33% of women across the globe will be the victim of some form of domestic violence
25% of women in the U.S. will experience an abusive relationship in their lifetime
No More Tears was a brainchild of Ms. Somy Ali. After living in a world of glitz and glamour, she decided to leave everything to complete her education. During this time, she realized that she must do something about the many injustices she had seen in her life.
Inspiration comes from many sources. One of the sources that affected Ms. Ali, was when she was writing, directing, and producing a documentary about Mukhtaran Mai. This sad, but yet inspirational, saga is just one of the thousands of stories that are the reason why No More Tears exists.
Determined that one (wo)man CAN make a difference, Ms. Ali knew that it was time for her to take a stand for those whose voices are left unheard. She understood that it was time for her to help those who most of society ignores. She thought it was time for her to wipe the tears from those who were left crying. From this was borne, No More Tears.
SOMY ALI
Chairman of the Board and President
Originally from Karachi, Pakistan, actress and model, Somy Ali moved to Bombay, India where she worked in 10 Hindi films and several commercials.She then moved to the United States to obtain a degree in psychology. She attended the Nova Southeastern University in Florida and in three years graduated with her Bachelor's degree in psychology. While working on her bachelor’s degree Somy worked at a local radio station doing talk-shows on social and political issues, it was during this time that she became very interested in journalism and decided to attend the University of Miami to obtain a master's degree in print journalism. During this time she developed an interest in documentary films and left Miami to attend the New York Film Academy. She then completed short films on Abortion, Domestic Violence, and Teenage suicide prior to graduating with a degree in film making, direction, script writing and editing in 2003. In 2004, she attended the Connecticut School of Broadcasting and obtained a degree in broadcast journalism.
Consequently today after a successful university career, Somy Ali has evolved into a US based human rights advocate and documentary film maker, who is both passionate about educating the public, and working to help solve complex global issues. Somy has been involved with women's rights issues in South Asia. She is working towards bringing the plight of rape and domestic violence victims to media's attention. As an active member of the Asian-American Network Against Abuse of Women (ANAA) Somy has written articles about Dr. Shazia Khalid, Sonia Naz, and Mukhtaran Mai. All of these women are victims of rape and have fought and are still fighting for justice in Pakistan. As the founder of both No More Tear and So-Me Designs, Somy Ali draws upon her first hand experiences from living in Pakistan and working as a Bollywood movie actress in India during her young adult years.
Laura Finley
Board Member
Laura Finley is Founding Mother and Director of the Center for Living and Teaching Peace. She is also Assistant Professor of Sociology and Criminology at Barry University and a trainer with the Children’s Services Council of Broward County. She earned her Ph.D. in Sociology from Western Michigan University in 2002. Prior to that, she was a high school social studies teacher in Michigan.
She is author of numerous book chapters and journal articles, and has authored or co-authored seven books on topics related to peace, human rights, and social justice. She is currently under contract to co-edit a volume on feminist activism and to edit the Encyclopedia of School Crime and Violence.
Michael Reiter
Board Member
Michael D. Reiter was born in Brooklyn, New York and moved to South Florida at an early age. He received his Bachelors in Psychology from the University of Florida. He then received a Masters Specialist in Counselor Education, with subspecializations in Marriage and Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling from the University of Florida. He received a Doctorate in Family Therapy from Nova Southeastern University. He is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Certified Addictions Professional, and Approved Supervisor from the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. He has published and presented at national and international conferences regarding Solution-Focused Therapy and Intercultural Couples. He has published a textbook by Allyn & Bacon in August, 2007 entitled: Therapeutic Interviewing: Essential Skills and Contexts of Counseling.
Michael has been a faculty member at Nova Southeastern University since 2000. He is an Associate Professor in the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences of the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences. Currently he is serving as Interim Director of the Division. Michael has also been provided therapeutic services to individuals, couples, and families for over 15 years. He provides services with Couples on the Brink, working with couples in distress.
Muhammad Malik
Board Member
Muhammed Malik, a Kashmiri-American, was born in Miami, FL and comes from a long-line of civil rights advocates. His grandfather was a math professor by day and a leader in the non-violent independence movement against British colonialism by night. His uncle, an avid protector of the constitution, recently served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. Mr. Malik attended Tulane University, studied Liberation Theology at FIU, and is currently completing his LL.M. in Intercultural Human Rights Law at St. Thomas University School of Law. At the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Muhammed serves as its Director by processesing civil rights complaints and speaking at local universities & places of worship about immigrants rights, hate crimes, & racial discrimination; in addition, he speaks regularly in major news outlets to address bigotry against Muslim-Americans and he is organizing "Youth 305," a civil rights conference set for Summer 2010 to provide grass-roots skills-building workshops for young people of color. Before CAIR, Muhammed served as the Director of Community Relations for Know My Rights, Inc. and worked with Amnesty International on the "Denounce Torture" Campaign in Washington, D.C. An active Board member of the United Nations Association of Greater Miami, No More Tears, Special Children for Success, and South Florida Interfaith Worker’s Justice, Mr. Malik was recently appointed by the Mayor of North Miami Beach to serve as an Advisory Board member on the Multicultural Affairs Commission. His work in human rights has been featured in the Miami Herald, Sun Sentinel, Palm Beach Post, USA Today, Beacon Newspaper, California Pacific Citizen, Arab Times, Local T.V. (Channels 4, 6, 7, and 10), CNN, National Public Radio, and numerous other media outlets. Muhammed is married to Samia Taoulost-Malik, a native of Morocco, who is also a vocal advocate of human rights; she was recently appointed by the Mayor of North Miami Beach to the Status on Women Commission where she strives to foster Muslim women’s participation in local politics. Mrs. Malik works at the University of Miami’s School of Medicine and is completing her M.A.I.A. in International Administration
Paul Leary
Board Member
A native of Boston, at age 15 Paul was the youngest person to be certified at Boston Neighborhood Network Television, where he interviewed “The Elephant Show” stars Sharon, Lois & Bram. By the age of 18, he had acted extensively in the Boston area and formed his own company, PL Productions. He enrolled at Emerson College where he excelled in theater performance. At the same time, he served in the Public Relations and Marketing Department at The Children’s Museum in Boston.
Paul has always been drawn to the not-for-profit sector. He has been a host and producer of public broadcasting programs for many years. He acted in the WGBH broadcast of “Turf: a concert in Black & White” which won the 1996 Achievement in Radio award. Paul relocated to Florida in 2001, when he was hired by Palm Beach’s WXEL as host and producer. In addition to a daily on air shift with WXEL, he served as producer of its local programming. He also interviewed many local and national celebrities and community arts leaders, including Charles Nelson Reilly and “Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me” panelist, Paula Poundstone. Paul was called to Miami and served as Fundraising Producer for WLRN, breaking records for fundraising and new memberships during his tenure. Currently, Paul is an on air host, producer and assists with daily operations. Paul has been hosting “Broadway Edition” a online radio show featuring the best of South Florida Theater and Broadway music. Paul can occasionally be heard on 97.3 The Coast and 93 Rock reporting traffic. Most recently, Paul joined forces with QueerChannel.TV, which features interviews with nonprofit South Florida GLBT organizations and events.
