Human Rights Advocacy ICAAD Presents Dicta: Legal Activism Through Art and Education

July 6, 2021 – The global anti-discrimination organization ICAAD is thrilled to launch Dicta, a two-year project melding poetry, law, and art to inspire activism in pursuit of social justice.

Dicta, an interactive virtual art exhibit, is part of ICAAD’s embrace of Artivism as a means of driving social justice at local, regional, and global levels. Artivism, a marriage of artistic expression with activism, often taps into a depth of emotion deeper than words can express and connects across physical and cultural boundaries. 

“In our human rights work around the world, we have seen how art can inspire positive action,” said Jaspreet Singh, co-founder of ICAAD. “We hope that Dicta and our future Artivism projects will inspire others to join efforts to solve structural discrimination problems.”

At the heart of Dicta is public interest lawyer and poet Harbani Kaur, ICAAD’s inaugural Artist in Residence.

As a writer, designer, and advocate, Harbani has focused her law practice on civil rights, immigrant rights, and public health. Her poetry is part of “Her Name is Kaur: Sikh Women Write about Love, Courage, and Faith.”

With Dicta, Harbani creates found poetry in court decisions, illuminating the broader social justice themes from the black letter text. Over two years, Harbani will create 40 poems featuring five human rights themes: Women’s Rights, Rights of Black People, Right to Love, Immigration, and Indigenous Rights. 

“We as a people often view the law as a larger-than-us concept that we don’t understand or find accessible, yet is widely considered the equivalent of justice,” said Harbani Kaur, ICAAD’s Artist in Residence. “My intention for Dicta is to expose the gap between the law and justice.”

Beginning today, ICAAD will release new Dicta pieces each week, culminating in an immersive virtual exhibit to feature Harbani’s works, adding photos, narrative, and the history around related Supreme Court decisions, the rule of law, and the impact on human rights. 

“We believe Dicta can educate and inspire people everywhere to better understand the timeless and ceaseless struggle for human rights and the importance of finding ways to stay engaged,” said Hansdeep Singh, co-founder of ICAAD.

To view the emerging Dicta exhibit and learn more, visit Dicta Legal Poetry.

To schedule an interview or learn more, contact Hansdeep Singh at [email protected] or 917-9715713; or email ICAAD at [email protected] and visit icaad.ngo.

About ICAAD

The International Center for Advocates Against Discrimination works at the intersection of legal innovation and human-centered design to create evidence-based programs with multidisciplinary partners to combat structural discrimination. Founded in 2012, ICAAD sees law and behavioral design as crucial lenses to identifying and changing discriminatory systems. Guided by international human rights law, ICAAD approaches violations by looking at data from systems and the experiences of those who encounter them to uncover patterns of discrimination and design solutions.