Staff

Human Rights Society Staff Team are passionate human rights activists and advocate the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Currently as an all-volunteer staff team with our interns and volunteers, we will always strive to make a difference to make this world a more better place advocating for human rights and fighting its abuses.

ALEX SUM | Founder & Executive Director
Alex began his human rights activism in 2007 after starting a social justice community group amongst friends. When the group got to the issue of human trafficking, Alex fell hard and it was love at first heard. This began his journey as an abolitionist and grassroots community builder. First, Alex began volunteering with International Justice Mission (IJM) where got him to see video footages of girls as young as 7-years old in brothels. This devastated Alex to no end and he knew he needed to do “something.” Volunteering with IJM led him to become their Seattle Benefit Chairperson for a couple of years, amongst other events. In 2009, through IJM’s encouragement, Alex co-founded Seattle Against Slavery (SAS) as a region-wide anti-trafficking coalition working with service providers, politicians, law enforcement, and other grassroots activists. After leading SAS in its infant stage, in 2011, Alex founded Human Rights Society to focus on human rights on more global perspective. With a highly collaborative approach, Alex got to build 2 programs: the internship program for college/high school students and a monthly feed the homeless program (since 2014). Alex is connected with many justice-oriented nonprofits and speaks regularly including as a guest lecturer at the University of Washington. He is on the Board of Directors with BEST (Businesses Ending Slavery & Trafficking). A Seattleite, Alex earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Washington’s (UW) Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies, loves travel, and being a dad to 5 wonderful bambinos. For more info on Alex: LinkedIn |  alex(at)humanrightssociety(dot)org
Shwe ZinSHWE ZIN | Feed the Homeless Program Director
Shwe started volunteering with us in the Feed the Homeless program since she was a freshwoman at the University of Washington (UW) so she is as versed as any volunteer we have. Her superpower is community building and is a great leader for us with her magnanimous & loving personality. At UW, she was a leader multi-cultural, multi-ethnic student groups especially with SE Asians. Shwe is from Burma (now Myanmar) and advocates hard for peace and freedom there given the military autocracy there and the continuing struggle for many ethnic minorities’ safety and human rights. She came to the U.S. as a refugee with her family (Karen people) and continues to speak boldly for justice in Burma. Currently, she is a pediatric nurse at Children’s Hospital. | info(at)humanrightssociety(dot)org

CURRENT INTERN(S)

  • TBD | DATE | COLLEGE  (LOCATION)