Right to Life, Liberty, and Security of Person

Right to Life, Liberty, and Security of Person

Mar 28, 2022

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) contains 30 separate articles each addressing a specific right. This blog will focus on Article 3 which reads: “Everyone has the right to life, liberty, and security of person.”

Current events would make it seem like this right does not exist at all, especially for civilians in Ukraine. The truth is this human right belongs to everyone. The problem is there are not enough people who know their rights so it is difficult for them to stand up for these rights for themselves or others.

The people in charge in Russia are currently violating nearly all 30 of the UDHR articles or human rights for civilians in Ukraine. How could that be? Well, there is something called mutually assured destruction (MAD)* that is keeping freedom-loving countries from stepping in to help.

Brad Schaeffer in an article on dailywire.com said, “We are barely on the other side of the divide of the dawn of the Nuclear Age…the greatest moral challenge humankind has ever had to confront. What do I mean by this? I am not convinced that humanity has developed the moral grounding to be the wise stewards of such awesome power. There are currently over 13,000 nuclear warheads dotting the planet, and I am disconcerted by the notion that no weapons system has ever been developed that was left unused…

The great promise governing these weapons of mass destruction is that MAD (mutually assured destruction) will keep any conflicts hemmed in and local, for the risks of nuclear war in which both parties are annihilated is seen by all sides as unacceptable.”

If we had an ideal culture and a high level of ethics on this planet, something like an atomic weapon would never have been dreamed of, let alone produced! Its only purpose is to destroy lots of life—humans, plants, animals–all life over a widespread area. This could take us into a whole other level of discussion but I believe the point is made.

A few years ago, I attended a gathering with local non-profits in the Philadelphia area. One of the Organization Leaders came to me and said, if you are serious about human rights then you need to talk about atomic weapons and their threat to human rights. At the time I thought it was extreme but now in 2022, we have a Head of State threatening the use of atomic weapons and other Heads of States hesitant to get involved because of MAD. It is all MAD!! We are talking about extinction-level destruction.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights came into existence as a result of the atrocities of the Nazis and the destruction of World War II. We need to learn from History! Let’s be sure to bring these human rights to life and prevent human rights violations and anything even close to World War III from happening. I guarantee YOU will come more to life as well.

We can create an ideal culture where all life thrives!

To learn your 30 human rights, take a free online course here: https://www.humanrights.com/course/

March 1st is Zero Discrimination Day

March 1st is Zero Discrimination Day

Mar 1, 2022

Zero Discrimination Day is a day that is observed annually on March 1st. This holiday was created by the United Nations in 2014 to promote equality throughout the world.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) contains 30 separate articles each addressing a specific right. Article 2 addresses zero discrimination and reads: “Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.

Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional, or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing, or under any other limitation of sovereignty.”

No one should be discriminated against for any reason on any day. However, statistics show discrimination remains prevalent in many areas. When a person is discriminated against, he or she receives different treatment because of their category or group. The person is not seen based on individual merit but based on some category, class, or group bias.

According to a study by the National Bureau of Economic Research, job applicants with African American names have to apply to 50 percent more jobs to get a callback. According to the United States Sentencing Commission, Black men receive sentences that are on average 20 percent greater than white men for the same or similar crimes. source: theodysseyonline.com/7-statistics-that-will-change-view-racism

Stark gender disparities remain in economic and political realms. While there has been some progress over the decades, on average women in the labor market still earn 20 percent less than men globally. As of 2021, only 25 percent of all national parliamentarians were female, a slow rise from 11.3 percent in 1995. source: un.org/en/global-issues/gender-equality

The U.S. Department of Labor enforces roughly 180 laws designed to safeguard workers from discrimination and bias, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission facilitates additional layers of protection for the same purpose. Still, more than 1.8 million cases have been filed with the EEOC in the last two decades. There’s been no major decrease in the total number of discrimination complaints reported to the EEOC since 1997. source: paychex.com/articles/human-resources/eeoc-workplace-discrimination-enforcement-and-litigation

What can you do?

You can practice this particular human right in your daily life by treating all people with respect and dignity. File the appropriate reports if you observe discrimination in your workplace or groups.

And of course, know all 30 of your human rights and educate others to do the same. To get your free human rights educational materials visit: https://www.youthforhumanrights.org/educators/education-package-details.html

 

Definitions from: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/

Declaration: the act of declaring; Announcement – a written or spoken statement that tells people about something

Distinction: the act of perceiving someone or something as being not the same and often treating as separate or different

Entitled: having a right to certain benefits or privileges

Everyone: every person, all

Jurisdictional: the authority of a sovereign power to govern or legislate

Rights: the power or privilege to which one is justly entitled

Sovereignty: a country’s independent authority and right to govern itself

Discrimination,Mind,Map,Flowchart,,Social,Concept,For,Presentations,And,Reports
Act Towards One Another in a Spirit of Brotherhood

Act Towards One Another in a Spirit of Brotherhood

Feb 14, 2022

The United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) contains 30 separate articles each addressing a specific right that we all have. Article 1 reads: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and in rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.”

These are beautiful words and most people would probably agree that We should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Unfortunately, statistics show we are not doing so well in this regard.

Global Estimates on Modern Slavery in 2017, showed on any given day there were likely to be more than 40 million men, women, and children who were being forced to work against their will under threat or who were living in a forced marriage that they had not agreed to, [not to mention sex trafficking.] source: un.org/en/academic-impact/fighting-modern-slavery-through-awareness-and-training

Today, there are thousands of victims of terrorism and their families scattered in all regions of the world, struggling in their solitude with the scars of trauma and injury. source: un.org/victimsofterrorism/en/about/messages-un-victims-terrorism

According to the most recent estimates, 10 percent of the world’s population or 734 million people lived on less than $1.90 a day. source: un.org/en/global-issues/ending-poverty

In contemporary conflicts, up to 90 percent of casualties are civilians, mostly women, and children. Women in war-torn societies can face devastating forms of sexual violence. source: un.org/en/global-issues/peace-and-security

Violence against women and girls is one of the most widespread, persistent, and devastating human rights violations in our world today.

  • 1 in 3 women worldwide have experienced physical or sexual violence.
  • Women and girls are disproportionately subjected to violence, including femicide, sexual violence, intimate partner violence, trafficking, and harmful practices.

source: un.org/en/spotlight-initiative/index.shtml

While these statistics are alarming, they are used to illustrate that we have far to go for all humankind to act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood and sisterhood. Members of our human family are living in horrific conditions every day. Their human rights and dignity are violated with indiscriminate violence. It is simply not ok!

What can you do?

First, know that you can make a difference and that your actions matter. Practice this particular human right in your daily life by how you interact with and treat every person you meet. And of course, know all 30 of your human rights and educate others to do the same.

For a free online course, visit: https://www.youthforhumanrights.org/course

 

Definitions from: www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/

All: every member, the whole amount, everybody, everything

Human Beings: person: a man, woman or child

Free: not subject to the control or domination of another

Equal: like for each member of a group, class, or society

Dignity: the quality of being worthy of honor or respect

Rights: the power or privilege to which one is justly entitled

Endowed: to provide with something freely or naturally

Reason: the power of the mind to think and understand in a logical way

Conscience: a faculty, power, or principle enjoining good acts; the part of the mind that makes you aware of your actions as being morally right or wrong

Spirit: the activating or essential principle influencing a person

Brotherhood: fellowship (quality or state of being comradely); alliance (an association to further the common interests of the members

Are You Ready to Give Up on Being Healthy?

Are You Ready to Give Up on Being Healthy?

