The Salem Award for Human Rights and Social Justice is given each year to keep alive the lessons of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 and to recognize individuals whose commitment to social justice and human rights has alleviated discrimination and promoted tolerance.
Eric Reeves, 2007 Recipient
Genocide: Sudan and Darfur
Eric Reeves
The Salem Award for Human Rights and Social Justice is our attempt today to acknowledge what happened in 1692 and in a small way to atone for the mistakes of the past. For 16 years the Salem Award has been given to present-day champions of human rights and social justice who will not be silenced by fear.
The Salem Award is an important part of our region’s contemporary history and an essential statement that Salem honors the lessons of its past.
The Salem Award for Human Rights and Social Justice has been given each year since the Salem Witch Trials Memorial was installed in Salem in 1992.
The Salem Award Foundation was organized to recall the lessons of the Salem Witch Trials through the Salem Award for Human Rights and Social Justice and to support the public monument, The Salem Witch Trial Memorial.
By studying the Salem Witch Trials, we learn that order was restored to the Salem community by the protests of a few good citizens who spoke bravely and acted courageously against to the prevailing chaos. In Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, several individuals risked their lives to speak against the oppression of the trials and to call for order and forgiveness. Today, we continue to depend on those few individuals who will not be silenced by fear and social disorder.
In recognizing and honoring present day champions of human rights and social justice, The Salem Award for Human Rights and Social Justice publicly acknowledges the powerful significance and practical consequence of their work and join them in fostering tolerance, compassion and reconciliation within the community.