House Foreign Affairs counsel to join NGO

The chief counsel of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, David Abramowitz, is leaving Congress to head up the Washington office of Humanity United, a non-governmental organization based in Silicon Valley.

Abramowitz has been a senior committee staffer since 1999, working for a long time for former chairman Tom Lantos. Previously, he has worked at the State Department and with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. He counts among his accomplishments on the committee his work on the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Act of 2000, legislation creating the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the reauthorization of U.S. international HIV/AIDS programs, and the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 .

In his new role, Abramowitz will help lead outreach and advocacy efforts, help direct the Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking (ATEST), and provide strategic counsel to grantees, among other things.
 
"My main agenda is to strengthen coalitions and help design interventions that work to prevent genocide, stop mass atrocities and fight modern day slavery," Abramowitz wrote to The Cable in an e-mail, "After twenty years of government service and ten years on Capitol Hill, when this opportunity came knocking, I concluded that it was time to gain a new perspective and work on issues I am passionate about from outside government."

"David has long been a tireless and effective leader on issues such as human trafficking and international justice," Randy Newcomb, Humanity United's CEO, said in a press release.

Abramowitz will take up his new post next Monday.