Watauga College Blog

2006-05-04T13:38:00.000-04:00

Since my group project was on the aids epidemic in China, I have learned a lot of controversial stuff that has been going on. On August 24, 2002 Dr. Wan, a 38 year old AIZHI (AIDS) Actian Project coordinator and AIDS activist, was reported missing by his friends and family. "Police have since indicated to his colleagues that he has been detained for 'revealing state secrets,' but his exact whereabouts remain unknown." The fact that the chinese government has detained activists is a direct violation of citizens rights to freedom of expression. With this going on there is no way that any progress on this issue can be made. The full article, "Chinese AIDS Activist Honored Despite Ongoing Detention" can be found at this link: http://www.hrw.org/press/2002/09/china0912.htm

Which rights are more important?

2006-05-03T00:15:00.000-04:00

I have been hearing about an increasing number of Phaimacists refusing to sell birth control claiming it is against god's will. Some women really need it because pregnancy would mean a much harder life for themselves and for the possible child. THose who need birth control are not necessarily 'sinners'; some of them are married women who don't want to haave children for one reason or another. So whose rights are more important? Do the women's rights count because not having the pills could violate their right to health and their choices of t heir own bodies and families? Or is it the Pharmacists right to religious expression? I personally believe that a pharmacist has duties to those he serves and therefore, by choosing that profession, does not have the right to withhold birth control. I realize that women can go to other pharmacies, but it does not seem to me that pharmacists can pick and choose their medications. It sets a bad precedent for other medications they might not agree with or trust.

Hundreds of thousands march for immigrant rights on May 1st

2006-05-02T12:47:00.000-04:00

Its been a little over 4 months since the bill to criminalize illegal immigrants passed the U.S. house. Finally a worthy response to this action reached its peak. Large mass demonstrations were held in major cities across the nation in peaceful protest against the government. There were 300,00 in Chicago and 400,000 in Los Angeles. Although the turnout was less than expected, i feel like their voices were finally heard to those who were oblivious to the outrageous actions of our government. read this article.

Alternative Europeans Stand Up Agaginst Repression

2006-05-01T23:45:00.000-04:00

Earlier last month, a large demonstration of people from various subcultures and like factions took to the streets of Strasbourg in France to end repression from more mainstream society. The crowd was made up of members of subcultural music groups, free festival and party organizers, and squatters from around Europe. They proudly waved signs above their heads that read, " Respect our rights," "Free dance!Free people," and "End police brutality!" The European Alternatives Resistance, as the protest was called, was in response to police repression against "subculturists" (assuming that's a word), such as the police attack on a Czech techno festival last summer, in which tear gas and flaling left two people dead and over 50 seriously injured. The protestors chose the city of Strasbourg particularly because it is the home of the European Court of Human Rights, whom they plan to address post-demonstration.

Isreali Strikes and Colonisation

2006-05-01T23:27:00.000-04:00

Isreal has recently stepped up attacks on Palestinian territtories, resulting in the deaths of 16 people, including an eight year old boy and his father and a ten year old girl. Furthermore, Isreal refused a truce with Hamas, the current Palestinian authority, and announced plans to take 20% of the West Bank, surrounding the rest with a detaining wall. This is a clear violation of the right of freedom from deprivation of property, and in my opinion, the frequent bombings and the wall are subjections to cruel and degrading treatment.
For more information and commentary check here: http://www.indymedia.org/en/2006/04/837196.shtml

Justice (Maybe) for the Detainees

2006-05-01T10:17:00.000-04:00

After more than three years and hundreds of unsettling photographs,news stories and eyewitness/witness reports, justice may come to the detainees of Guantanamo Bay and Abu Grahib. 600 U.S servicemen have been implicated with counts of abuse and humilitation of prisoners. This is a huge step in correcting thew wrongs perpetrated by the bush regime and its lack of concern for the basic human rights of military detainees. Watchdog organizations, including HRW are, however, unsure when indictments and trial of the implicated servicement will begin.

Philippine Protests

2006-05-01T10:09:00.000-04:00

With all the talk we have recently had regarding human rights violations in the workforce, I found an excellent article at BBC in regards to Philippine protests to workers rights that are occuring this week.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4961554.stm

Police Abuse and Torture in East Timor

2006-05-01T08:24:00.000-04:00

Recently, there have been a number of cases of police brutality and unlawful detainment in the newly formed nation of East Timor. Police are accused of holding suspects, sometimes arbitrarily, fordays on end, often beating and torturing them for hours. One person reported that the police arrested him after doing nothing more than yelling some coarse words at them. They arrested him without informing him of any charges an held him for 72, during which he was badly injured in the chest. The list of such horrible acts continues, and the huan rights violatons are clearly evident. For more information, go to:

Human Rights Violations against former Biafrans

2006-05-01T02:29:00.000-04:00

A multitude of human rights violations are still being carried out against several ethnic groups in Nigeria, primarily the Igbo people. These ethnic groups, located mainly in the southeast, seceded from the rest of the country in 1967 in order to form the Republic of Biafra. The subsequent Nigerian Civil War was one of the bloodiest conflicts in African history, and it resulted in the deaths of over 1 million Biafran civilians due to the Nigerian government's policies of genocide and starvation. During this war, the Nigerian military created an economic blockade around Biafra and destroyed Biafran farms and food supplies in their campaign against them, effectively starving them out. This is a pretty well-known situation, and rights violations continue to be carried out against former Biafrans today. Some of the pictures of starving Biafrans that came out of the Nigerian Civil War were the first of the kind seen by citizens of western countries. It just goes to show that the Darfur situation is one of the many examples of human rights violations occurring in Africa, largely due to cultural differences and the inability of the Organization for African Unity to have much control over state policies that entrench on human rights. The link is an excellent, though admittedly biased, site with many resources about the war and the Biafrans' ongoing struggle.

www.biafraland.com

AIDS epidemic in the Ukraine

2006-05-01T02:07:00.000-04:00

The AIDS epidemic is worse than its ever been in Europe. Measures are being taken to prevent the spread of HIV, but frequent human rights violations in the Ukraine are making it difficult to quell the epidemic. Instances such as police abuse of intravenous drug users, and the refusal of medical attention to HIV sufferers and high risk patients has undermined the Ukraine's effort in fighting the worst AIDS epidemic Europe has ever seen.

apparently a big week for human rights

2006-04-30T23:13:00.000-04:00

The darfur issue seems to be reaching critical mass, with a 15,000 person rally on the mall in washington DC, and 5 members of congress being arrested for protesting in front of Sudan's embassy...

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2006-04-28-protest_x.htm
http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/04/30/us.sudan.ap/index.html

immigration protest backlash?

2006-04-30T23:03:00.000-04:00

As everyone knows, a massive protest for latino immigrant's rights will be occuring tomorrow. It is true that this is similar to the civil rights movement in the 1960s, however, is the country ready for this now? There still seems to be a great deal of resentment towards the immigrants--apparently this is true even among the naturalized/citizenshipped latino population. Which leads me to believe that this is possibly more a class issue than a race issue. The protest is not neccesarily fighting to end discrimination, but rather, will highlight the importance of immigrant workers to our economy, in the spirit of the labor movement of the industrial age, etc.

US media

2006-04-30T22:33:00.000-04:00

so after trying to surf HRW to find something that hasn't yet been addressed on the blog or in class, i came across this article about the Colombia news media that i found interesting. they are being charged by the Pres. for basically reporting the truth.
"Over the last 2 weeks, major news media have extensively reported on allegations of paramilitary infiltration of the Colombian executive branch's intelligence agency, targeted killings of labor union leaders and academics, and electoral fraud in the 2002 presidential elections. President Uribe has reacted by charging the news media with being dishonest and malicious, and with harming Colombian democratic institutions."

the article then started those little wheels in my brain to start turning, remembering what i've been learning about in leighton's Clash of Civilizations course about the cartoon controversy in Europe and throughout the majority of the world. the questions brought about how far is too far in the media world and the role of the media (which is, if i'm not correct, to INFORM to public and present events and opinions of the public). censorship has been an issue for the media since it's invention and the U.S. still feels the bite of the government on issues today. but this article forced me to step back for a moment and for once be thankful i live in the United States, yes full of ignorance and righteiousness as we can be at times, the freedoms we hold, although sometimes still neglected, throw almost every other country out of the water. just imagine for a moment if the New York Times or CNN was charged by Bush for reporting on botched elections - the country would be in an uproar. don't get me wrong, i've done my share of complaining about the governments influence on the media here and how we don't ever know what's really going on in the world - but, i able to sit in the privacy of my own room and look up information (true or false) about the effectiveness of my government at any given moment without facing charges and all i'm saying is for that i am thankful.

finally some solutions

2006-04-30T22:21:00.000-04:00

two years after the initial Abu Ghraib scandal, recent findings show that abuse of detainees in U.S. custody in Iraq, Afghanistan, and at Guantánamo Bay has been widespread, and that the US has only taken limited steps to investigate and punish implicated personnel. more than 600 have now been implicated in detainee abuse.
-so although the general public, including our contexts have confirmed that what these are blatant human rights violations and that they should be stopped as soon as possibly. but what no one seems to have done is to work positively and productively into putting these thoughts into action... until now that is.
the Detainee Abuse and Accountability Project (a joint project of New York University’s Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, Human Rights Watch and Human Rights First) has produced a 27 page report that presents the findings of their research. the project is the first comprehensive accounting of credible allegations of torture and abuse in U.S. custody in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantánamo.
just thought this was worth posting because it's nice to finally here some solution oriented thinking rather than simply reporting on or complaining about such atrocities.

