By Charlie Le Grice
Born in Aotearoa, Charlie Le Grice is a human rights advocate of Ngāti Whātua Orakei (Maori), Cherokee, and of African American descent. She currently works at Human Rights First, and previously worked at Human Rights Watch. She is the founder of here4HER, an initiative that fosters partnerships between independent women activists and women’s rights organizations.
In March 2024, the United Nations held its 68th Commission on the Status of Women at the UN Headquarters in New York City. Held annually, the commission is the world’s largest gathering on gender equality and women’s empowerment, and provides an opportunity for women’s organizations to participate in global governance processes like drafting plans of action and updating UN declarations and treaties. Charlie reached out to the Warrior Women Project and asked if she could screen the Warrior Women film at a side-event she was organizing for Indigenous women to gather, share and learn from each other. Forty women from Indigenous nations across the world came together to watch the film, which served as a catalyst for powerful discussions on Indigenous matriarchy.