Melissa Graham

Freedom House is an independent watchdog organization committed to expand freedom around the world. Freedom House speaks out against the main threats to democracy and empowers citizens to exercise their fundamental rights. Freedom House supports non-violent civic initiatives in societies where freedom is denied or under threat and promotesthe right of all people to be free.Its founders were a diverse group of Americans: journalists, business and labor leaders, academics, and former government officials. Among its early leaders was Wendell Willkie, the Republican presidential nominee in 1940. Eleanor Roosevelt was also a supporter and served, along with Willkie, as the organization’s first co-chair.Having been created in response to the threat of Nazism, Freedom House took up the struggle against Communism in twentieth century after the end of World War II. Since its founding, Freedom House has helped shape the debate on the most pressing issues of its time. Throughout its history, Freedom House has included among its leadership prominent civil rights leaders; notably Roy Wilkins, the director of the NAACP and Bayard Rustin, a leading adviser to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.Freedom House acts as a catalyst for freedom through a combination of analysis, advocacy, and action. Their research and analysis frames the policy debate in the United States and abroad on the progress and decline of freedom.Freedom House was established in 1941 in New York City.