Nepal's Peace Talks

2006-04-30T17:24:00.000-04:00

So I don't know if it's acceptable to make posts about your project, but I'm really excited about this and so I'm doing it anyway. Our project was specifically focused on child soldiers in Nepal, but more broadly, the conflict between Maoist insurgents and the Nepal government (specifically King Gyanendra) who seized power and effectively destroyed any remnants of democracy in "an effort to combat the failed attempts at suppressing the rebel forces." Of course, the rebel forces (Maoists) constitute a large portion of the population, and furthermore, control most of the countryside outside of the capital. For the past couple of months, well in reality since Gyanendra took power, but moreso recently, the capital has been aflame with protests. The government was initially trying to subdue the protesters, but when that didn't work, which was a couple of weeks ago, they gave in. The king restored the lower house of parliament, which is the elected house, which holds the power of the people (the other is more symbolic). I was excited as hell because our project's topic just took an amazing turn for the better, contrasting all of the horribly depressing things I've been learning about all semester. And now parliament is negotiating with the rebels, there is a three month cease fire, and although the country is far from turning Communist, the demands of the people will begin to be met and the bloodshed can begin to cease.

Comment on Animal Cruelty Post

2006-04-30T17:09:00.000-04:00

You make a good point about the leniency granted to those who perform cruel acts on animals. However, you have to realize that animals and humans are nowhere close when it comes to states of consciousness. It just does not make sense to grant the same punishment for the murder of a human being as the murder of an animal. Although both are cruel and inhumane, the crimes can never be put in the same category of severity.

Animal Cruelty issues

2006-04-30T14:10:00.000-04:00

One night as I was watching "Animal Precinct", it popped in my head that it seems unfair how people that are charged with animal cruelty are generally given a fine, and sometimes jail time if the crime is bad enough, yet if these cruelties had occurred to a human, that person would have a severe punishment, either a life sentence, or possibly life without parole. How can this be justified when these crimes are so horrific and so constantly occurring?

reaction to abortion article

2006-04-30T11:12:00.000-04:00

I do consider this new legislation to be a major violations of human rights, but if we consider what the actual Roe v. Wade decision is based on (privacy) we can now consider many more human rights violations that are being done by the state. I agree that eliminating abortion would just make these women go underground to lesser doctors which would put them in much more harm. This bill is also a violation against arbitrary searches and seichures if we look at it through the eyes of the constitution. I dont think we should worry too much about this bill because I think that it will definetly be overturned at the Supreme Court.

Reaction to lethal injections

2006-04-30T11:08:00.000-04:00

You claim that lethal injections are so inhumane and not sanctioned by HRW. However, we have made much improvement over the years and if you consider that death by firing squad is still legal in many states, I dont think killing someone with lethal injection is too bad when considering what the pain that they caused their victims.

Eliminating Developing Countries Debt

2006-04-29T19:14:00.000-04:00

In the past months I have been learning a lot about the IMF and World Bank, how they work and many of the terrible things that they are doing to developing countries. The IMF and World Bank were supposedly created to alleviate the financial problems many developing countries were having by providing loans with low interest rates. This has not been the case. What the they have been doing in actuality is giving short term loans with huge restrictions on what they can be used for and then they raise the interest rates like crazy, causing these developing countries to plunge further and further into debt. This in turn creates many violations of human rights, in that the country can not supply food or jobs to their citizens. And guess what, the US and five other countries hold 80% of the votes on how the money is allocated. So instead of alleviating these debts, the United States is causing many countries to fall so deep into debt that they will realistically never be able to get out. Why do we continue with this?

ASU's ACLU club

2006-04-26T22:13:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to give a head's up to those of you who find studying and fighting for human rights interesting. ASU has it's very own chapter of the ACLU or the American Civil Liberties Union. This organization's goal is to educate and help those whose civil liberties have been violated (or in simpler terms, if any of the rights set down in the Bill of Rights are violated). If this interests you or you have questions about the organization, do not hesitate to contact me about joining the club next year.

P.S. I also am the vice-president for next year, so please let me know if you are interested so that you can be added to our email list .
Casey

Lethal injections in the US

2006-04-24T22:33:00.000-04:00

"The U.S. takes more care killing dogs than people. Just because a prisoner may have killed without care or conscience does not mean that the state should follow suit. " -Jamie Fellner (HRW)

I found the article on lethal injections in the US really interesting. Although I do not think dogs should be killed either it still says something that our government allows the killing of people in such a painful way. I would assume that some people do not know how lethal injection works because I did not. The prisoner lays on his death bed while three drugs are injected into his veins. The last drug injected, potassium chloride, is injected into a prisoners body and causes a cardiac arrest. However, vetenarians are not allowed to do this until the dog is put to sleep. Human Rights Watch is against capital punishment and urges states to stop execution until alternative methods are found. I find it ironic that someone is put to death because they killed someone. Is that not doing the same thing? Until recently the United States was the only country in the world that used lethal injections for execution.

Outlawing Abortion...

2006-04-24T15:39:00.000-04:00

(I guess this supplements Emily's recent post- see below)

As some of you may be aware, the Governor of South Dakota signed into law a bill that outlaws abortions state-wide in December of last year. Although there are some exceptions (preventing the death of the mother, for example), this new law poses many threats to the financial, physical, and emotional well-beings of the numerous women of S.D. who will seek to have the operation performed in the future. For example, before the legislation that was issued from the Roe v. Wade case took effect, many women in the US had illeagal abortions (which severely jeopardized thier health). If this new law isn't appealed, many more women will take the same actions and put themselves at similar risks. I feel that this new law is not only a direct violation of a number of human rights (the most central of them being "Health"), but I also feel that it was passed under the persuasion of religious motives (those of the Governor and of his many coservative supporters). To learn more, you can visit the post link, or the one below.

http://www.prochoiceamerica.org/choice-action-center/take-action/south-dakota-ban.html

Solitary Confinement for 23 years...

2006-04-21T13:48:00.000-04:00

In 1983 at the USP Marion Federal Prison in Illinois a "lock down" went into effect after two different incidents of violence occured. Every prisoner was put into solitary confinement. 23 years later this lock down has still not been lifted. Visit the website to learn more details.

way to treat the women

2006-04-20T19:47:00.000-04:00

Mexican officials actively prevent rape victims from gaining access to legal and safe abortion, and they fail to punish rape and sexual violence inside and outside the family, said Human Rights Watch

“Pregnant rape victims are essentially assaulted twice,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “First by the perpetrators who raped them, and then by officials who ignore them, insult them and deny them a legal abortion.”

In Mexico, abortion in general is illegal, but rape victims have the legal right to a safe abortion under all state criminal codes. However, women and girls who approach the authorities to exercise this right face multiple obstacles, Human Rights Watch found.

A number of agencies in various Mexican states – particularly the state attorney general’s office, public hospitals and family services – employ aggressive tactics to discourage and delay rape victims’ access to legal abortion. A social worker in Jalisco, for example, showed scientifically inaccurate anti-abortion videos to a 13-year-old girl who had been raped and impregnated by a family member. Some public prosecutors threatened rape victims with jail for procuring a legal abortion, and many doctors told women and girls, without cause, that an abortion would kill them.

it's really sad that even legal abortions aren't being afforded to these rape victims in mexico. they are being forced into back alleys and risking death to have unsafe abortions on their own. on the issue of human rights globally, you would think that women would be treated much much better because they provide life. i guess things aren't always how they should be.

more info on this is on the hrw website http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2006/02/23/mexico12712.htm

emily

Tell Bush what's up in Darfur!!!

2006-04-20T16:04:00.000-04:00

This is a super easy way to tell the monkey that runs our country to get his act together, and it takes 30 seconds.

go to...

http://www.millionvoicesfordarfur.org/

and fill in the required fields and then...booyakasha you just told him!!!!

