Human rights

Two award winners have stood up for others under the most trying circumstances.

Americans frustrated and despairing about the sclerotic conditions of the body politic and the “tribal” nature of our hyper-ideological beliefs and assumptions are likely to find strength and renewed hope at the Rothko Chapel on Sunday.

Recipients of the Rothko’s Oscar Romero Human Rights Award are two people who have persisted and prevailed under the most trying circumstances. They have made a difference. They can be an inspiration to all of us, no matter the depth of our frustration.

Pierre Clarer Mbonimpa from Burundi, East Africa, is executive director of the Association for the Protection of Prisoners and Human Rights. The organization documents and reports on human rights violations, with an emphasis on those committed against incarcerated people in Burundi.

Mbonimpa, who has been imprisoned himself, arrives in Houston not long after recovering from an assassination attempt that was very nearly successful. Apparently, a government official didn’t appreciate his dogged efforts to call attention to sexual violence, torture and other government abuses against incarcerated people.

Kathryn Griffin Grinan, a Houston-based recovery coach and peer-to-peer counselor, hasn’t had to survive an assassination attempt, but she confronts every day the death of hope. She administers a highly successful re-entry program inside the Harris County Jail that helps rehabilitate victims of human trafficking and prostitution. She also helps incarcerated women stay in touch with their children during their time behind bars.

Mbonimpa sought to make a difference in a country beset by rampant insecurity, violence and political upheaval, a country where the government no longer protects basic civil and political rights. Burundi today is distressingly similar to El Salvador, circa 1980, when Archbishop Romero, a champion of the oppressed, was assassinated while saying Mass.

Here in Houston, Grinan hasn’t faced death threats, but she would be the first to tell you that her life was spiraling downward toward early death not that long ago. In November 2003, she was at a crossroads: Either go to prison for a long time or change her destructive habits and become a productive citizen. Since choosing the latter, she’s devoted her life to rescuing women in similar circumstances. Her re-entry program — “Been There, Done That” — not only is aptly named but life-changing for dozens of women every year.

Both Grinan and Mbonimpa refused to surrender to despair and hopelessness. They stood up. They spoke out. They got involved.

Their lives are a reminder that we can do likewise.