The Third Sector's trouble with the truth

A vile tweet by a so-called "human rights" lawyer reveals much about the industry she works in

Elahé Sharifpour-Hicks, a so-called “human rights” lawyer once employed by Human Rights Watch, was responsible for one of the vilest tweets I’ve ever seen on Twitter (click here if you want to read it and the responses). HRW an organisation widely criticised by those concerned with human rights issues for its blatant ideological and geopolitical biases. The vileness of the tweet lies in its flagrant dishonesty, with the intent of doing maximum harm to a cause.

Sharifpour-Hicks has attempted to link the Iranian uprising to both Israel and the MEK (also known as PMOI or MKO). In doing so, without providing any evidence whatsoever to back up her claims, she supplied the Islamic Regime and its media outlets with propaganda it can use to attack protesters and the entire opposition movement. It should be evident to everyone, as mentioned on this blog before, that the MEK is entirely unconnected to the Iranian uprising as it is a despised organisation without any support in Iran.

Her conduct is an indictment of her former employers, who have remained true to form where Iran is concerned. And it is above all else an indictment on the “Third Sector” (call it charities, nonprofits or NGOs) and so-called “human rights” lawyers linked to them as to precisely the kind of people who are attracted to this industry. These people are dishonest, narcissistic and prepared to say anything to advance an agenda without regard for endangering people.

There are many such groups operating in the United States today with the 501 (c) (3) status they do not warrant. One of the most notorious (and richest) of these is the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), which profits from the industrial scale defamation of conservatives by placing them in “hate group” categories. The dubious nature of this “work” and the assets the SPLC has amassed attracted considerable scrutiny, and in 2018 Maajid Nawaz scored a victory against them over their smear campaign.

In 2019, the SPLC’s founder Morris Dees fell from grace because of his personal conduct and shoddy workplace culture, both of which had long been open secrets in Alabama. Critics of the SPLC feel vindicated, having long suspected or known that the SPLC was a corrupt and abusive organisation whose entire business model was to profit from defamation. Moreover, Dees is the archetype of the “progressive” lawyer being a shameless self-promoter.

Two other notorious 501 (c) (3) groups are the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), a Muslim Brotherhood front group and the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), the main lobby group of the Iranian regime. Like the SPLC, both CAIR and NIAC make a mockery of their status as they function as political lobbies and extremist front groups.

Oxfam is another charity to have been hit by scandal, which has brought Britain’s massive Third Sector under scrutiny. This is a country where the National Health Service (NHS) is irrationally accorded the status of a civic religion along with the cult of “Diversity”. It is therefore not surprising that a charity industry has blossomed that many Brits now consider to be bloated and even corrupt, doing little to benefit the people it claims to help, and providing comfortable jobs for people who really don’t do anything useful for society. As in the United States, many British charities serve as fronts for dubious political agendas and as cover for extremist ideologies.

The sinister actions of Elahé Sharifpour-Hicks are a logical product of this industry, which has largely evaded the media scrutiny it genuinely warrants.

(As an update, Julian Burnside has confirmed the type with this especially vile tweet)