You best check your self before you wreck your self,

Cooper

PLA and Hamas

2006-04-18T12:57:00.000-04:00

ok, I don't know if anyone has been following this, but the US and the EU dropped all of their funding to the PLA about 10 days ago. Many countries have been pledging to increase their donations to the PLA to offset this. Many Arab nations, such as Qatar, have already pledged a dollar amount, and Russia has pledged to give emergency aid but have not stipulated how much. The US and EU can only make this situation more volatile by withdrawing their money. Hamas won the western mandated democratic elections in the PLA and the west didn't like this. Yes, Hamas is a terrorist organization, but taking money from the PLA does nothing to stop the funding to Hamas, it only hurts the peace process. Terrorism as we know it today started in Israel and Palestine and our actions only further the reasons for attack. This was unfair of the US and they need to see their mistakes. Global politics is run by extremist positions, and if we can't negotiate with extremists then we will never have world peace. The US needs to understand that their money and influence doesn't run everything. We can be sure to see more human rights violations in Palestine because of the west's actions.

Sudan vs. Congo?

2006-04-17T19:44:00.000-04:00

So yeah, I read a few articles the other day that seemed to me to say that Sudan and Congo are having some border problems. It seems that refugees from Darfur are running to the Congo, where they are being attacked by the Sudanese fighters, undermining the Congo's sovereignty. Congo is under internal political pressure as well, it seems that their president is trying to serve a life sentence. These issues are pretty relevant if you view the world in Samuel Huntington's paradigm of a Clash of Civilizations. You see, the Sudanese-Congo border is a fault-line in the Sahel regionof Africa between the African and Islamic Civiliztions and this could be seen as pressure to expand their borders. Each country is funding resistance in each other's country and also calling for the other to stop. We need some real negotiation here, the problem is, the Islamic and African civilizations don't have a strong core state, leaving them no option but to simply fight it out. I would say that we should step in, but every time the United States steps in somewhere, people complain about cultural imperialism. Oh well, world politics is a sticky thing, I just hope this doesn't evolve into an all out war.

Talk on Emmett Till

2006-04-07T08:45:00.000-04:00

On Wednesday, April 12, Christopher Metress, the editor of the collection "The Lynching of Emmett Till," will give a talk on this infamous 1955 murder and will show selections from the new documentary "The Untold Story of Emmett Till." The presentation will begin at 4 pm in the Calloway Peak room of the Plemmons Student Union and is open to the public.

Missing Chinese AIDS activist

2006-04-06T15:27:00.000-04:00

So I found this article from reuters.com, and apparently there is a wife of a missing AIDS activist in China (who's been gone for over a month) and she has no idea where her husband is. She has continually requested information from the police and state security, but they won't tell her anything. "The 32-year-old Hu Jia went missing after going on a hunger strike with several others to protest what they said was the government's hiring of thugs to beat up civil rights campaigner Yang Maodong in the southern province of Guangdong in February." Shit sucks and this guy's wife has been trying to figure out what has happened to her husband, but she's found no information about what's happened to him.

photos of immigrants and vigilante border patrol group

2006-04-06T13:29:00.000-04:00

http://border.cf.huffingtonpost.com/mm.html

MIGRANTS, MINUTEMEN DOCUMENT BORDER CONFLICT
Every day, thousands of undocumented migrants attempt to gain entry into the United States by crossing the increasingly dangerous U.S.- Mexico border. In response to the lack of border security, a group of Americans called the "Minutemen" have taken it upon themselves to try and stop the flow. For the last 6 months, we have been giving both groups disposable cameras to document their lives along the border. These are their photos.

it's worth a look.

Review Question #5

2006-04-06T12:36:00.000-04:00

Non governmental organizations help to bring about change and improvements by sponsoring movies such as "The Education of Shelby Knox." These groups also support non governmental news sources like Human Rights Watch. They put things into the news that the government wouldn't like the issue with immigrants. They also lobby to get political leaders to vote in favor of human rights. Another thing is they might look for loopholes that would allow those that are having their rights violated to win in court.

The Original 31 Demands from the Attica Rebellion

2006-04-05T19:28:00.000-04:00

http://www.courttv.com/onair/shows/mugshots/indepth/attica/

http://www.courttv.com/onair/shows/mugshots/indepth/attica/31_demands.html

In September 9, 1971 in upstate New York, around 1,300 prisoners set up a rebellion. They proceeded to take the guards hostage, and everyone gathered in the yard of the prison. The reason for this rebellion was due to awful conditions in the prison system. While the rebellion was taking place, there were inmates that had loudspeakers, reading off a list of demands that they wanted. The links above show you the original 31 demands. Its interesting to look at the list and compare it to Donnelly's list of human rights. Check it out!!!!!!!!!!!

Post all review question answers here

2006-04-05T11:44:00.000-04:00

Post all review question answers as comments after this post. Be sure to put your name, group, and question number.

Really cool talk!

2006-04-05T11:29:00.000-04:00

Gloria Goodwin Raheja
Professor of Anthropology and Global Studies
University of Minnesota

Presents

Conjoined Histories: Blackface Blues in Appalachia

Monday, April 10, 2006, 3:30 p.m. Roan Mountain Room Plemmons Student Union

Gloria Goodwin Raheja will present part of her ongoing research on popular culture, race and class in the U.S. In this paper she draws upon historical and musicological sources to investigate the complex intersections of race and class in the Appalachian coalfields and railroad camps in the 1920s and 30s. She shows how black and white performances of blues music in these landscapes produced similar critiques of capitalist labor arrangements, and novel and often ambiguous class and race affiliations in a rapidly changing landscape of southern industrial labor. From her studies she has become interested in the ways that blues historiography has erased these aspects of music history and thus naturalized or rendered invisible significant aspects of the history of industrialization and capitalism in the U.S. South that in many ways shaped this music.

This talk is co-sponsored by the Department of Anthropology, the Department of English, the Appalachian Studies Program, and the Dean of Arts and Sciences. Contact: Diane Mines, Anthropology, 262-6382.

Haiz's post - Morality, Universalism, Human Rights, and Global Social, Economic, and Political Systems

2006-04-05T10:38:00.000-04:00

Throughout Universal Human Rights Jack Donnelly consistently appeals to the idea of “the overlapping international consensus on human rights” as a foundation for the promotion of a “Universal Declaration Model” of human rights. He describes this consensus as “relatively uncontroversial” and on page 41 he claims that “the basic moral equality of all human beings is not merely accepted but strongly endorsed by all leading comprehensive doctrines in all regions of the world.” In my opinion these assertions of universality are largely unsupported by the world we live in today. Recent decades have witnessed the rise of fundamentalist groups within Christianity, Islam and other “comprehensive doctrines” that assert the incompatibility of their traditions with any concept of the moral equality of all people. Donnelly does not sufficiently address the problems such schools of thought create for an argument centered on a global consensus surrounding the rights inherent to the human condition; nor does he admit the popularity of such ideas even within more moderate factions of world religions. Though on page 73 Donnelly admits that according to classic Islamic values, human rights as constructed by divine law are the rights only of male Muslims of a mature age, he attempts to construe this way of thinking as an insufficient or even inferior perception of Islamic values. Here Donnelly glosses over difference and plurality in a manner which serves to exemplify a consistent weakness in his argument for grounding universal human rights in a consensus about human dignity, human nature, and “the rights we have because we are human.”

Obviously I find an argument for human rights based on “overlapping global consensus” to be highly problematic. However, I still strongly support the global human rights initiative and find other elements of Donnelly to be far more convincing. Specifically, I am more comfortable with an approach centered on politics, and economics, than on universal morality. The following quotations represent what I believe to be a stronger element of his argument. It is important to note that there is still an implicit moral argument here about the conditions necessary for a reasonable quality of life. On page 78 Donnelly states:

The historical connection of human rights with the West is more accident or effect than cause. Westerners had no special proclivity that led them to human rights. Rather, the West had the (good or bad) fortune to suffer the indignities of modern markets and states before other regions… as those regions and civilizations have been similarly penetrated by modern markets and states, the social conditions that demand human rights have been created.

Consider these questions for your response. Do not simply bitch about Donnelly. It will not count towards your total number of posts.

What are the “social conditions” created by modern markets and states that generate the need for a human rights model?
Are modern states and markets that create these social conditions moral? Why or why not? What about the American dream?
How does a human rights model based on global political and economic systems differ from one based on a conception of “the rights we have because we are human?”
Does any political or economic based argument for human rights contain an implicit moral argument? How?
Keeping in mind my argument, can there be a moral approach to human rights that avoids excessive universalism?
To what degree are universal human rights compatible with the moral plurality present in the world today? Reference real world examples.
Is this idea of “allowing for moral plurality” that I suggest simply an ethically flaccid resort to cultural relativism?

Please feel free to generally support, disagree with, nit-pick, build upon, or poke holes in my argument. However, you must support anything you say with coherent reasoning and evidence. In other words - no bullshit responses- i.e. "I agree with Haiz, Donnelly is stupid."

ACLA ASU presentation

2006-04-03T12:16:00.000-04:00

"Contemporary Issues Facing the GLBT Community"

Hear personal stories and debate about discrimination, hate crimes, same-sex marriage, gay adoption, and other issues.

Wed. April 5

7 pm [before the play!]

Linville Falls Room - 2nd floor of the student union.

FREE PIZZA AND REFRESHMENTS!

review sessions on Thursday night

2006-04-03T12:14:00.000-04:00

Haiz LLR 365 7 pm

Adam LLR 321 8 pm

Brad LLR 321 9:30

US Poverty: Using the Appalachian RC Example

2006-04-03T08:46:00.000-04:00

Okay, thematically since Adam already went there and I am, by birthright, a proud East Tennessee native, I thought I would discuss poverty in the United States by using the Appalachian Regional Commision's stats for the Appalachian Region. We have spent a lot of time reviewing human right's violations elsewhere in the world. Perhaps we can bring it home by reviewing the following compiled stats for the Appalachian Regional (as gov't defined) here in the good ole U.S. of A.

http://www.arc.gov/search/LoadQueryData.do?queryId=28

Now to best understand this data, you should know that the ARC defines Appalachia as 406 counties found in 13 states, including all of WV and portions of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. A very limited summary of the history of the program can be found here:

http://www.arc.gov/index.do?nodeId=7

To quite a few people this ARC definition of the region is quite biased. This is because it lumps a large portion of the United States together, seeing at least in part as culturally similar. If you look closely at the map, however, it becomes clear that this is not the case. Several areas included the suburbs of large cities. Moreover, it is probably better described as North, Central, and Southern Appalachia with minotr deviations such as Shenendoah/Great Valley, Blue Ridge, etc..... (perhaps best defined in John Alexander Williams' Appalachia: A History.

So I would like you to look at the figures for at least to states. Take NC for example:

http://www.arc.gov/search/LoadQueryData.do?queryId=29&county=1&fips=37000

And, for Adam's sake, try West Viriginia:

http://www.arc.gov/search/LoadQueryData.do?queryId=29&county=1&fips=54000

Anybody ready to pack up and head to Webster County, WV?

You really want to be sick? Look at these:

http://www.arc.gov/search/LoadQueryData.do?queryId=16
NC: http://www.arc.gov/search/LoadQueryData.do?queryId=16&county=1&fips=37000
WV: http://www.arc.gov/search/LoadQueryData.do?queryId=16&county=1&fips=54000

Anybody want to send their Kids to a McDowell County, WV school? A 50% high school graduation rate---what is that about?

Feel free to play around here and see what you come up with:
http://www.arc.gov/index.do?nodeId=56

So what are we to do? Anything? Is is it a violation of rights that a significant portion of children do not graduate high school? What about the staggering portion of non-college attendees? The ARC is attempting to help but is bogged down as a "bi-partisan" agency that often gets caught up in road-building exercises, bc they believe that by doing so more manifacturing will enter the region. This has met limited success. Is it enough that an organization such as this exists? They have had a hand in things such as the National Parks System and the TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority, but both of these can be seen as violating the rights of some--through immminent domain, etc. What abouth the fact that significant tracts of land are held by people from outiside the region? See Who Owns Appalachia concise examples of this. This is a big problem here in Watauga. Is it fair to make the region a playground for the rich by ripping of the locals? This a debatable point and perhaps why Watauga County's stats are a bit higher than average. Quite a few of the Southern Appalachian States are "Right to Work States," which greatly discourages labor unions. Is this a HR violation?

Last, but by no means least, think about that the stereotypes associated with "mountain people." In fatc, it stands to reson that they are one of the last groups in America that is safe to make fun of. Comics such as Snuffy Smith still run in newspapers. Dogpatch is equally famous---look it up.

http://www.lil-abner.com/dogpatch.html

Appalachians are generally viewed as slovenly idiots who abuse women, are ignorant and won't work. Am I wrong? Man, they even tried to back a "Real Beverly Hillbillies" TV show a few years back. What about Jesco White? Look at popular TV shows such as "The Family Guy" for further stereotypes. I even imagine you use a few of your own, and may or may not realize it. I am not saying that Appalachians have had it the worst in this country--please don't read too deeply into that. Just that it is safe to see them as caricatures when it suits us. What would you think if the newspapers ran popular comics doing the same with any given race, relgion, creed, or even body type? Is this a violation of a life of dignity? Appalachians are seen as low-protestant (even in cases snake-handling) religious freaks, who are dirt poor, buying into fatalism and the culture of poverty. What do you think? Don't worry, I ave plenty of examples if anyone out there bites on this one.

Death Penalty in the United States

2006-03-31T10:22:00.000-05:00

A continuing debate within the United States is over legal killings through capital punishment. The US is the only industrialized nation that continues with the practice.

Capital punishment was stopped in 1973 in the United States, but reinstated in 1976. The Supreme Court found execution to be unconstitutional under the eighth amendment in the Bill of Rights- which protects against cruel and unusual punishment. Yet, that decision was reversed.

Of the states that continue the practice, almost all reserve the death penalty for heinous crimes- first degree murder, aggravated murder, capital murder (etc). A few include aggravated rape, kidnap with serious bodily injury, treason, and aircraft hijacking.

Texas has the highest number of executions within the United States.

States without the death penalty include- Alaska, Hawaii, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Both New York and Kansas in 2004 declared the death penalty unconstitutional- and New York recently blocked it from being reinstated… New Jersey recently issued a moratorium on the death penalty to determine whether the death penalty is constitutional or not.

Arguments over the death penalty range from rights of the victims- who argue statistics of the 1000 inmates killed there has been almost 1900 victims. Throwawaythekey.org wants harsher punishments for offenders and repeat offenders- so that they cannot hurt another person. Also, the death penalty serves as a deterrent to future criminals.

Anti-death penalty groups argue that the death penalty isn’t really a deterrent, and that it costs more to keep an inmate on death row than inmates in for life. There is also a larger percentage of African Americans on death row than any other race/ethnicity. There is a moral/ethical question to legally killing people, as well as the question of innocents that are on death row- which suggests problems within the system as a whole.

For more information:

Pro-Death Penalty Websites
http://www.throwawaythekey.org/
http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/

Anti-Death Penalty Websites
http://web.amnesty.org/pages/deathpenalty-index-eng
http://www.hrw.org/doc/?t=usa_deathpenalty
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/

I would ask- how is the death penalty a question of human rights- is it the right of the victim to have their killer “killed back”? Do we have the means to justify taking another human life- in a moral or ethical sense? Are the problems with the death penalty really a sign of bigger problems within the “system” as a whole?

Perhaps- some of you would be willing to give faces to both the victims and the perpetrators… both sides are ultimately very human.

In response to Adam's Post

2006-03-29T19:13:00.000-05:00

I know from personal experience of "sacrifice zones" in my home town of Fairview, NC. Here we have many zoning issues and although many of the natives are trying to keep the land unharmed, rich businessmen come in and buy off the farmers. They don't have much of a choice here, because they want to keep their land, but they can't make a living off of it, and they don't want to sell it, because it has been theirs and it has belonged to their family for decades. They aren't necessary "living" off of the land, but they are living on it, and that is where they make their living, even if it is an impoverished one. I've also heard of many circumstances where a large chain store (Lowes in particular) wanted to lay foundation where a family was living, and they refused to leave, so the company just built around them. As ridiculous as it sounds, large corporations are willing to do what ever they can to set up new stores, and it may not be directly a human rights issue, but all people have a right to the land they have bought and they have a right to keep it, regardless if the government or anyone else wants it for corporate purposes. Personally I believe that the land should stay with its owner, or the owner has a fair choice if faced in a similar circumstance. Capitalism has taken over its fair share of our country, and I believe the rest should be left for the families who have been living on it for centuries, long before any big-business came about.

And I also believe Wal-Mart should only be able to build one store about every 25 miles, or have to make sure another store can fit in its space before it leaves to a larger lot for a Super Wal-Mart to be built, and if no store can fit, it doesn't move. Period. This is a horrible waste of land, for a store that is putting everyone else out of business, so that bigger versions can be moved into small towns, and run over the little guy. This has happened to my family, and it needs to be stopped, but until someone with a brain can help out our government, it'll most likely continue to happen. Many people don't even think of this because it doesn't affect them, but for those of us who have already been affected, it's a big deal. Paying a few cents or even a few dollars more for items that don't come from labor-intensive factories are really worth the extra dollar. We need to help our economy just as much as we need to keep friendly export/import resources available, and by buying from a local grocer or Mom n' Pop store is a great start for doing just that.

The coal fields of central Appalachia are not free.

2006-03-29T10:55:00.000-05:00

The coal fields of central Appalachia are not free.

Somewhere near the Asian values section, Donally talks about the dichotomy between development and human rights. Specifically he talks about whether or not it is acceptable on the international arena to violate human rights for the sake of economic development. The obvious case in example is the third world in general. Specifically, think about the rain forests; indigenous peoples are losing their right to their culture and family lives when they are driven off their traditional lands as the forests are cleared for agriculture, specifically, ranches.
This debate may be difficult to internalize because we are not directly affected by third world development in our everyday consciousness. But what about when human rights are sacrificed for economic prosperity, not development? That is to ask is it acceptable, for the sake of our own economic well-being and comfort for human rights violations to continue to occur in order to feed the fires of the black furnace capitalism?
Case in point: Coal fields of Appalachia are not free; the people live under the dictatorship of King coal and for over 150, the people living in this region have been at the mercy of the violent whims of what is good for the coal industry. Everyday coal miners enter into unsafe working conditions, blatant violations of industry safety standards, so that the rest of the nation might have cheap electricity. Not only are the miners themselves at risk and suffer HR working violations, but everyone living in the area must reckon with the reality of a high impact mineral extraction economy.
Communities all over the coal fields are faced with poisoned water supplies, flooding, the threat of sludge impoundment dam failure, dangerous coal dust, and a public opinion that there is no point to fight for the interests of the people while there is so much power vested in the coal companies. The people living in these areas do not have the same life that the rest of America can enjoy. They live in a sacrifice zone that is being pillaged and ravaged for the sake of cheap electricity.

What other examples are there of such “sacrifice zones” in our own country?

Is the reality of this example and others acceptable if it provides for the stability and growth of our economic system?

Are there other nations that prosper without the exploitation of their citizens?

What kind of actions can we take to lessen our dependence on such HR violations?

Do you think many people think about this sort of thing? If not is that a problem?

How is this a commentary on capitalism, globalization and modernity?

Review Questions 2 [complete!]

2006-03-28T15:27:00.000-05:00

1. How did the multilateral (United Nations) institutions for addressing human rights come about, and why (136)? What are the strengths and limitations of these global organizations in bringing about improvements in human rights? (speak generally, you do not have to name committees – we are looking here at lack of enforcement potential and the importance of public opinion. See pp. 129, 132-138).

2. Compare how human rights issues are dealt with at the regional level at multilateral institutions in Europe, The Americas, and Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Why is Europe so successful in promoting human rights? What are the limitations of the regional human rights regime in the Americas? In Africa, Asia, and the Middle East? Use explicit examples (138-145)

3. In what way could the failure to insist on universal norms for human rights be seen as a kind of racism or elitism? (159. Hint: why should we think that only people in richer countries need or want human rights?)

4. What means do states have to push for human rights to be honored abroad (164)? What constraints are they likely to feel in doing so (166)? What, overall, are the effects and limitations of multilateral and bilateral action in bringing about human rights? (NB: be sure to consider the “unintended” consequences of foreign policy in harming human rights, such as U.S. anti-communism).

5. Donnelly makes little comment on the role of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private advocacy groups in bringing about improvements in human rights. In light of his analysis of the global human rights regimes, how do you think these groups work to bring about improvements? Does this fit with what you have seen on one of the most important of those advocacy groups, Human Rights Watch? What about the role of such groups in promoting human rights within a country? (e.g. immigrant rights).

6. “A government that respects human rights is almost always the legacy of persistent national political struggles against human rights violations.” (180). Explain, using examples. What does this imply for the importance of international human rights action? [that it is limited! Local and national action are central]. Apply this to the case of human rights issues within the United States [HRW on US. Overview of HR in US at http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/01/18/usdom12292.htm].

7. Analyze the following cases as examples of effective action for ending violations of human rights (a) Guatemala’s civil war, (b) your project case.

8. Write a paragraph describing the human rights being violated and the remedy to the situations portrayed in each of the following: “Yesterday,” “The Education of Shelby Knox,” and “Closets are for Clothes.” What do you see as the role of the arts in promoting or undermining human rights? [you can think about music as well here].

9. Describe (or draw!) a map which exaggerates and one which understates a human rights issue, such as child labor or arbitrary arrest [this is an example of data manipulation – think about colors or icons as Dr. Schroeder represented on casualties in Iraq].

10. What are some important distinctions between what we generally consider environmentalism and the goals and principles of the environmental justice movement? What are the implications of human rights for analyzing environmental degradation? [it has effects on peoples’ health, potential for making a living, etc.]. How might approaches to environmental justice affect thinking on human rights in the future? [future generations have human rights too!].

11. “The enjoyment of all human rights is both a means and an end of development.” Explain what this means for the definition of development [can it be defined only in economic terms, of having more stuff?], an understanding of how development does and should happen [if more people are educated, how does that influence political participation, health, and economic productivity? What goals should be targeted to bring development about? HR are “indivisible, interrelated, and inter-dependent”], and what the role of poor people is in this process [“shifts the focus from the fact that poor people have needs to the fact that poor people have human rights” and therefore empowers them to demand those rights). [All of these are implications of thinking about development in terms of human rights, as opposed to how it was thought of before. See “Human Rights Based Approaches,” http://www.ihrnetwork.org/hr-based-approaches.htm

12. Why does Donnelly prefer to discuss the human rights of “sexual minorities,” rather than the rights of GLBT people? How does he define these minorities? [p. 229]. In your opinion, are there currently any “sexual minorities” besides GLBT folks who are systematically denied their rights on the basis of their sexuality or sexual practices? [Some would argue that anyone who does not practice monogamy in the context of heterosexual marriage is subject to discrimination in some form in the US, e.g. promiscuous people (or even those accused of promiscuity) losing child custody battles on the grounds of their sexual practices. Please note that Donnelly is not arguing that any sexual practice is ok and should never be constrained; child abusers are committing a crime and violating the rights of children…though this still leaves open the legitimate possibility for discussing the appropriate age of consent for sexual activity, which is 16 in Great Britain, for example]. What rights of sexual minorities are currently being violated around the world?

13. Recalling Donnelly’s argument that the history of the “international consensus” on the list of universal human rights, describe the rise of discussion of the rights of sexual minorities in the international human rights regime. [Look at the “Anatomy of a Backlash” article, which discusses the 1994 World Conference on Population and Development declaration that having a satisfying sex life was essential to health (p. 1). The political rise of feminism and then the GLBT movement were also important here.]

14. “[R]ights activists must see defending sexual rights not as a distraction from their traditional preoccupation, but as a necessary and logical development. Human rights are the possessions of embodied human beings, whose dignity is bound up with the capacity to inhabit and experience their bodies as their own” (Long 3). Discuss. [later in the essay, Long suggests that it is the move “beyond consciences to bodies” that is one of the major reasons for the backlash against LGBT rights, especially when those rights are being advocated from a human rights perspective. You might think about other ways in which people’s bodies are not thought of as theirs to use as they will (e.g. suicide in the case of terminal illness).]

15. How have the attacks on LGBT rights in the “backlash” described by Long been perceived by human rights activists as “aimed at all of their work and at the core values of human rights themselves” (7). Explain, using examples. [core issue is that entitlement thing – if “freedom is a gift, not a given” (6), it can be taken away, from anyone, and if minorities’ rights are not secure, then no one’s is].

16. Long argues that “Rights work…does not promise the dissolution of cultures or the annihilation of traditions. It helps to ensure that they remain responsive to the human beings they contain” (17). What does he mean? Is there an appropriate limit on behavior or speech which should be set by “community morality,” and which is consistent with a human rights perspective in your view? Explain, using examples, including one or more from “The Education of Shelby Knox” and/or “Closets are for Clothes.” [See Long 11-12 for more on this. What constitutes “the community”? Are all claims about “community perspectives” accurate. Is the will of the majority an appropriate decision-making measure, even when accurately represented? Doesn’t that mean that truly dissenting perspectives will always be shut down? Be careful about saying that people can do what they want in private as long as they don’t talk about it – the compulsion to silence or invisibility is experienced as the defining aspect of their oppression by many minorities.]

17. What human rights are being violated in the case of immigrant workers in the US meat and poultry industry? How could this be rectified? What means will be necessary for this to occur in the US? [think about the rights issue in terms of their status as workers – all workers have certain rights as workers (see Donnelly p. 24 for a review) and as immigrants – differential treatment because they are immigrants is discrimination]. Doesn’t the fact that some immigrant workers are not here legally matter for analyzing their work situation in terms of human rights?

18. Humanitarian intervention by states to prevent mass killings or other atrocities has not been the norm in the past (or even now). What is the impediment to intervention in international law and practice? Even for those who believe that humanitarian intervention should be the norm, why would they hesitate to assert the right or obligation for any state to intervene for humanitarian purposes? [248] Current efforts to establish grounds for humanitarian intervention are based on what principles, which are aimed at addressing the fears above? [explicit rules for intervention, decided through international negotiation, and intervention not legal unless decided by multilateral bodies authorized to do so]. Has or will this approach worked in the case of Darfur? Why or why not?

19. Donnelly argues that “[t]he interdependence of all human rights, and the underlying idea that human rights are about a life of dignity and not mere life, makes acting only against genocide highly problematic. We place ourselves in the morally paradoxical position of failing to respond to comparable or even greater suffering as long as it remains geographically or temporally” (252). Do you agree? Are their human rights violations besides mass killings over a short period of time that you think justify intervention? Explain, using examples. [Think about that “short period of time” caveat, for example – people killed over 20 years are just as dead as people killed in 100 days. Why is intervention not seen as an obligation in former case but not in the latter? Is this right? Why or why not?]

20. Do we have the human right to loving, supportive parents? Explain, taking into account Donnelly’s arguments (10-11), Hochschild’s, essay, and Article 9 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child referred to there (see below). [open-ended. Think about what it means for a child to live a life of human dignity. You might argue that it isn’t parents per se, but loving caretakers. But then what about Hochschild’s article?] Is care and love something that is denigrated or ignored in the discussion of human rights generally? Does this matter for our understanding of human rights?

Article 9 Convention on the Rights of the Child
1. States Parties shall ensure that a child shall not be separated from his or her parents against their will, except when competent authorities subject to judicial review determine, in accordance with applicable law and procedures, that such separation is necessary for the best interests of the child. Such determination may be necessary in a particular case such as one involving abuse or neglect of the child by the parents, or one where the parents are living separately and a decision must be made as to the child's place of residence.
2. In any proceedings pursuant to paragraph 1 of the present article, all interested parties shall be given an opportunity to participate in the proceedings and make their views known.
3. States Parties shall respect the right of the child who is separated from one or both parents to maintain personal relations and direct contact with both parents on a regular basis, except if it is contrary to the child's best interests.
4. Where such separation results from any action initiated by a State Party, such as the detention, imprisonment, exile, deportation or death (including death arising from any cause while the person is in the custody of the State) of one or both parents or of the child, that State Party shall, upon request, provide the parents, the child or, if appropriate, another member of the family with the essential information concerning the whereabouts of the absent member(s) of the family unless the provision of the information would be detrimental to the well-being of the child. States Parties shall further ensure that the submission of such a request shall of itself entail no adverse consequences for the person(s) concerned.

CONVENTION ON PROTECTION OF CHILDREN AND CO-OPERATION IN RESPECT OF INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION
(Concluded 29 May 1993)
(Entered into force 1 May 1995)

[this is the preamble]

The States signatory to the present Convention,

Recognizing that the child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding,

Recalling that each State should take, as a matter of priority, appropriate measures to enable the child to remain in the care of his or her family of origin...

Ch. 14 Humanitarian Intervention Against Genocide

2006-03-27T12:04:00.000-05:00

Read pp. 242-244, 247-254

Things to think about: What arguments are there *against* humanitarian intervention? What contsitutes a good reason to intervene? Should there be intervention for things other than mass killings? Explain.

Please keep your eye out for the review questions, which I will post *and add to* over the next week.

Migration and Immigrant Workers

2006-03-27T11:59:00.000-05:00

Here are a few web sites to look at for more information on migration and immigration issues:

National Immigration Law Center: http://www.nilc.org/

LA Times, "500,000 Pack Streets to Protest Immigration Bills": http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-immig26mar26,1,4493204.story?coll=la-headlines-california

For comment as part of your blog requirement. You may ask or say anything thoughtful (and you do not have to be pro or anti).

Is this a new civil rights movement? Should it be?

Cynthia

2006-03-27T02:05:00.000-05:00

Two or three posts down from here, I link to a story about a public school in New York City with a structure based around the teaching of human rights issues.

Bringing in principles and ideas from Donnelly, and making sure not to lie with statistics, design/talk about/meander upon a type of education based around the teaching of human rights - in your answer, it might be helpful to use an utopian perspective or to cite examples from the human rights watch readings, or a movie we've seen.

Link to my ASU Comic Blog

2006-03-25T15:48:00.000-05:00

I was just posting the link to my blog where I will start posting the comics I do for the ASU newspaper [and any other comics I do, either for the Village Idiot or myself]. I'll also place any feedback I recieve from people and post my responses to those.

I'd also love to hear feedback from you guys also, because at first I didn't take this job very seriously, but now I am actually trying to do this professionally. So I welcome and criticism- be it negetive or positive.

Thanks!
Vonda

My Blogger

New Blog Rules

2006-03-22T11:17:00.000-05:00

Each of the student assistants and I will be posting on a human rights issue. You need to post twice before the end of the semester (by 9 am May 1, but preferably before) - either comments on our posts, or respond to other people's comments. Let's make this a real and interesting conversation, starting as soon as the posts appear. You will not be given credit for posts or comments on previous posts for this part of the semester.

Cheers,

Cynthia

Paper #2 assignment

2006-03-20T13:57:00.000-05:00

For this paper, you will write 2-3 pages (500-750 words), analyzing an issue emerging in your Textures class from the perspective of human rights. You will need to summarize the issue (briefly!), since your reader may not be familiar with the topic. This must be an original paper for this class, not a recycling of something you have already written for Textures. As much of the paper as possible should be analysis, supported with evidence from class readings. This is NOT a research paper, and the words on the paper should be your own, with very brief quotes from others as needed. However, you must include at least one reference to reading from your Textures class and one from Contexts. Because your topics will be different, I cannot be too specific about how you should write the paper; the direction that you take can vary depending on your approach, as long as you stay on the topic of human rights in relation to your chosen issue in Textures. Due at the beginning of class on 4/19, though you are welcome to turn it in early. Late papers will be penalized one letter grade for every day late.

The papers will be evaluated as follows:
An “A” paper will provide a comprehensive, interesting, and well-developed argument with respect to human rights concerns and the Textures issue it discusses, demonstrating a sophisticated understanding of human rights materials. It will be well-organized and support its argument with evidence from class material without filling the paper with long quotes (because the words and voice in the paper are primarily those of the student). It will be well-written, typo-free, grammatically correct, and turned in on time. It will give adequate attention to explaining the topic, but be dominated by the student’s own analysis, and include at least one reference to material from Textures and one from Contexts.

A “B” paper will provide a good argument with respect to human rights and the Textures issue it discusses, demonstrating a solid understanding of basic human rights material. It will be well-organized and support its argument with evidence from class material without filling the paper with long quotes. It may not go quite as far as it could have with certain arguments, or it may not support arguments as well as it could have. It will be well-written overall and contain no typos, but it may contain some organizational or grammatical problems. It will give adequate attention to explaining the topic, but be dominated by the student’s own analysis, and include at least one reference to material from Textures and one from Contexts.

A “C” paper will provide an argument with respect to human rights and the Textures issue it discusses, which demonstrates an incomplete understanding of human rights or does not support its argument with evidence class material. It may have writing problems (not organized, poor grammar in places), but the argument can be followed. It may waste space with too great a summary of the issue, rather than making an argument about human rights, and may take up space with long quotes from the class material rather than the words of the student. It will include at least one reference to material from Textures and one from Contexts.

A “D” paper contains some discussion of human rights and a Textures issue, but not much, and with little or no reference to class material. It may demonstrate a poor understanding of human rights material, or waste too much space describing the issue or quoting other people. It may be too short or poorly written, with an argument that is difficult to follow.

An “F” paper demonstrates little understanding of human rights, or is filled with summary of the Textures issue, or lengthy quotes from class material. There is nothing of the student’s own thinking in the paper, or if there is, it shows that the student does not understand basic human rights issues as discussed in class.

Revised course schedule

2006-03-20T13:55:00.000-05:00

Wood/Contexts: Revised Schedule
F 2/24 Film: “Yesterday”
M 2/27/W 3/1 Donnelly, Ch. 8-10, pp. 129, 132-145, 159, 162-168, 173-181.
F 3/3 Discussion: Human Rights and the US
Reading: HRWweb: http://hrw.org/doc/?t=usa (choose at least 3 articles) plus
choose at least 3 of the topics listed under “Human Rights in the United States”

M 3/6 How to Lie with Maps
W 3/8 Sustainability and Human Rights
F 3/10 NO CLASS

M 3/20 Development and Human Rights Reading: UN Declaration on the Right of Development http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/74.htm and http://www.ihrnetwork.org/hr-based-approaches.htm
W 3/22 Discussion: Sexual Minorities (small gps, C& B at 10 am)
Reading: Donnelly, Ch. 13 “Nondiscrimination for All: The Case of Sexual Minorities” and HRW, all of “Anatomy of a Backlash
F 3/24 Film: “The Education of Shelby Knox” (begins at 10:45 am, late lunch)

M 3/27 Immigrant Workers
Reading: HRWweb: “Immigrant Workers in the United States Meat and Poultry
Industry” http://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/usa/un-sub1005/
W 3/29 Donnelly, Ch. 14 “Genocide and Humanitarian Intervention” (pp. TBA)
F 3/31 Discussion: Darfur (small gps, C&B at 10 am) Reading: HRWWR “Darfur: Whose
Responsibility to Protect?”

