Equal Justice, Equal Opportunity, Equal Dignity

What are human rights? Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible. The right to live free, to speak your mind and to be treated as equal. According to the United Nations there are a total of 30 human rights. The human rights are the only ones applied to everyone, they are universal. What are they?

Eleanor Roosevelt, the Driving Force Behind the Universal Declaration of Human Rights starting with article 1: "all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights". - Photo Credit: UN Photo/x, New YorkUniversal human rights are often expressed and guaranteed by law, in the forms of treaties, customary international law , general principles and other sources of international law. International human rights law lays down obligations of Governments to act in certain ways or to refrain from certain acts, in order to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals or groups. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a milestone document in the history of human rights.

MARCH 8 is INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY, a holiday to celebrate the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. Photo of women in Dhaka, Bangladesh at an International Women's Day rally, organized by Jatiyo Nari Shramik Trade Union Kendra (National Women Workers Trade Union Centre) [www.civilrights.org]A document drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948.

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has been awarded the Guinness World Record for having collected, translated and disseminated the Universal Declaration of Human Rights into more than 300 languages and dialects: from Abkhaz to Zulu. The Universal Declaration is thus the document most translated - indeed, the most "universal" - in the world.|

Eleanor Roosevelt, President and Chair of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights from December 31, 1946 – December 31, 1952; President and Chair of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights from 1946 to 1952; Chair of the Presidential Commission on the Status of Women from 1961 – 1962 and First Lady of the United States from March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945. Eleanor Roosevelt was born October 11, 1884 New York City and died on November 7, 1962 at the age of 78.Eleanor Roosevelt: “Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home - so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm, or office where he works. Such are the places  where every man woman and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.”

United for Human Rights (UHR) assists and unites individuals, educators, organizations and governmental bodies to implement the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at local, regional, national and international levels. [www.humanrights.com]