My, how the time flies when you have so much schoolwork and a powerful mystery virus! I was struggling so greatly to keep up with classes that some things fell through the cracks. The blog, unfortunately, was the first to go.
But here we are, 68 years to the day after the United Nations General Assembly in Paris accepted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. And here we are, with Donald Trump as our president-elect and the rate of hate crimes soaring. Here we are, with a girl missing after being harassed for her hijab. Here we are, with excitement for "Mad Dog" Mattis being given the opportunity to "exterminate" 1.6 billion people because Trump supporters can't separate ISIS from Islam (but would happily scream at you about how the KKK does not represent Christianity, then tack on that not all men are dangerous and not all cops are racist). Here we are, with indigenous people being threatened by masked men. Here we are, with Trump supporters believing that certain women aren't pretty enough to deserve being assaulted, because obviously sexual assault is about attraction and not power. Here we are, with crisis support hotlines unable to answer all of the calls they're receiving from scared Americans.
And so, nearly 70 years after its publication, it is time for us to reflect upon the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
Look, folks, I just finished writing so many papers about the UDHR that I shouldn't feel compelled to write another. I especially shouldn't be feeling this way the day after finals week. But I need to get my piece out and Facebook doesn't want to hear it anymore. So in celebration of Human Rights Day, let me tell you how the UDHR was designed to fail.
The United States has a history blessed with strong, remarkable women. One such woman is Eleanor Roosevelt. Eleanor Roosevelt set the standard for First Lady political activity. She spent her life fighting for political, racial, and social justice while her husband established Japanese internment camps. She also led the movement for the creation of the UDHR as a reaction to the horrors of WWII. In fact, the UDHR is considered by many to Roosevelt's legacy.
Why does this matter? Because for all her efforts, Roosevelt knew what would become of the UDHR.
In April 1948, Roosevelt said, "If the Declaration were accepted by the General Assembly the next autumn, it would carry moral weight, but it would not carry any legal weight." Her idea was that as nations ratified the Declaration, they would adjust existing laws and create new laws as necessary to ensure that all enumerated rights were guaranteed to all people within the nation's borders. She even referred to the rights as "standards toward which the nations must henceforward aim". Not obligations. Goals.
Roosevelt had too much confidence in mankind. The memory of WWII is fading as its last survivors perish. No actual consequences exist for refusing to ratify or violating human rights. Majority populations often feel safe and thus uninspired to take action. As a result, the UDHR goes ignored until Human Rights Day.
Roosevelt believed that the UDHR did not need to be a treaty because countries would begin to incorporate its concepts into their constitutions without prompting. On this, she is half correct. Some countries have incorporated aspects of the UDHR. However, many human rights activists feel that incorporation is not enough. Enabling countries to pick and choose which rights to allow and the extent to which they will be allowed is not the intention behind the UDHR. Other countries have chosen to ratify national or continental declarations rather than the UDHR. This would be fine if these declarations did not consistently put human rights in danger by limiting them for cultural or historical reasons.
After the election, when I laid out just a few of the ways Trump had promised to violate human rights, I had a Trump supporter respond, "Human rights don't go as far as you think." I was furious. Not only because I knew this meant he and other Trump supporters were willing to accept human rights violations, but because he was right. Human rights don't go far. We have no enforcement of them.
So here we are, with so many rights at risk. You may be feeling lost, frightened, betrayed, angered, and hurt. I know I was. I decided to turn again to Mrs. Roosevelt. She told me what I've always known.
"In small places, close to home—so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world." ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
If you're looking to join the fight to protect human rights, here are some resources to get started.
The American Civil Liberties Union: Works to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States
Amnesty International: A grassroots organization that has won the Nobel Peace Prize for investigating and exposing abuses, and educating and mobilizing the public
Human Rights Campaign: The largest national lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer civil rights organization
The People's Lobby: Focuses on public policy and candidates in local movements across the nation
WITNESS: "WITNESS trains and supports activists and citizens around the world to use video safely, ethically, and effectively to expose human rights abuse and fight for human rights change." They've created smartphone apps to help you take videos as ethically and safely as possible.
Please remember that you matter and your actions matter. Take the time to better your corner of the world.
Happy Human Rights Day