Archive | December 10, 2010

December 10th: International Human Rights Day

On December 10th, 1948, the United Nations ratified the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The UDHR is a landmark document in human history. For the first time, a community of nation states formally recognized that all human beings have a right to not be enslaved, not to be oppressed, and not to live in fear. While the post-1948 world was potentially the bloodiest in human history, that such a set of baseline rules and standards exists at all is a positive step forward in creating a sane and humane world.

It is, of course, highly ironic that Lio Xiao Bo is receiving his Nobel Peace Price on International Human Rights Day.

To celebrate Human Rights Day, check out this cool visualization of products around the world produced using forced and child labor, products which are largely sold to wealthy nations such as the US. It is important to celebrate the ratification of documents such as the UDHR, but it is also important to recognize that we still have very much to do.

The preamble to the UDHR is below:

* Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

%d bloggers like this: