
Maya Berry
Executive Director, Arab American Institute
2021, 2024, 2025
Maya Berry is Executive Director of the Arab American Institute (AAI), a non-profit, nonpartisan, national civil rights advocacy organization founded to nurture and encourage direct participation in our political and civic life to mobilize a strong, educated, and empowered Arab American community. She previously worked at AAI, establishing its first government relations department, which she led for five years before becoming Legislative Director for House Minority Whip David Bonior, where she managed the Congressman’s legislative strategy and developed policies on international relations, human rights, immigration, civil rights and liberties, and trade. With a deep knowledge of public policy making, she helped expand AAI’s work on combatting hate crime, protecting the rights of securitized communities, strengthening our democracy, and advocating for data equity, including the creation of a new Middle East and North Africa (MENA) category. Berry serves as the Co-Chair of the Hate Crime Task Force at the Leadership Conference for Civil and Human Rights and on the board of Public Citizen.

The catalytic power of this Summit in bringing together those who are devoting their lives to pushing back and working to confront, understand and work towards solutions around hate in our society is a noble and difficult task. The Summit not only energized those who attended but led to connecting the dots in a global network of those doing this work. The stories of the victims of hate were painful to witness but their courage in coming forward was inspirational. Those who attended left energized with the hope that by working together solutions can be forged.
