Athenai Institute
the Chinese Communist Party is committing genocide. Our universities should not be tied to it.
Our Mission
The Chinese Communist Party has taken advantage of the openness of American academic institutions to undermine academic freedom and global opposition to its human rights abuses. American universities cannot retain their independence or educate their students about the Chinese regime’s threat to liberty around the world if they continue to be tied - through endowments, Confucius Institutes, and research partnerships - to the CCP.
US Colleges Must Resist
Athenai is a nonpartisan, student-founded movement devoted to removing the influence of the Chinese Communist Party from American college campuses. We are building a student movement to divest from the CCP and any entity that aids its ongoing campaign to spread its totalitarian, genocidal political system around the world. Students are leading the fight for human rights, and we’re winning.
Athenai Is Leading the Movement
Our nonpartisan, student-led movement has educated hundreds of students about the dangers posed by the CCP. Athenai's impact to date:
- 60 Confucius Institutes closed
- 13 States with Athenai chapters
- One university committed to divest from entities tied to the genocide of Uyghurs
The Frank Wolf-Tony Hall Fellows Program
Named for retired members of Congress Frank R. Wolf (R-VA) and Tony P. Hall (D-OH), whose willingness to work across the aisle to advance human rights while in office embodied Athenai’s commitment to bipartisanship, the Frank Wolf-Tony Hall Fellows Program will bring together eight politically engaged undergraduate leaders from around the country to serve as the vanguard of our Divestment Campaign in their regions.
We are accepting applications between July 26 and August 16, 2022, and will select eight fellows to begin our first term starting in September 2022. Fellows will receive a stipend of $5,000, paid out biweekly throughout the program. To learn more and to apply, select the button below.
learn more about THE FRANK WOLF-TONY HALL FELLOWS PROGRAM
Praise for Athenai's Washington Appeal
“In the fight for human rights, students are not simply the leaders of tomorrow, but of today. I’m proud of the efforts of the Athenai Institute and students from across the country to stand in solidarity with Joshua Wong, Demosisto, The Hong Kong Democracy Council, and all Hong Kongers.”
— Teng Biao, Chinese Dissident and Human Rights Lawyer
“We applaud the Athenai Institute's effort [to close] Confucius Institutes in the USA...Confucius Institutes funded by the Chinese government and carrying the CCP agenda have no place on American college campuses.”
— Dr. Yang Jianli, Athenai Board Member, Human Rights Activist, and Tiananmen Square Survivor
“The good news is that our strongest ally in promoting academic freedom over authoritarianism is your most important constituent—students. Reports suggest that College Republicans and College Democrats, like elected officials at the national level, are united in their recognition of the threat posed by the CCP.”
— Former U.S. Undersecretary of State Keith Krach
We Need You in the Fight
Join this student-led network of activists who are dismantling the influence of the Chinese regime on our global campuses.
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