Human Rights

The non-ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child is hypocritical.

The non-ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child is hypocritical.

The United States remains one of only half a dozen U.N. member states that have yet to ratify the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The treaty was signed by President Jimmy Carter in 1977, but no steps toward ratification have ever been taken. Meanwhile, the gap between the rich and the poor in this country continues to grow, and is among the highest of any democracy on earth. The United States is historically suspicious of even recognizing economic, social and cultural rights as “rights” that might be amenable to any method of enforcement. As a result, the poor in this country continue to grow poorer, while the rich get richer. This article proposes that this gap between the rich and the poor is neither inevitable nor acceptable in a nation of such abundant resources. This article proposes that the ICESCR’s ultimate goals should be accepted as basic human rights norms in this country, and that the treaty should be ratified. If ratified, and if implementing legislation is enacted, the ICESCR will be an effective tool to ensure that the economic, social and cultural rights of all citizens of the U.S. are domestically enforceable, bringing an end to the notion that the poor must, in fact, always be with us.

In lists of state parties to globally significant treaties, the United States is often notably absent. Ratification hesitancy is a chronic impairment to international U.S. credibility and influence.

ARTICLE 19 works for a world where all people everywhere can freely express themselves and actively engage in public life without fear of discrimination.

https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1c/k1c10lsjoq livestream for the icj hearing up

"This is the first time I've had to endure such a horrifying experience," Ms Janif said, expressing her dismay at the sudden discriminatory treatment.

The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) is the body of 18 independent experts that monitors implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights by its State parties. The Covenant enshrines economic, social and cultural rights such as the rights to adequate food, adequate housing, education, health, social security, water and sanitation, and work.

A Black woman and a white woman who made a 'Starbucks racism' video that went viral joined to combat racism and teach DEI workshops. Now they don't speak to each other.

The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) is a United Nations convention. A third-generation human rights instrument, the Convention commits its members to the elimination of racial discrimination and the promotion of understanding among all races. The Convention also requires its parties to criminalize hate speech and criminalize membership in racist organizations.The Convention also includes an individual complaints mechanism, effectively making it enforceable against its parties. This has led to the development of a limited jurisprudence on the interpretation and implementation of the Convention. The convention was adopted and opened for signature by the United Nations General Assembly on 21 December 1965, and entered into force on 4 January 1969. As of July 2020, it has 88 signatories and 182 parties.The Convention is monitored by the Committee on the Elimination...

The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP or DOTROIP) is a legally non-binding resolution passed by the United Nations in 2007. It delineates and defines the individual and collective rights of Indigenous peoples, including their ownership rights to cultural and ceremonial expression, identity, language, employment, health, education, and other issues. Their ownership also extends to the protection of their intellectual and cultural property. The Declaration "emphasizes the rights of Indigenous peoples to maintain...

This illustrated edition of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is published by the United Nations in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish.

This illustrated edition of the UDHR was created and designed in a partnership between the artist Yacine Ait Kaci (YAK) creator of Elyx, the United Nations Regional information Centre (UNRIC), and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights - Regional Office for Europe (OHCHR).

Sosa v. Alvarez-Machain, 542 U.S. 692 (2004), was a United States Supreme Court case involving the Alien Tort Statute and the Federal Tort Claims Act. Many ATS claims were filed after the Second Circuit ruling in Filártiga v. Peña-Irala created a new common law cause of action for torture under the ATS: “For purposes of civil liability, the torturer has become—like the pirate and slave trader before him—hostis humani generis, an enemy of all mankind.” The Court in Sosa does not find there is a similar cause of action for arbitrary arrest and detention. They wrote that finding new common law causes of action based on international norms would require "a substantial element of discretionary judgment", and explain that the role of common law has changed since ATS was enacted meaning the Court will "look for legislative guidance before exercising innovative authority over substantive law".The decision states some limitations on recognizing (or creating...

In Less Than Human, David Livingstone Smith explains how dehumanizing people makes us capable of atrocious acts.

At the end of 1931 the International Institute of Intellectual Cooperation [IIIC], a League of Nations agency, invited Albert Einstein to initiate an exchange of letters with a fellow ‘leader of intellectual thought’ on a subject ‘calculated to serve the common interest of the League of Nations and of intellectual life’.[1] Einstein selected Sigmund Freud …

Helen Lewis writing for the Atlantic pushes misleading information about cherry-picked European countries (Finland, Norway, Sweden, and the UK) to undermine support for gender-affirming care in the US.

Claims that Norway, Sweden, Finland, and the UK have acted to restrict access to gender-affirming care are the latest misleading tactic in the fight against this necessary treatment, most recently deployed by Frieda Klotz for the Atlantic.

Fears of an AI future are taking up all our focus. But we shouldn’t forget present-day problems like global health and poverty

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) is a multilateral treaty adopted by the United Nations General Assembly (GA) on 16 December 1966 through GA. Resolution 2200A (XXI), and came in force from 3 January 1976. It commits its parties to work toward the granting of economic, social, and cultural rights (ESCR) to the Non-Self-Governing and Trust Territories and individuals, including labour rights and the right to health, the right to education, and the right to an adequate standard of living. As of July 2020, the Covenant has 171 parties. A further four countries, including the United States, have signed but not ratified the Covenant. The ICESCR (and its Optional Protocol) is part of the International Bill of Human Rights, along with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), including the latter's first and second Optional...

A milestone document in the history of human rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights set out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected. It has been translated into over 500 languages.