By: Jade Heider
This summer I interned at the Jubilee Campaign under Regent alumna Attorney Ann Buwalda. As a rising 2L, I knew I wanted to utilize my summer to explore the different types of law that interested me. Entering law school, I was highly interested in Immigration law, and I have had several friends intern at Just Law International, Attorney Buwalda’s immigration firm. Though I applied to intern on the Just Law side, I was offered a position on the Jubilee Campaign side of her office. This took me by surprise, as I had never had a specific interest in religious freedom work. However, the internship’s proximity to DC was enticing as I hope to practice in the greater D.C. area after law school. Additionally, I was thrilled to have my good friend and fellow law student, Louise Byrne, working in the same office as me!
At the beginning of the summer, I had no particular interest in religious rights, but now I realize just how important religious rights are. On my first day, I was given a book called International Religious Freedom Advocacy: A Guide to Organizations, Law, and NGOs. In the overview, the author succinctly states the mission of religious freedom organizations: “If not everyone can enjoy religious freedom, then there is not complete religious freedom for anyone.” In addition to the ability to practice and express one’s religion, religious freedom also allows individuals freedom from a religion. Religious freedom is a fundamental human right that everyone should have access to.
Through this internship, my view of what religious freedom is has vastly expanded from a simple American perspective. This summer I have attended several congressional briefings that gave me an international perspective of religious freedom. The first briefing I attended was cosponsored by the Jubilee Campaign and concerned the religious freedom of women in Egypt and Pakistan. At this event, I heard various speakers explain how Gender Based Violence and religion are utilized to perpetuate a system of child marriage. One of the biggest takeaways I got from this event is how older men prey on younger women, assaulting them and then claiming to “convert them” in order to cover up their crimes. It was powerful hearing from a survivor, and I was able to go with speakers as they advocated for change and spoke to congressmen. Through this hearing, I saw how religion is often weaponized by the ruling group in order to marginalize the minority. In Pakistan, the religious minorities being targeted were Christian and Hindu women, who were being forcefully converted to Islam after being assaulted.
Another congressional briefing I attended was on the state of religious rights in North Korea. While I knew a little about the conditions in North Korea, I was surprised to learn that defectors, mostly women, are often trafficked in their attempts to escape. In this briefing, I was able to hear from a panel of North Koreans who shared how many attempts it took for them to escape. One woman specifically mentioned how after escaping into China she was sold into prostitution when traffickers took advantage of her undocumented status. This was especially interesting to me because it aligns with my interests in immigration law. Additionally, she mentioned how the children of trafficked Korean women in China are unable to access an education because they also are not citizens. Several defectors mentioned how Western and South Korean materials, such as Bibles and Kdramas, inspired them to escape. This event reminded me of the blessing to freely practice religion.
While an internship dealing with religious rights was not something I was initially drawn to, I am coming back with a new perspective on religious freedom. When I wasn’t up on the Hill, I was working on drafting Universal Periodic Reviews for the Jubilee Campaign. This meant that I was researching the conditions of various religions and seeing how much religious freedom is allowed within their country. I enjoyed being able to become more up to date on what is going on in other countries such as Burma, Nigeria, and Nepal. Additionally, I was able to sit in on court and talk to some of the immigration attorneys at the firm, allowing me to still explore immigration law.
The research I did on human trafficking and religious rights allowed me to have a greater understanding of global issues when I attended the 2025 International Summit Against Human Trafficking, with some of my fellow Regent Law students. This event felt like the culmination of the topics I researched this summer. The research I did on Gender Based Violence was useful as human trafficking and Gender Based Violence are often closely entwined. I was able to attend two days of the conference and hear from notable speakers such as the United States Secretary of Homeland Security, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and other public officials.
The most important thing I have learned from my time at the Jubilee Campaign is the importance of interfaith collaboration. The Jubilee Campaign is a part of the International Religious Freedom Roundtable, which is an interfaith group that monitors the condition of religious freedom globally. While advocating for the rights of Christian minorities abroad is vital, it is also important to remember that religious freedom is for everyone. While I still intend to explore Immigration law going into my 2L year, I now know I could find purpose and passion working to protect religious freedom internationally.
This post was written by a student at Regent University School of Law. The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.