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Creation of the United Nations
The United Nations was founded just after World War II as a predecessor to the failed League of Nations. Then, it comprised of 50 countries, and while it has grown in the number of participants, its aims to save younger generations from the turmoil of war, to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, and to promote social progress and a better standard of life among other ideas has stayed the same. In some aspects the UN has succeeded, and in others it has failed horribly. -
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Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials took place after the atrocities of World War II. These trials tried 24 men who each were picked to represent different parts of the German government during Nazi rule. The Allies wanted to establish a precedent amongst international relations that showed that aggressive war will be dealt with as a crime and gather evidence about The Holocaust for future generations. -
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a document drafted by diverse representatives from all over the world proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. It outlines fundamental human rights to be universally protected and set a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. This declaration is recognized as having paved the way and inspired more than 70 human rights treaties and charters. -
The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide
The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide is the first legal instrument to codify and criminalize genocide. This convention defines genocide and how to recognize it. It also obligates that countries and state parties enforce and dissuade genocide, prohibiting it. -
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is a global non-profit organization of over 10 million people. Founded in 1961, this organization is committed to creating a future where human rights are enjoyed by everyone. Amnesty International helps fight abuses of human rights worldwide, scrutinizes governments, brings torturers to justice, and frees people jailed for voicing their opinion among other things. They work with a variety of human rights issues around the world ranging from abortion to armed conflict. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a detailed U.S. legislation that was made with the intention to end discrimination in the U.S. based on factors like race, color, religion, or national origin. Immediately, the constitutionality of the act was challenged by white supremacist groups and was upheld as constitutional by the Supreme Court. The act have federal law enforcement the power to address and prevent racial discrimination in voting, employment, and in public areas/buildings. -
Covenant on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination
The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination is one of the oldest conventions of the UN Human Rights Office against oppression and discrimination. Nations who ratified the document agree to change any domestic laws/policies that perpetuate racial discrimination, outlaw hate speech, and criminalize the participation in racist organizations. The CERD not only defines racial discrimination but also monitors its implementation outlines where it is prohibited. -
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is a treaty that obligates nations to respect the political and civil rights of individual people. The rights included in the ICCPR include rights like the right to life, freedom of religion, speech, and assembly, electoral rights, and criminal rights like right to due process and to a fair trial. This document, along with the UDHR and other documents are some of the most aspirational documents that other countries are inspired by. -
Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights
The Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights entered into force on January 3rd 1976 after 35 state parties had ratified the document. This covenant, among others, builds upon the rights included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The document aims to ensure the protection of economic, social, and cultural rights including things like: right to work, freedom from discrimination, right to strike, form trade unions, and social security among other important rights. -
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-profit organization that investigates and reports of abuses happening all around the world. The team consists of about 550 people from diverse background who are lawyers, journalists, and country experts - people who work to protect those who are most at risk. Some examples of crises that the HRW works on include the Russia-Ukraine War, the Israel-Palestine Conflict, and conflict in Ethiopia's Tigray Region. -
Covenant on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women
The Covenant on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women is a declaration brought up by the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. By the 10th anniversary of the treaty, over 100 countries had ratified it. This convention is significant because it brings the population of women being failed into the focus of human rights movements around the world. -
Civil Rights Defenders
Civil Rights Defenders is an independent human rights organization that operates in almost 50 countries around the world with around 70 staff members. This organization, independent of political and religious bias, partners with and supports human rights workers around the world. Their self-given task is to make sure that civil and political rights are defended through advocacy, litigation, and public campaigns. -
Physicians for Human Rights
Physicians for Human Rights is a non-profit human rights organization based in the U.S. that uses medicine and science to document and advocate against human rights violations globally. PHR mobilizes health professionals and other experts worldwide to investigate and expose these human rights abuses. As of right now, PHR is focused on issues such as COVID-19, mass killings, reproductive justice, and attacks on health care among other things all around the world. -
Human Rights Without Frontiers International
Human Rights Without Frontiers is a non-governmental non-profit organization that defends the fundamental rights of all people regardless of any status. Since its foundation, the organization has strived to strengthen democracy, protect human rights around the world, and uphold the rule of law. HRWF is an organization that stresses the importance of advocacy, giving a voice to those who cannot speak for themselves. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall, built in 1961 by the Soviets with the purpose of keeping the East and West sides of Germany split so that the socialist people on the West side couldn't migrate into the Soviets Communist East side of Germany. After the End of the Cold War, people on both sides used hammers and bulldozers to take down chunks of the wall. This was a significant event because it signified the end of the Cold War, reunited East and West Germany and it's German people. -
Convention on the Rights of the Child
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is an international human rights declaration that defines a child, outlines their rights, and defines what the government is responsible for. The convention sets out different rights including ones that are political, civil, economic, social, cultural, and health related in nature. This document is significant because it tries to ensure that every child, everywhere, regardless of background or status, has rights that cannot be taken away. -
The Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords are agreements made between the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation Organization. These agreements established what would have been a peace-progress for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Unfortunately, the process was derailed due to complexities and underlying hostilities and never came to be, and there is still conflict today. However, this moment is significant as it was the first time that both groups recognized each other and Palestine's self-determination. -
End of Apartheid in South Africa
The racial segregation of South Africans based on how they looked, removed over 3.5 million non-white South Africans from their homes and forcibly relocated them into racially segregated neighbourhoods. This, among other things such as separate political, educational, social laws, and killings was put to an end in 1994, when after years of the South African people illegally protesting, the Democratic South African Government was formed. This gave people in South Africa their basic human rights. -
Covenant on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an international human rights convention that outlines the fundamental human rights of those with disabilities. The document not only defines disability and the related rights of people with disabilities, but it also requires countries that ratified the document to ensure and promote all of the human rights and freedoms to those with disabilities without discrimination based on that factor. -
United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2007, is a significant milestone in Indigenous peoples rights worldwide. This declaration affirmed Indigenous peoples right to self-determination and cultural preservation, and aimed to address the historical injustices Indigenous people have faced as well as promote human dignity and justice for Indigenous Communities.