December marks the start of Universal Human Rights month, with December 10th being Human Rights Day. On December 10, 1948 the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). To honor this monumental decision, December was deemed Universal Human Rights month. The UDHR highlights the inalienable rights of all humans no matter their race, sex, religion, language, or national origin.
The UDHR is considered the standard for human rights. The first article states that “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood”. In the next 29 articles of the declaration, it goes on to state the fundamental human rights that are universally protected. The UDHR continues to be an influential document, and it has been translated into over 500 different languages.
The 2024 theme as declared by the United Nations (UN) was “Our Rights, Our Future, Right Now”. The UN aims to highlight the importance of human rights in day to day lives. They posted a video titled “Human Rights Day 2024 – The World We Want” where they showed an animated child jumping for a better future, protesters, and a sci-fi world highlighting nature and innovation.
To learn more about the different human rights issues present in the world today, you can check out the World Report 2024 from the Human Rights Watch. This website highlights global issues as well as issues in specific countries that were present in 2023 and have continued into 2024. In early January, the Human Rights Watch will release the World Report 2025, which will give a more comprehensive report on the issues present in 2024.
This month gives us time to think about the different human rights struggles present today. While celebrating the December holidays, it is important to recognize what privileges we may take for granted. Take this holiday break to better understand what human rights issues you care about and how you can make a difference in the future.