M 4/3 Emerging Human Rights: Globalization
Reading: Arlie Russell Hoschild, “Love and Gold,” from Global Woman (res)
845&FF=pwood+cynthia&1,1,,0,0>
W 4/5 Review (small gps, C&B at 10 am)

Play: “Closets are for Clothes” Valborg Theatre, Weds. April 5, 8 PM (required)

F 4/7 EXAM 2
M 4/10 Group Work (small groups, C&B at 10 am)
W 4/12 Group Presentations (small groups, C&B at 10 am)

Guest speaker: Dr. Rakesh Kochhar, Thursday 4/13, 7 pm Great Hall (required)

F 4/14 NO CLASS
M 4/17 EASTER HOLIDAY
W 4/19 Review group assignment requirements PAPER 2 DUE
Common Time: Frames Presentations (required)

FINAL Mon. May 1, 9-11:30 Poster Session on Project and Completed Group Project Due, including self and group evaluations. All students required to attend. Great Hall.

Human Rights School in NY

2006-03-12T15:02:00.000-05:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- When 10th-graders at the School for Human Rights debated in a recent class whether Crips co-founder Stanley Tookie Williams should be executed, they knew the question was moot.

Williams, a convicted killer who later became an outspoken critic of gang violence, died by injection in December. But for the students at this unusual school in Brooklyn, many of whom grew up in gang-plagued neighborhoods, there was nothing irrelevant about the subject.

The School for Human Rights is one of nearly 150 "small" public schools that opened in New York City in the last three years under a national movement to raise student achievement by shrinking school sizes. Such schools often have specific themes. Although it's normal for schools to discuss human rights, one built around the concept is rare.

"We're not teaching the kids what to think, but to think," Principal Kevin Dotson said, adding that some topics require "scaffolding" first. "We don't just hit sixth graders with 'Let's talk about torture today!"'

The school strives to produce "socially engaged young adults committed to equity, dignity and social consciousness," according to its mission statement.

Human rights groups are closely watching it as they seek ways to influence educational curricula nationwide. Amnesty International USA and Human Rights Education Associates have helped plan the school.

Students tackle topics from colonialism to the United Nations. They may track census data on poverty in their neighborhoods as part of math class or read novels on genocide for literature credit.

"Our kids have a strong sense of justice and violence," said Jessamyn Waldman, who represents HREA, the school's lead partner, which helps organize its curriculum and activities. "What we don't want to do is make them more angry. What we want to do is empower them."

School officials try to stay objective when discussing controversial subjects such as the death penalty.

School is 'a big family'

The school, in its second year, consists of grades six, seven, nine and 10 and will add more levels as students advance until in contains grades six through 12. It has about 300 students, most of whom are of Caribbean descent. Admission is open to students across the city, but most come from nearby neighborhoods.

"It's kind of like a big family," said 15-year-old Quaseem Rabb.

Classrooms include students with varying academic abilities, which is one way to embrace a human rights ideal, Dotson said.

Administrators look for ways to apply the human rights framework beyond classes. Signs in hallways ask students to talk to school officials about conflicts, and students who commit infractions appear before a "fairness committee" and undergo mediation with others involved.

Karen Robinson, director of the human rights education program for Amnesty International USA, said as word of the school has spread, other educators have contacted her to see how they can promote similar programs elsewhere. She's working with teachers in Florida who want to establish human rights academies within their existing schools.

After classes ended on a recent day, a handful of students at The School for Human Rights stayed for an extra, elective class. The subject was law, and Waldman, who led the discussion, tossed around phrases such as "preponderance of evidence" and "strict liability" while students took careful notes.

The topic turned to another life imprisonment vs. death penalty case involving a high-profile defendant.

The students discussed whether Zacarias Moussaoui, who has pleaded guilty to conspiring to fly planes into U.S. buildings but denies any involvement in the September 11 attacks, could receive a fair hearing in a country still reeling from the attacks.

They were certain he could not.

Der Metzgermeister

2006-03-11T12:12:00.000-05:00

The link in this post leads to an interesting (and somewhat disturbing) wikipedia article about a guy named Armin Meiwes. He committed a pretty horrific murder, but the victim actually volunteered to be killed - and no pressure was placed on him. Apparently the two guys met on the internet while Armin Meiwes was advertising in local underground papers and on message boards, looking for a willing victim.

Regardless, the court case around this was all pretty interesting, and the large focus was on whether or not someone can waive their right to life, and is even in some ways related to the whole Dr. Kevorkian mess and whether humans should be allowed to kill theirselves. Eventually, Armin was only charged with manslaughter, but is that even too harsh? It's hard to decide, because yes, he did kill someone, but that person agreed to it and was totally consensual.

What do you guys think?

hate crimes and protection laws.

2006-03-11T07:45:00.000-05:00

Last week, student Michale Bullis was attacked in his high school's cafeteria by a fellow classmate. The violence is presumed to be a hate crime directed at Bullis' homosexual orientation. He is taking action and suing the Grove county school district of Oklahoma for failing to create a safe environment for its students.

It is each individual's human right to live without fear. Shouldn't the safety of every human citizen be protected by the state? There should be a law to protect people from hate crimes. No one deserves to be afraid to be themselves.

renewal of Patriot Act 2?

2006-03-11T07:41:00.001-05:00

one of the most pressing issues in American politics at the moment is the potential renewal of the Patriot Act 2. If this occurs, everyone in this country will experience further loss of their liberties. For a brief overview and a link to the draft of said document, visit http://www.alternet.org/story/15541/.

Human Rights Essay

2006-03-11T01:05:00.000-05:00

At first I was not too thrilled that I was required to write an essay on a movie. The assignment was so vauge and I had no idea what to write. I missed all the showings of the movies and just arbitrarily choose a movie to watch. That movie was Hotel Rwanda.

Prior to watching it I knew nothing of this movie. I just knew alot of people said it was very sad and horrible. But I figured I could squeeze atleast 3 pages out of viewing it...but never would I thought that movie would have moved me so much. Granted, I never shed a tear [I'm a pretty tough cookie har har har] but my eyes did water. Throughout the whole movie I kept wishing to myself that this was fiction- that this was not happening with our government's knowledge and we're doing NOTHING to prevent it.

I put so much heart into writing the paper after seeing the film- I even tried to keep it formal and not write in the first person, but the latter half of my paper I just had to put my emotions and opinions in.

So thank you Cynthia for requiring this paper.

Hotel Rwanda: I feel so helpless

2006-03-11T01:00:00.000-05:00

After viewing the film, for a few minutes I sat there dazed- my mind was racing and thinking back to how many times situations like this have repeated themselves throughout history. You would think over the centuries, the government would have evolved to fix this error- this practice of turning a blind eye until the trouble hits home. Granted, when we DID try to "help" during the Vietnam war, things got out of hand, but that does not mean that we must abstain from involving ourselves with ANY outside problems.

But I was trying to think of things I could do as an individual to help. I feel the need to get involved now, or atleast make more people aware of such atrocities that are happening throughout the world. Because I beleive if we stay on this path of apathy, soon the things will get too out of hand, and societies will be doomed...

Poor "Human Rights Conditions" for Florida Farm Workers

2006-03-10T20:30:00.000-05:00

About a week ago, 9 different human rights groups (including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and Oxfam, America among others) submitted to the Executive Secretary of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Mr. Santiago A. Cantón, a letter concerning the "human rights conditions" of Floridian farm workers. The letter revealed that at least 1000 workers have been subjected to forced labor/ slavery and when not being forced to work, the laborers are often paid far below the minimum wage (between $2500 and $7500 even though the poverty line was recently defined as $9310 for a single-person household). Additionally, about 83% of these laborers have no healthcare and, not to mention, the working conditions are often less-than-adequate. Hopefully, the letter they submitted will help expose and relieve many of these human rights violations.

