Victor Palacios works in a tiny office inside the law library at the Shepard Broad Law Center, but his passion for the Inter-American Center for Human Rights (IACHR), for which he is co-director, is big enough to fill the entire NSU campus. Palacios is a third–year law student and has worked for the organization since it started. IACHR aims to highlight issues that are current and important in international rights by getting involved in pending cases and hosting symposiums about important topics.
“It’s why I came to law school here,” Palacios said.
Palacios has been a part of the symposiums held by IACHR since his freshman year when he passed out flyers for the symposium that promoted gay rights in the Caribbean. Palacios said last year’s focus was on human trafficking and the symposium surrounding that theme was successful.
“So many people came, we couldn’t find seats for them all,” he said. “It really raised awareness of the issue. We brought people who were speaking about personal experiences.”
Palacios was especially proud of the symposium and impressed with the speakers who were willing to share such personal stories. He is also happy with the exposure it brought to the law center and the university.
“We hope to help make NSU more reputable for new students and the general public. We are trying to play a big part, not just in Davie, but in South Florida,” he said.
However, Palacios’ goals don’t stop in South Florida. He wants to be an International Criminal Rights lawyer and continue the meaningful work he started at NSU. He has been to the International Court of Justice in The Hauge, Netherlands, where the United Nations makes its important legal decisions.
“You feel like you’re touching history,” Palacios said. “One day International Criminal Rights are going to explode and I want to be a part of it.”
