Vera Institute of Justice

Insha Rahman was named the sixth president and director of the Vera Institute of Justice in 2026. She is also the president and director of Vera Action, an independent 501(c)(4) organization. Insha is the first woman, immigrant, and Muslim to lead both organizations. A leading political strategist and criminal justice expert, Rahman previously served as Vera’s vice president for Advocacy and Partnerships and the director of Vera Action since 2020. 

Under Rahman’s leadership as vice president for advocacy and partnerships for more than a decade, Vera blocked an attempt to charge more people as adults in Louisiana, eliminated cash bail in Illinois, increased funding for immigration legal services in New York, and improved housing access for formerly incarcerated individuals in Maryland. 

Through Vera Action, Rahman conducted research to inform and educate lawmakers and the media that “tough on crime” rhetoric does not reflect what communities actually want regarding public safety and that, in fact, a “serious about safety” message that offers real solutions is what resonates to address their public safety concerns.

Prior to Vera, Insha was a public defender for The Bronx Defenders, and also served as an Associate Planner at the Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services.

 Widely recognized for her expertise, Rahman has been featured in national media, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, Fox News, and Politico, and has been a featured speaker at events hosted by Masters of Scale, Global Citizen, Democracy Alliance, the Federalist Society, the United States Conference of Mayors, CPAC, and the United States Commission on Civil Rights, among others. Rahman is a member of the Council on Criminal Justice, the advisory board for the Aspen Institute’s Criminal Justice Reform Initiative. Previously, she served on the boards of the New York Civil Liberties Union, Dignity & Power Now, and the Brooklyn Community Bail Fund (now the Envision Freedom Fund).

A longtime New Yorker, Rahman lives in Brooklyn. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Africana Studies from Vassar College and a JD from the City University of New York School of Law.