Jun 1, 2020

Let’s begin with the definition of the word ‘health’.  Merriam-Webster defines ‘health’ as the condition of being sound in body, mind, or spirit; freedom from physical disease or pain; a condition in which someone or something is thriving* or doing well.  The origin of the word ‘health’ comes from the word ‘whole’. Derivation from dictionary.com

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN public health organization on planet earth, ‘health’ is defined as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

It seems that the WHO has sidestepped the notion of spiritual health—spirit, a key part of a human being–with social.  This may be because the understanding of spirit from a scientific perspective is not great, and the area of spiritual health has been filled with theological doctrines, conflict, warmongering, and so forth.

You can see why true health might be so elusive–difficult to achieve–as even Webster and the WHO are not aligned on the basic definition.

In the United States, emergency care and some diagnostic technology are top notch. However, one does not have to look very far these days to see that the majority of the healthcare system is highly fragmented. There are primary care and specialist doctors addressing different parts of the body. Perhaps prescribing a medication for one thing that then has a side effect such as nausea, memory loss, rash, insomnia, blurry vision, etc.  This may then require a visit to a different specialist who likely prescribes another type of medication with yet another side effect and then a visit to another specialist and so on and so on. Hence the reason why many people present to their primary care provider a laundry list of medications.

Our mental healthcare is even further separated from the physical care. Again, with medications or treatments being prescribed some of which have horrible physical and mental side effects. (a friend of mine repeatedly says, there are no such things as side effects, only effects!)

Still even further separated we have priests, ministers, rabbis or other clergy attempting to address the spiritual part of a human being—many people may not even look at spirituality as a key ingredient to overall health any longer.

Karl Marx once said, ‘religion is the opium of the people’. When researching what Marx meant by that, I found it was not that he was saying religious people are drug addicts but that people are in pain and it like opioid drugs covers the pain and does not get to the source of it.  I am not agreeing with Marx but do agree with finding a solution that gets to the source of pain so that true healing may occur.

We actually have some healthcare “treatments” like antipsychotic drugs, opioids, and even electroshock that oftentimes result in harming a human being and, therefore, their families. People go to experts looking for help and sometimes end up addicted or even worse. This is a gross violation of human rights!

No doubt, we are in need of health treatments and therapies that consider the whole person and get to the source of the illness or injury resulting in actual healing, not a lifetime of prescriptions to cover up symptoms.

Beyond that, some public health practices, like vaccinations or fluoride in drinking water, are to be applauded on one hand, but can go too far when denying human rights on other issues like freedom of choice or by including additives or doses that are harmful to health. It is indeed complicated, when your health may be connected to my health.

Some critics even view the healthcare system as a BIG business whose main focus is not actually healing but keeping people in the system for further profit.

A Holistic Approach

If we can agree that there are 3 parts to a human being–body, mind and spirit. Then, in order to have true health or healing, we would need to consider and address the whole person in whatever treatment is prescribed. How can we have true healing and get to the source of pain if we fail to look at the whole?

So, what is the solution? To start, we need a dramatic shift of viewpoint on healthcare towards a holistic & systems approach vs the fragmentation we currently have.

“The greatest mistake in the treatment of diseases is that there are physicians for the body and physicians for the soul, although the two cannot be separated.” – Plato

Instead of measuring how many people have heart disease, diabetes or glaucoma what if we measured the number of healthy (totally illness-free) citizens and the number of people in our country and world who are thriving? What percentage do you think that would be?

If we put our attention and efforts on people thriving and doing well, it would resolve the majority–if not all–of the human rights and environmental issues we have around the world. Let’s start with a shift of viewpoint onto the whole and an understanding of the true meaning of ‘health’ so that we search for and apply solutions that result in people thriving and doing well!

Post by: Ellen Firestone, December 1, 2019

Published June 16, 2020

*thrive – 1. To grow vigorously : FLOURISH; 2. To gain in wealth or possessions : PROSPER; 3. To progress toward or realize a goal despite or because of circumstances. Source: https://www.meriam-webster.com