Dissident Project

Dissident Project We are a speakers bureau connecting immigrants who have fled tyrannical regimes with Americans through speeches, TV, and online media.

April 2016: Ekpar Asat returned home from a U.S. State Department leadership program. The CCP welcomed him back with han...
04/09/2026

April 2016: Ekpar Asat returned home from a U.S. State Department leadership program. The CCP welcomed him back with handcuffs. 🇨🇳

Ten years later, he’s still serving a 15-year sentence for “inciting ethnic hatred.” ⛓️

His real crime? Being Uighur.

The arbitrary detention of an entire ethnic group isn’t just a human rights violation — it’s a systematic effort to subjugate a people whose only offense is existing outside the CCP’s ideological mold.

Asat’s sister calls her family “model citizens.” The state calls them criminals.

This is what authoritarian conformity looks like in practice.

Our dissidents know this story all too well.

💻 Click the link in our bio to learn more and bring one to your campus.

China just sentenced one of its most prominent human rights lawyers to five years in prison — for doing his job.Xie Yang...
04/08/2026

China just sentenced one of its most prominent human rights lawyers to five years in prison — for doing his job.

Xie Yang defended activists and victims of state abuse. The CCP's response? A secret trial, years of harassment, and allegations of torture. Human Rights Watch calls the prosecution politically motivated. No honest observer would disagree.

This is what capitulation to authoritarianism looks like in slow motion: first silence the lawyers, then the activists, then anyone who dares to dissent. There's no neutral ground when a regime systematically dismantles the rule of law.

Dissidents have been telling us this for years. It's time we listen.

Click the link in our bio to hear their stories — and bring one to your campus.

New team member alert‼️We’re excited to welcome Alexander Norton III, our new Program Manager for the Dissident Project!...
04/07/2026

New team member alert‼️

We’re excited to welcome Alexander Norton III, our new Program Manager for the Dissident Project! 🎉

Born in Japan and raised in Las Vegas, Alexander’s background gives him a unique window into how people across the world experience freedom — and the challenges they face when it’s threatened. 🌏

From growing up in a military family to now working in New York City, he brings a highly experienced, mission‑driven perspective to our work.

Alexander leads Dissident Project events across the country, connecting students with speakers who’ve lived under authoritarian regimes.

Before joining Young Voices, he worked at National Review Institute and Leadership Institute, gaining invaluable experience in civic education and mission‑driven nonprofit work. 🏛️

Alexander is committed to elevating the stories of those who’ve lived under authoritarian regimes, saying, “I believe these firsthand accounts are essential to helping the next generation understand what’s at stake.” 🇺🇸

New team member alert‼️We’re thrilled to welcome Hannah Harden, our new Social Media Manager for the Dissident Project! ...
04/07/2026

New team member alert‼️

We’re thrilled to welcome Hannah Harden, our new Social Media Manager for the Dissident Project! 🎉

Adopted from China during the one‑child policy era, Hannah’s lived experience directly reflects the real and lasting impact authoritarian regimes have on individual lives. 🇨🇳

From growing up in Florida to now working in Washington, D.C., she brings a global perspective to our mission. 🌎

Hannah leads the social media strategy for the Dissident Project, helping to amplify the firsthand stories of those who’ve lived under authoritarian regimes and ensure their warnings reach the next generation. 📲

She studied Strategic Communication at Liberty University with a focus on social media management, journalism, and Chinese language. 🎓

Hannah is dedicated to elevating voices that defend freedom, saying, “I’m passionate about using communication to champion ideas that matter — especially those rooted in personal responsibility, freedom, and the American spirit.” 🇺🇸

💻 Click the link in our bio to learn more about Hannah.

From escaping oppression to speaking with students in the chapter at , ’s journey captures the true meaning of American...
04/06/2026

From escaping oppression to speaking with students in the chapter at , ’s journey captures the true meaning of American freedom. 🇺🇸

With America 250 on the horizon, her voice reminds us why patriotism endures — especially for those who fought hardest to reach it.

💻 Learn more about Grace and our Dissident speakers through the link in our bio.

Tyranny doesn’t begin with violence — it begins when free people stop resisting. ⚠️Frederick Douglass reminds us that th...
03/31/2026

Tyranny doesn’t begin with violence — it begins when free people stop resisting. ⚠️

Frederick Douglass reminds us that the strength of tyrants depends on the silence of those they oppress. 🤐

Authoritarianism isn’t a distant threat.

It grows when:
🔺we get comfortable
🔺when we tune out
🔺when we assume our freedoms will defend themselves.

The real question is this: will we stay alert enough to stop it?

At the Dissident Project, our speakers know this truth firsthand. They’ve lived under authoritarian regimes — and they’re bringing those lessons to classrooms across America.📚🇺🇸

Click the link in our bio to bring a dissident speaker to your school.

Help the next generation understand what’s at stake.

03/10/2026

answered questions from students in the chapter at — sharing her insight as a dissident from North Korea. 🇰🇵

💻 Click the link in our bio to learn more about our speakers.

03/09/2026

Grace Jo answered questions from students at the YAF chapter at Liberty University — sharing her insight as a dissident from North Korea. 🇰🇵

💻 Click the link in our bio to learn more about our speakers.

03/09/2026

shared with at how her mother fell in love with America and why freedom is never something to take for granted. 🇺🇸

💻 Click the link in our bio to learn more about our speakers.

03/05/2026

Last month 30 to 40 thousand Iranians were massacred over a single weekend❗

Dissident Project speaker Shay Khatiri went on Fox News and laid out the Islamic Republic’s human rights record firsthand as an Iranian dissident. 🎙️

Shay stated: “Iran is a country that oppresses every individual and every group.”

💬 Comment “Shay” and we’ll send you a link to his full interview.

North Korean defector and Dissident Project speaker Grace Jo brought her story to the YAF chapter at last Friday. 🇰🇵She...
03/02/2026

North Korean defector and Dissident Project speaker Grace Jo brought her story to the YAF chapter at last Friday. 🇰🇵

She shared her firsthand experience growing up under the North Korean regime — fleeing starvation, surviving imprisonment and forced repatriation by China, and losing her father and brothers to the regime’s brutality.

Her campus event gave students direct insight into life inside North Korea, the devastating human cost of tyranny, and why the fight for freedom is never guaranteed. 🇺🇸

Click the link in our bio to learn more about our speakers. 🔗

Pray for Iran ̇ran
02/04/2026

Pray for Iran

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