'If human rights are considered the most essential quality of human existence then this book
represents a lifetime devoted to the fight for those rights' Ai WeiweiIn three decades under
the leadership of Kenneth Roth Human Rights Watch conducted investigations in 100 countries to
uncover abuses - and pressured offending governments to stop them. Roth has grappled with the
worst of humanity taken on the most ruthless oppressors of our time and persuaded leaders
from around the globe to stand up to their repressive counterparts. The son of a Jew who fled
Nazi Germany just before the war began Roth grew up knowing full well how inhumane governments
could be. He has traveled the world to meet cruelty and injustice on its home turf: he arrived
in Rwanda shortly after the genocide scrutinized the impact of Saddam's invasion of Kuwait
investigated and condemned Israel's mistreatment of Palestinians. He directed efforts to
curtail the Chinese government's persecution of Uyghur Muslims to bring Myanmar's officials to
justice after the ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims to halt Russian war crimes in Ukraine
even to rein in the U.S. government. Roth's many innovations and strategies included the
deployment of a concept as old as mankind - the powerful tool of 'shaming' - and here he
illustrates its surprising effectiveness against evildoers. This is a story of wins losses
and ongoing battles in the ceaseless fight for a more decent world.
