Quick Info
| Profession | Lawyer, author, human rights activist |
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| Nationality | American |
| Date of Birth | 08/09/1959 |
| Age | 67 years |
| Birthplace | Washington, D.C., United States |
| Zodiac Sign | Virgo |
Latest News about Mary Kerry Kennedy
15/09/2026
Kerry Kennedy publicly criticised the vote on the future of the Kennedy Center, calling it a tragedy and urging that the institution be left alone. The statement drew attention to the dispute over the center's naming and its status as a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy.
02/02/2026
Regis College announced that Kerry Kennedy, president of the Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center, would give the commencement address and receive an honorary degree at its Class of 2026 ceremonies. The college cited her more than 40 years of work on equal justice and basic rights, including leading hundreds of human rights delegations.
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Bio/Wiki
| Summary | Mary Kerry Kennedy is an American lawyer, author and human rights activist who has served as president of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights. She is the seventh of the eleven children of Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Skakel Kennedy. |
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Educational Qualification(s)
| Undergraduate | Bachelor's degree (BA), Brown University |
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| Law | Juris Doctor (JD), Boston College Law School |
| Bar Memberships | Massachusetts and District of Columbia bars |
| Honorary Degrees | Doctor of Laws degrees from Le Moyne College, the University of San Francisco School of Law and the University of New Caledonia; Doctor of Humane Letters degrees from Bay Path University and the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences |
Personal Life
| Marital Status | Divorced |
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| Notes | Married Andrew Cuomo in 1990; the marriage ended in divorce in 2005. |
Relationships & More
| Spouse |
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Family
| Father | Robert F. Kennedy |
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| Mother | Ethel Skakel Kennedy |
| Siblings |
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| Uncle | John F. Kennedy |
| Children |
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Career
| Human Rights Work | Has worked in human rights since 1981, beginning with an investigation of abuses against Salvadoran refugees by U.S. immigration officials; began in 1981 as an intern with Amnesty International. |
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| Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights | Established the center in 1988 to support human rights defenders. |
| Robert F. Kennedy Memorial | Served as executive director until 1995. |
| Current Role | President of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights (also referred to as the Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center). |
| Delegations | Has led more than 40 human rights delegations to over 30 countries. |
| Board and Leadership Roles | Chair of the Amnesty International USA Leadership Council; has served on the boards of organizations including the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life at Brandeis University and Human Rights First; served on the Regis College Board of Trustees from 2016 to 2025, including four years as chair. |
| Publications |
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| Awards | Received high honors from Lech Walesa, the former President of Poland, for aiding the Solidarity movement, and the Save the Children Woman of the Year 2001 award; also received the Humanitarian Award from the Congress of Nobel Peace Prize Laureates. |
Some Lesser Known Facts
| 1. Her 2000 book Speak Truth to Power features interviews with activists including Helen Prejean, Marian Wright Edelman, the Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, Elie Wiesel and Oscar Arias. | |
| 2. She has described her human rights work as spanning more than four decades. |
