Maya Berry

Executive Director of the Arab American Institute

Maya Berry is Executive Director of the Arab American Institute (AAI), a non-profit, nonpartisan, national civil rights advocacy organization founded to support the civic engagement of Arab Americans. She previously worked at AAI, establishing its first policy department, which she led for five years before becoming Legislative Director for House Minority Whip David Bonior, where she managed legislative strategy on international relations, human rights, immigration, civil rights and liberties, and trade. With a deep knowledge of public policy making, she helped expand AAI’s work on combatting hate crime, protecting the rights of securitized communities, strengthening our democracy, and advocating for data equity, including the creation of a new Middle East and North Africa (MENA) category. Berry serves as the Co-Chair of the Hate Crime Task Force at the Leadership Conference for Civil and Human Rights, on the Census Bureau’s 2030 Census Advisory Committee, and the board of Public Citizen.