On May 18, HIRC’s Director & Founder Deborah Anker received the Federal Bar Association’s NGO Lawyer of the Year Joint Award. She was honored alongside Karen Musalo, Director of the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies at Hastings College of the Law.
Professor Anker has received numerous awards, including the Founder’s Award from the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) in 1994, which was also awarded to HIRC at GBLS Co-Managing Director Nancy Kelly, and AILA’s Arthur C. Helton Memorial Human Rights Award in 2015. She was designated a Woman of Justice by the Massachusetts Bar Association in 2009, and in 2011, she was elected as a Fellow to the American Bar Foundation.
Words of appreciation from Professor Anker’s colleagues:
“Debbie is an inspiration to all. As one of her colleagues, I continue to marvel every day at her creativity, brilliance, and tireless commitment.”
Daniel Nagin, Harvard Law School
“Groundbreaking work seems to be in Debbie’s DNA. Her innovative thinking influences her students in quiet but deep ways.”
Nikki Flores, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
“Debbie helped me find my passion in law school. I admire her enormously, not just because of the incredible impact she had on the field of asylum law, but because of the values she instilled in countless students over the years. She taught us how to be zealous, resilient advocates for our clients and how to push the boundaries of the law.”
Fatma Marouf, Texas A&M University School of Law
“Deb remains relentless in her advocacy on behalf of women and all asylum seekers, and moving the law forward through her scholarship, her teaching, and her representation of individual clients, never forgetting that each ease involves a real person’s life.”
Nancy Kelly & John Willshire Carrera, HIRC and Greater Boston Legal Services
On behalf of the entire HIRC staff, we would like to extend our congratulations to Professor Anker. We are so grateful for your hard work, dedication, and leadership.