The Anne Templeton Zimmerman Award

The award honors the legacy of
Anne Templeton Zimmerman,
who worked tirelessly against
slavery and other abuses.

 Download Award Information in English

 

About the Award:

This award will be given to one individual currently living in the USA who has survived a form of slavery and is now using his or her life in freedom to help others exercise the purpose of their lives. This award will honor the tremendous resilience of the human spirit and emphasize that many of the survivors of modern-day slavery go on to help others to freedom.


The Recipient will Receive:

• $10,000 for a program of training and capacity building to continue and expand his or her work.
• $10,000 to be awarded over two years, and used as he or she feels appropriate.


Award Criteria:

The Anne Templeton Zimmerman Award will be given to an individual survivor of slavery whose present life and work most clearly shows:

• Action against slavery or against some of the conditions that lead to slavery.
• Determination to seek out their own purpose in life and decide on his or her own actions.
• Ability to cope with and overcome challenges.
• Integrity between his or her beliefs, ideas, and practical activities.


The Nomination Process:

Download Nomination Form Here
• Individuals or organizations may nominate individuals.

• To make a nomination for the Anne Templeton Zimmerman Award, click here.
• Save the form in your word processing system, complete every question, save again and then attach it to an e-mail. 

• Send the e-mail to Zimmerman@freetheslaves.net.
• If you are unable to send your nomination by e-mail, you may post it to Free the Slaves, 1320 19th Street NW, Suite 600, Washington D.C. 20036, USA. Mark the envelope with the name of the award.
• We may then approach the individuals listed as references, if further information is needed, as well as the nominated individual.
• Nominations will be considered by an independent and anonymous selection committee of experts on modern slavery.  They will create a short-list of potential awardees for further information and possible visits. Free the Slaves’ Board of Directors will approve the short-list. The committee will then make final decisions about the Award.
• Although the awardee does not need to speak English, they will need to be able to speak out about their life and work. Interpreters will be available.
• Free the Slaves wants to use inspiring stories of nominees to spread the word about good work.  Note that all information provided on the nomination forms that we receive may be used by Free the Slaves to raise awareness. So if any particular details are confidential, please indicate this clearly on the nomination form.
• The awardee will be invited to travel with an adult companion of their choice to the awards, whose reasonable travel costs will also be covered.
• If you have any questions about technical aspects of submitting the nomination, please send an e-mail to freedomawards@freetheslaves.net.

• Individuals should not publicize that they have been nominated for these awards. 


 

Eligibility Requirements:

Individuals living in the USA (regardless of their permanent residency status) are eligible to be nominated. They must:

• Be at least 18 years old.
• Have been in a form of slavery within the USA for at least several months.
• Have shown consistent commitment and activity toward helping others, once living in freedom.
• Be willing for Free the Slaves to film a short documentary video, within one month of confirmation of the award.
• Be willing to attend the Freedom Awards ceremony.
• Have been spoken to and informed of nominee status.
• Have verified the accuracy of information included in this nomination form.
• Be willing to speak about their life and their present work. If selected, be willing for us to use information included in this nomination form to raise public awareness. 

 

Notes:

• An important aspect of winning a Freedom Award is the public exposure and media attention that an awardee gains, both locally and internationally.  Free the Slaves is committed to the safety and well-being of award recipients, while also aware that such attention may expose an awardee to risks. Although we will make every attempt to give support and to ensure that the awardee can talk about his or her life in the awardee’s own way and only to the extent of disclosure that the awardee decides upon, the process is still likely to be stressful.  The nominator should discuss with the nominee potential physical and psychological risks that may be expected as a result of acceptance of the award, and will be asked to detail these risks on the nomination form. The nominator should also discuss with the awardee in some depth the potential challenges and difficulties of coping with media attention.

• Organizations and individuals may make nominations for as many of the Freedom Awards as they wish, but organizations will only be eligible to receive one award. If an individual working with an organization wins the Frederick Douglass Award, the William Wilberforce Award, or the Anne Templeton Zimmerman Award, then the organization will not be eligible to win the Harriet Tubman Award.

• Free the Slaves will announce a deadline for nominations when the awards program is fully funded. If the 2011 Freedom Awards program is not fully funded, specific awards may be modified, and 2011 nominations will remain valid for awards in future years.