GkJE | The right to be human just turned 70
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11 Dec The right to be human just turned 70

Posted at 21:54h in 2017, Changemaking, Civil Rights, Equality, Publishing, Writing by

Since 10 December 1948, we’ve recognised an important step in our move to deliver “equality, justice and human dignity”(1) for everyone on our planet.


The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was “drafted by representatives of diverse legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world…the Declaration sets out universal values and a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations.”(2)


It’s time


We live in a strange world. Thousands of years after our first appearance – by whatever means we may each believe – we remain locked in a struggle to recognise one another as the same kind; each with no more right to life than another.


The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was a step towards this recognition, described as: “a milestone document that proclaimed the inalienable rights which everyone is inherently entitled to as a human being – regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.”(3)

#StandUp4HumanRights

All Humans Beings are Born Free and Equal in Dignity and Rights.(4) Everyone has the right to feel safe, to be given the opportunity to thrive in the world, to be supported when necessary – it’s the foundation for civil society.


Hope lives on the horizon


It’s crushing to see global leaders genuflecting to popular opinion, placing politicking before people; but there are exceptions. Experiments in universal wages in Finland and Canada are steps in the right direction.


So too are apologies to Indigenous Peoples, along with the legalisation of same-sex marriage – the latter a ’work in progress’ according to the United Nations Human Rights Committee.


There’s a long way to go, a quick glance at this Facebook post by the Australian Human Rights Commission and ensuing comments, one example. Add your voice to The Universal Declaration of Human Rights here.

Originally written for The Copy Collective.


1. 2. 3. 4. http://www.un.org/en/events/humanrightsday