose. Appointed to the position at age 29, she was one of the youngest attorneys ever to hold the post of dean at a law school.

Ms. Harris clerked in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. She is also a contributing author of the best-selling "Covenant with Black America," a recent collection of essays by prominent African-Americans.

Support for civil rights, democratic values and human rights has long been at the core of the Ford Foundation mission. The foundation supported the U.S civil rights movement in its early years, funded the beginnings of the human rights movement, and has supported democratic participation, good governance, and strong, independent civil society organizations around the world. Last year the Peace and Social Justice program provided more than $220 million to courageous grantees working on these important issues.

---

The Ford Foundation is an independent, nonprofit grant-making organization. For more than half a century it has been a resource for innovative people and institutions worldwide, guided by its goals of strengthening democratic values, reducing poverty and injustice, promoting international cooperation and advancing human achievement. With headquarters in New York, the foundation has offices in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America, and Russia.