As part of its tenth anniversary commemorations in 2025, Arab Center Washington DC established its Annual ACW Excellence Award, a distinction created to recognize outstanding contributions in fields that reflect the core mission of the institution. Each year, the award highlights a different area of impact, honoring individuals and organizations whose work meaningfully advances the causes of human rights, democratic governance, and the protection of fundamental freedoms. These values lie at the heart of ACW’s scholarship and public engagement, and the ACW Excellence Award serves as a testament to our commitment to elevating those who strive to uphold them in the Arab region, in the United States, and around the world.
The 2026 ACW Excellence Award
For Academic Integrity and Commitment to Human Rights
Presented to:
Noura Erakat
Human Rights Attorney; Associate Professor in the Department of Africana Studies and Program in Criminal Justice, Rutgers University, New Brunswick; Co-founding Editor, Jadaliyya E-zine; Author of Justice for Some: Law and the Question of Palestine (Stanford University Press, 2019); Former Legal Counsel to US House of Representatives and Legal Advocate for Palestinian refugee rights at the United Nations
The 2025 ACW Excellence Award
For Commitment to Media Excellence and Journalistic Integrity
Presented to
Mehdi Hassan
Mehdi HassanFounder and Editor-in-Chief of Zeteo, a media company dedicated to independent journalism and unfiltered news. He hosts Head to Head on Al Jazeera English, writes as a columnist for The Guardian, and hosts Mehdi Unfiltered on Zeteo. Previously, he hosted The Mehdi Hasan Show on MSNBC, was a Senior Contributor at The Intercept, presented the Al Jazeera program UpFront, and served as a Political Director at The Huffington Post UK
