REKHA BASU

My decades of hard-hitting commentaries related to social justice have spanned many news organizations including freelance pieces in The New York Times, The International Herald-Tribune, The Nation, The Los Angeles Times, The Miami Herald, The Toronto Globe and India Today. They've resulted in numerous awards, including an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Grinnell College. They've affected election outcomes and brought justice for victims of ethnic profiling, sexual-assault, targets of over-zealous police enforcement and marginalized populations in general.

 Iowa League of Women Voters Defending Democracy Award, 2025.  Louise Rosenfield Noun Visionary Award for work to empower and inspire others, 2021. Young Women's Resource Center, Des Moines IA, 2019. Iowa Newspaper Association Master Columnist award, 2019, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012.  Des Moines CityView Readers’ Choice Awards for Best Commentary, multiple years. Martin Luther King Achievement Award, Iowa Commission on Status of African-Americans, 2018. Associated Press Managing Editors column writing and feature  writing awards, multiuple times. Annual Best of the Register Capaldo writing award and best commentary, multiple years, 2016. Annual Best of the Register Commentary award, 2015. Iowa United Nations Association, Garst Memorial Award, multiple times.  Pridefest Des Moines, Grand Marshall, Capital City Pride.  Sharon Malheiro Award, One Iowa. Primary Health Care AIDS Project, community advocate award. Girl Scouts of Iowa 100th anniversary Gold Award. Des Moines Business Record, Woman of Influence. Iowa Interfaith Alliance, Person of the Year.  Iowa Farmers Union Media Award.  Time to Educate award, Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 2006. Mary Louise Smith Racial Justice Award, Des Moines YWCA. Christine Wilson Medal for Equality and Justice, Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame. South Asian Journalists Association. South Florida Sun-Sentinel awards for best commentary. Vivian Castleberry national award for writing on women. 1990 Woman of the Year, Albany YWCA. New York State Labor Press Council, investigative reporting award. WTEN-TV and B’nai Brith, Albany, A World of Difference  New York State Golden Apple Award for education writing. York State United Press International award for series on new immigrants.

Guest appearances with: Tom Brokaw, Rachel Maddow, Brooke Baldwin, Don Lemon, Carol Costello, Erin Burnett, Gwen Ifill,  CNN International Richard Quest. BBC Radio, The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, CNN, NPR. Frequent keynote speaker/moderator at college convocations, civic and journalism events. Featured on C-SPAN Book TV as the author of “Finding Her Voice,” a compilation of columns on women.

Moderator, Smart Talk Women's Lecture series: Moderated talks by Julie Andrews, Mia Farrow, Maya Angelou, Bette  Midler, Delilah and others. Recently, Moderator for Ta-Nehisi Coates, Heather Cox Richardson,  U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy.

• Present The Op-Ed Project, mentor to women columnists. Board Member, Love 4 Red to prevent Period Poverty. Board member and co-founder: Monsoon Asian and Pacific Islanders in Solidary, to combat sexual assault and domestic violence.
• South Asian Journalists Association, Asian American Journalists Association, Journalism and Women’s Symposium.
• Board member, Iowa State University Women’s Studies program.
• Member, Chicago Council on Foreign Relations Task Force on Globalization (current) and Task Force on Immigration
• 2007 Poynter Institute, St. Petersburg, FL seminar, Reporting on Sexual Violence.
• 2002-06 Board member, University of Maryland Journalism Fellowships on Child and Family Policy.
• 2004 Ms. Foundation and Stanford University forum at Stanford on Supporting Boys’ Resilience.
• 2002 MacNeil-Lehrer Productions and Hewlett Foundation, Wye River dialogue, We the People at Wye River Center, MD.
• Newspaper Association of America fellowship to attend Poynter Institute seminar on Race, Gender and Communications.
• Equality in the Courts, Iowa, former member

Critical thinking and writing. Editing. Public speaking. Moderating panels and speakers. Teaching and coaching opinion writing. 

Other: Author of Finding Her Voice.