JOSE ARTIGA is a long-time human, environmental and immigrant rights advocate in the United States and Central America, and the current executive director of The SHARE FOUNDATION since 1995.  Jose has organized and/or led delegations to El Salvador and Honduras, introducing over 10,000 U.S. delegates representing all segments of the US society, including interfaith leaders and members of Congress to the Central American reality.  Jose was one of the first Salvadoran immigrants to seek sanctuary in the US, at the University Lutheran Chapel of the University of California Berkeley, part of a consortium of the first six congregations in the United States to announce public sanctuary in 1982.  It was this event that sparked the Sanctuary Movement that lives on today. 

During the Salvadoran Civil War, as Director of the Washington DC-based Interfaith Office on Accompaniment, Jose worked closely with the SHARE Foundation to launch the “Going Home Campaign,” promoting the right of return of Salvadoran refugees to their place of origin as intact communities.  He led multiple international delegations to accompany Salvadoran refugees from Mesa Grande, the largest Salvadoran refugee camp in Honduras, and also accompanied internally displaced Salvadorans to their villages of origin. 

​Today, the right of return of refugees as intact communities is recognized by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as a fundamental right.  In the post war years, Jose championed immigrant rights in the United States, spearheading the movement for TPS, and continued to advocate for human, environmental, and labor rights and civic participation in El Salvador. With the late Monsignor Ricardo Urioste, he co-founded the Romero Foundation in El Salvador to keep Romero’s legacy alive. He organized and led the largest US delegation to Rome to celebrate the canonization of Oscar Romero in 2018.

Today, Jose serves on the Board of Directors of the Aquino Foundation which advocates for the rights of the families of the Disappeared in El Salvador. Following the assassination of Honduran environmentalist Berta Caceres, Jose played a leading role in sparking international solidarity, working closely with faith leaders, indigenous and environmentalists in Honduras. Jose has been honored by human rights and immigrant rights organizations across the United States and in El Salvador and Honduras.  He has a B.A. from Catholic University and a Master’s degree in Economics from San Francisco State University; Married to Eileen Purcell and father of Camilo, Rutilio and Alejandro.

​Today, Jose also serves on the Board of Directors of CARECEN SF advocating for the rights of the immigrant community; the Aquino Foundation which advocates for the rights of the families of the Disappeared in El Salvador.