Fighting for basic human rights is the key to
solving all of humanity’s problems. It’s a hard
struggle, but one that affects us all.
Our future is beyond our vision but not beyond our control - Senator Edward M. Kennedy
Human rights as a way of life
Allow me humbly to ask you to walk with me into this discourse about human rights as a way of life, slowly and thoughtfully. Let us join in bringing a new expansive meaning to this overarching holistic vision and practical mission through learning and dialogue.
At part of the recent 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the Elders, of which Jimmy Carter is a member, issued an enthusiastic call: All HUMANS have RIGHTS. With all the respect I have for these great people, I sent them a note asking, “But do the humans know them?”
If all women, men, youth and children know, own and internalize human rights as relevant to their daily struggles, the inclusivity, universality indivisibility, and interconnectedness of human rights will have people participate proactively and positively in the decision that determine their lives. They will join in breaking through the vicious cycle of humiliation and make this a secure and nurturing place for all. If we choose the path to fulfill the extraordinary promise of human rights, we can be in control and chart the destiny of humanity. We have no other option.
A tool for action
The words human rights are in our daily vocabulary. They exist mostly as a litany of civil and political violations. Instead, they can be understood as a positive and powerful tool for action that offers a unique strategy for human, economic, cultural and societal development. FDR spoke of freedom from fear and freedom from want. He said that necessitous men and women cannot be free. This moral and political insight laid the infrastructure for the International Bill of Human Rights. This Bill included the UDHR, and the two Covenants: one on Political & Civil Human Rights (ICCPR), and the other on Economic Social & Cultural Human Rights (IESCR). The name “covenants” connotes a biblical term that speaks to a moral authority, acknowledging the sanctity of life. (It is important to note that in many countries around the world, those that have ratified Human Rights Covenants and Conventions placed these instruments on par with the legal authority of their constitution. Not in the USA.)
Great moments of transcendence
Throughout human history of wars, famine, humiliation and intolerance come great moments of transcendence that liberated us and allows us to walk away from slavery towards freedom, endowing us with real, vital and meaningful hope and tools for action. It is our responsibility to recognize and capture these magical moments and do all we can to have people know the meaning of human rights in their lives. (Imposed ignorance is a human rights violation.) And when they learn they reinvent their lives, adding a vibrant link to the chain of humanity’s expectations for dignity, equality and life without discrimination.
Purpose behind the United Nations
These moments of transcendence, such as the drafting of the UDHR, gave the United Nations its overarching purpose and radiated forcefully the vision for economic and social justice. It was articulated by Member States into human rights norms and standards relevant to the lives of all women, men, youth and children of all places, cultures and religions. During the years, these were framed as Conventions on the elimination of racism, on the human rights of women and of children, of migrants and recently the disabled and more to come.
Many of us gaining this insight acknowledge, spontaneously, our social responsibility and take control of the future to become agents of change. If the community knew human rights directly and without bias, the discussions taking place now would have been moot. Sadly, most people do not know about the many important moral, political and legal benefits Human Rights puts in our hands to claim. (Those working to bring about genuine health care reform for the benefit of all people need to speak of access to health care and other elements of good health as a human right for which we have no other humanely valid option.)
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
More than 60 years ago, Eleanor Roosevelt, joined by men and women from more than 80 countries, gave the world the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a “gift” that meant to remove the chains of colonialism, and to never again have humanity experience genocide. The Declaration delivered to humanity a new space to belong, calling for democracy to be a delivery system of human rights—moving charity to dignity.
The human rights framework encompasses the best of Socialism and Democracy, giving us a vibrant political and moral way to conduct our lives with the protection of human rights laws. It makes so much sense.
Making positive change
It is a painful wonder to me why many working to change the world do not use this powerful tool for action. Is it because many international human rights organizations focus mostly on violation and do not bring a comprehensive message to all of us who yearn to realize our hopes and expectations embedded in the rich and powerful human rights agenda? (Indeed economic colonialism is alive and thriving, and genocide did not vanish. There is much to be cynical about. This, fortunately, does not prevent me from being a fanatic about human rights.)
No other option
Human Rights are the banks of the river where life can flow freely, and when the floods threaten us, people who know human rights strengthen the banks, avoiding the floods. A grassroots movement sharing the knowledge of human rights will strengthen the banks of the river.
There is no other option!
-Gizzel Mbaga
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