Gambia Refugee, Human Rights Advocate, and Founder of a Socioeconomic Development Agency Omar Bah

Omar Bah was one of the most respected and effective journalists in The Gambia. At the age of 21, while The Gambia was under the control of a dictator, Bah sought to become a human rights lawyer to fight rampant political corruption and injustice. Owing to the law program’s foreign travel requirement, Bah shifted his focus onto journalism and specialized in court and political reporting.
Over the ensuing years, Bah built a reputation as one of the country’s most respected and effective journalists. Due to his persistence and resilience, he became one of the world’s most wanted journalists. In 2001 Bah was kidnapped while reporting on a secret trial taking place at a military barracks. He was attacked, tortured, and confined to a closet-sized cell by soldiers, who left him with several injuries. He was held until several witnesses, human rights workers, and fellow journalists called for his release. Still, he remained a journalist. At the age of 26, Bah found himself the target of a national manhunt owing to his criticism of the totalitarian state. After a dangerous journey, he found refuge in Rhode Island, where he would embark on a professional and personal journey that would impact the lives of thousands of Rhode Islanders. A year after fleeing persecution, fate brought him from the smallest nation in mainland-Africa to the smallest state in the United States. Dr. Bah challenged a brutal authoritarian and was fortunate to escape with his life. He knows what it takes to stand up for progressive change, and he is running to fight for that change for every Rhode Islander.