Ken Roth '77 — Former Executive Director, Human Rights Watch — in Conversation

An intimate book talk with the brown alumnus who shaped a generation of human rights work

For nearly three decades, Brown alumnus Ken Roth '77 led Human Rights Watch through investigations in over 100 countries — confronting the global erosion of democratic norms and the rise of authoritarianism worldwide. Join the Brown Club of NY for an intimate evening with Ken on his new memoir Righting Wrongs, in conversation with moderator Rick Grove, followed by a book signing.

Bring your copy of Righting Wrongs for Ken to sign! Please pre-order and bring your book with you.
You could order from bookshop.org (which supports independent bookstores).

Few people have spent more time inside the world's most consequential human rights fights than Ken Roth. Across the global erosion of democratic norms and the rise of authoritarianism worldwide, Ken and Human Rights Watch were on the front lines. Over nearly thirty years as Executive Director, he grew HRW from a small advocacy group into one of the most influential human rights institutions in the world — and learned, often the hard way, what actually changes the behavior of abusive governments.

Kenneth Roth '77
A proud graduate of Brown University, Class of 1977, and Yale Law School, Kenneth Roth served as Executive Director of Human Rights Watch from 1993 to 2022 — nearly three decades leading investigations in more than 100 countries. He is now the Charles and Marie Robertson Visiting Professor at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. Earlier in his career, Ken served as a federal prosecutor in the Southern District of New York and for the Iran-Contra investigation. Brown University recognized his contributions with an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters in 2011, when he delivered the Baccalaureate address. He is the author of Righting Wrongs: Three Decades on the Front Lines Battling Abusive Governments (Knopf, 2025).

Rick Grove (Moderator)
Rick Grove is CEO of Rutter Associates and a former CEO of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA). A graduate of Princeton University (AB, summa cum laude, School of Public and International Affairs) and Harvard Law School (JD, magna cum laude), he is a longtime member of the IISS in London and the Atlantic Council in Washington, where he convenes briefings on geopolitical and security issues. He has moderated conversations with the Syrian Ambassador to the UN and other distinguished figures in international affairs.

Questions? Email: yingrou_zhu@alumni.brown.edu

Bring your copy of Righting Wrongs for Ken to sign! Please pre-order and bring your book with you.
You could order from bookshop.org (which supports independent bookstores).