In this global political moment, challenging corporate power is pivotal to protecting our freedoms and building a world where all people and beings can thrive. While we’ll face many challenges in the months and years ahead, there will also be great opportunities to advance transformative change.
Today, we are well positioned to seize those opportunities. We’ve got a long history of success in challenging abusive corporations, which we are now pairing with the experience, creativity, and vision of our incoming Executive Director, Ari Belathar, (they/them). Ari will join us in February.
Ari’s leadership and vision stems from their experience working for justice in both Latin America and North America. They know what it looks and feels like to organize people and communities to courageously confront power and create change.
Ari brings abundant campaign experience, leadership skills, and fundraising success to support Corporate Accountability in deepening our impact—especially as we continue to put our power and resources behind Global South campaigning. They have more than 15 years of experience organizing and strategizing for social justice, leading campaigns locally, nationally, and internationally at organizations including Resource Generation and Jewish Voice for Peace.
Corporate Accountability’s board appreciates the specificity and depth of Ari’s political analysis. We were also inspired by their vision for Corporate Accountability to be a force for democracy and justice. Ari understands the power dynamics that underpin systemic racism and oppression, which informs their collaborative, compassionate approach to leadership and management.
A life-long commitment to organizing for justice
Ari got their start as a student activist in Mexico, defending their university from a privatization attempt. During the student strike, they helped establish Mexico’s first community radio station. Their work on a daily news show as the only openly queer radio host in Latin America at that time made them a target of the Mexican army. They were persecuted, imprisoned, and tortured—and eventually forced to flee Mexico as a refugee.
Since then, they have devoted their life to working toward social justice and human rights. As Ari puts it: “My leadership capabilities have been cultivated on the frontlines of movements led by people of color, Indigenous people, queer and trans folks, and other marginalized communities—engaging in meaningful methodology grounded in long-term visions and strategies rooted in justice, love, and liberation.”
They come to us from their role as executive director of the Boston Cyclists Union. There, during a time of organizational change, they ensured the Union’s financial and operational stability. One of their focuses was on developing collaborative and adaptive leadership models so that leadership was more effectively shared across the organization.
Ari also has a range of corporate campaigning experiences. They have been part of campaigns challenging Coca-Cola’s exploitation of local water resources in Mexico—abuses which exacerbated water scarcity and threatened the livelihoods of Indigenous and rural communities. They also worked on campaigns in Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico challenging the environmental and human rights abuses of Canadian mining corporations. And, they led a campaign challenging Hewlett Packard’s multifaceted role in Israel’s violent oppression of Palestinians. They also have experience organizing urgent-action human rights campaigns and mobilizing resistance to government and corporate policies responsible for widespread poverty.
Aligned leadership approach
Under Ari’s leadership, we look forward to expanding our capacity and resources so that we can make an even greater difference in the coming years. Ari has led large, diverse, and remote teams in their roles as Organizing Director at Resource Generation and National Senior Organizer at Jewish Voice for Peace. And they have robust fundraising skills, increasing donor engagement and securing groundbreaking gifts at their previous organizations.
In Ari’s words, they have “an unwavering commitment to the dignity and autonomy of all people.” This is key not only to leading a multiracial, multicultural, and global staff like ours, but also in leading the organization to strengthen our partnerships with global coalitions and movements for liberation and justice.
Corporate Accountability is meeting this political moment with all the lessons, tools, and successes of our long history of holding corporations accountable. We know Ari’s leadership will be a powerful force in expanding and shaping our impact in the years and months ahead. I look forward to what we will accomplish with Ari and in relationship with people like you: allies, members, and activists around the world who are committed to harnessing their power to build a world where all beings can thrive.
