The survivor of a post-9/11 hate crime will be the keynote speaker at an Amnesty International state-wide conference, hosted by the Texas A&M chapter.
Rais Bhuiyan, who was shot in the face while working in a convenience store, causing him to lose an eye, will speak at the end of Saturday’s event. Bhuiyan will also be signing the book based on his experience, called “The True American: Murder and Mercy in Texas.”
The other speaker events will consist of prominent individuals covering specific human rights issues such as limited access to health care for women, LGBTQ rights and stereotypes and police brutality in America. Kiyadh Burt, a graduate student at Texas A&M pursuing a doctorate in public policy, will be moderating the panel “Deadly Force: Police Brutality & Accountability.”
“What I would like the panelists to discuss is if police brutality is a real thing to everyone,” said Burt.  “What does it look like to different demographics in the country?”
The members of the discussion will include Thomas Curry, known for his knowledge of philosophy and race, Pat Goldsmith, known for his knowledge of Hispanic race relations and immigration and Joe Feagin, known for his work with race relations and hip-hop philosophy. Burt will present questions pertaining to race and police brutality for the panelists and the audience to discuss.
The conference is centered around actively advocating and gaining rights for women, minorities, and other oppressed individuals and aims to motivate both members and non-members to take action. The conference will consist of classes specifically tailored to instructing attendees how to lobby, organize a protest and actively participate in issues they care about
“I know it sounds cliché, but I want people who come to know they’re not alone,” said Omar Azam, political science senior and vice president of TAMU Amnesty. “I want them to come and network with us. I want them to learn how to be an activist and learn what skills will move their chapter forward.”
The Texas Amnesty International Conference will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Saturday in the Memorial Student Center. Registration for attendance ended Friday.