Chinese AIDS sufferers put on house arrest

2006-03-10T20:04:00.000-05:00

In recent HR news, China has placed many people infected with HIV/ AIDS under house arrest in order to keep them from petitioning the National People's Congress for compensation they may be entitled to due to a government scheme to profit from blood sales that went awry (some of the blood sold was infected w/ the AIDS virus). These people (23 cases documented thus far) were not only forbidden to leave their homes, but were also denied essential healthcare as well as any imdemnification. So essentially, the Chinese government is not only responsible for the numerous infections that occured in the first place, but is also refusing those people any compensation or even the right to plead for it....pretty lousy

Police Attack Woman's Day Celebration

2006-03-10T18:21:00.000-05:00

Police in Tehran violenty broke up a peaceful protest by beating men and women involved in celebrating International Women's Day. When the commander of the security forces was questioned as to why the protest was broken up, he replied with saying that the protesters did not have a proper permit.
As this protest did not seem to be taking on a disruptive tone or expressing too extremist political views, I believe the security forces were definitely abusing the protesters human rights. The right ot freedom of speech and protest it a very important human right, as it allows the change to make the world a better place. These restrictions on freedom surely need to be put to a hault.

Physicians forced to Perform Death Penalty

2006-03-10T18:12:00.000-05:00

According to Human Rights Watch, two physicians refused to participate in a lethal injection execution in California. The two anestheosoligists believed that their medical profession should not consist of executions. Apparently, a conflicting debate as to whether physicians/medical personnel should be required to participate in executions has been going on for quite some time.
Being an opponent to the death penalty, I believe that it is a violation of the physicians' humans rights to have to witness and perform lethal injections. Physicians are supposed to give medical assistance to help the public, as opposed to harming the public. Even if I did believe the death penalty to be humane, I still believe that performing lethal injections should be strictly done by people hired specifically for that job, as opposed to anesthesiologists for the general public.

Child Soldiers

2006-03-10T16:18:00.000-05:00

Even today, there is still an enormous problem with children being used as soldiers for their country. Countries such as Lebanon, Colombia, Sudan Uganda and many others have been known to use children as soldiers due to their extreme vulnerability and tendency to be easily intimidated. There have been measures taken to try and end this atrocity, but unfortunately it is still going on today. Click on the title of my post to check out the article from Human Rights Watch.

AIDS in Africa: Women

2006-03-10T15:50:00.000-05:00

After viewing the film Yesterday in Contexts the other week, it brought to my attention the ignorance of many Africans as to what HIV/AIDS really is, and how it is contracted. Many are not well-informed of the disease, and are therefore perpetuating the problem. Click on the title of my post to check out the link; it has a lot of information as to the human rights violations going on; especially pertaining to women and children.

-Sarah Huff

no one is safe in middle east anymore

2006-03-10T11:23:00.000-05:00

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/03/10/pakistan.ap/index.html
Although there are many civilian casualties oversees recently, hearing the stories is always unsettling. This recent bombing that killed 30 people in a bus going to attend a wedding in pakistan really hit me hard.

New Orleans, human rights on the brighter side

2006-03-10T11:07:00.001-05:00

While the ongoing situation in New Olreans has sparked alot of human rights issues, there is somewhat of a positive outcome to this. The problems going on in the area have really sent a shock through the nation and it was met with a response. Groups and organizations, alot of them unafilliated with Fema or Red Cross, are still traveling down to lend a hand in helping restore the area. This shows that there is something to be said about the compassion and sympathy from one human to another when someones rights seem to be violated. I experienced this first hand during my experience of helping out in New Orleans last semester.

10/40 window

2006-03-10T09:50:00.000-05:00

Do you think that it's a problem that the window extends from West Africa to East Asia, from ten degrees north to forty degrees north of the equator. This specific region, which has increasingly become known as The 10/40 Window, encompasses the majority of the world's Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists. Why is it that this block of the world has never heard of Christianity, do you think they should atleast be given the chance to hear what life has to offer from the Christians perspective? Why are so many people afraid to go to this area of the world to evangelize? Why aren't there missionaries going to this part of the world? Is this a problem?

some cited from "http://www.ad2000.org/1040broc.htm"

Genocide in Iraq?

2006-03-10T02:31:00.000-05:00

As I was watching "Hotel Rwanda", I started thinking about Iraq. I realized that like Belgium's colonial influence on the conflicts leading the genocide in Rwanda, the United States has caused conflict in Iraq. Iraq was not a colony of the U.S. but in both situations the problems are rooted outsided the countries in conflict. The U.S. armed and aided Saddam Hussein to kill thousands of Kurds, Kuwaitis, and Iraqis in the 1980's and then the U.S. decided to attack Iraq themselves in 1991 and 2003. Many human rights violations have occurred under the rule of Saddam and during the occupation by the U.S. Also like Belgium the U.S. realized that they messed things up and are trying to "fix things" making a stronger but messier effort than Belgium did in Rwanda. The link goes to an article on "Infoshop News" which is informative if not very opinionated/biased.

Israel, the Arabs and Human Rights

2006-03-10T02:25:00.000-05:00

Hey this is Daniel Rosenberg. Sorry again about the username. This article dealt with the issue of human rights regarding the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. I have come to take a great intrest in Israel, and I found this piece to be very good. The author talks about how Israel is a Western democracy and their human rights standards are equivalent to those of the rest of the West, yet Israel is constantly a target for human rights concerns. The Arab World has countless violations amongst there governments, but Israel is always an easy target. Arab countries have commited so many killings of innocents, but the international world chooses to criticize Israel whenever Israel takes military action to protect herself. I had the privlege of hearing the US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton speak this past weekend and he got a standing ovation when he criticized the bias of the UN actions against Israel specifically on anti-Semitism.

rwanda genocide

2006-03-09T23:34:00.000-05:00

This link is about the genocide in Rwanda. The conflict can be described as a civil war that is divided on racial lines. Once the Hutu gained the advantage over the Tutsi they used it to its fullest extent. They killed almost a million people in 100 days. Perhaps the most notiable is the lack of a responce by all the first world countrys. Despite having knowlege of the impending slaughter president Clinton chose not to take military action. This event has cause a great deal of politocal instability in the area i.e both congo civil wars as well as the Burundian Civil War.

I didn't even know we did this

2006-03-09T23:17:00.000-05:00

So apparently, we used to have the "a-ok" on the death penalty for juveniles. What really made this stand out to me was finding out that, out of six juvenile executions worldwide, we were responsible for four. However, it seems kind of rediculous that a seventeen year old "kid" can go murder a girl but then not get the same penalty as an eighteen year old who commited the same crime. I don't really have a position on the whole death penalty vs. life imprisonment thing, but it seems to me that the more times a criminals get off because of "insanity" or are given life in prison, it's the tax payers money that's going to put them up. Granted sometimes they really are insane which is understandable but it really makes me want to elect John Stossel for president because that guy is my hero and I know he could say all of this way better than I can. Anyway, I suppose it really depends on where you stand to consider this a human rights violation. For me, I would want to be involved in the individual cases to make an informed decision. As I said it's rediculous for a 17 year old to get one sentence and an eighteen year old a completely different sentence. We need to get our stuff together here because I think it's a human rights violation to the person who has to die because more emphasis is placed on their age than on the crime they commited.

Iraq: U.S. Checkpoints Continue to Kill

2006-03-09T23:00:00.000-05:00

The following link leads to an article describing the threat that U.S. checkpoints pose to civilians. Basically what happened here is, Human Rights Watch spoke with U.S. army ground commanders explaining that there should be more done to ensure the safety of civilians while crossing through these checkpoints. While one is too many, many more civilians have been killed while crossing these checkpoints. Mind you, these deaths occurred after HRW pointed out the faults of said checkoints such as the lack of sign in arabic explaining proper conduct while passing through and interpreters. The killing of an Italian intelligence agent made it even more apparent that these checkpoints are not up to par. It is without a doubt a human rights violation to those citizens. Checkpoints are already dangerous for those passing through and those running it and should therefore be made safer through informing both parties of proper conduct and safety measures.

Down With Women's Day

2006-03-09T21:25:00.000-05:00

In Iran, hundreds of men and women were attacked by authorites for the simple act of getting together to celebrate womens rights. The police beat and tortured victims before forcing to leave the park. The gathering was a peaceful one and only turned violent when the police arrived to put a stop to their celebration. This isnt the first time that the Iran government has supressed unwanted peaceful gatherings with violence. It also isnt the first time that they have tried to make an active attempt to supress female rights. Governments today still get away with treating women as the inferior gender. It is hard to believe that other governments or even the UN do hardly anything to help out these poor women. It makes me grateful to be living in such a country where men and women are more equal.

~*~ Erica ~*~

US government uses LSD as torture tool

2006-03-09T21:05:00.000-05:00

This link is about a program that was set up after the korean war as an attempt to perfect similar mind control techniques used on American POW's durring that war. Project MKULTRA used all sorts of psycoactive chemicals in an attempt to crush someones psyche to the point where they were completly helpless and subservient.The testing that went on was almost entirly on American subects. In order to find people for this research the government would offten set up prostitution stings in order to force men who are to embarassed to be convicted in to consenting to testing. The experiments are perhaps one of the worst forms or torture i can imagine. "Gottlieb was known to torture victims by locking them in sensory deprivation chambers while under the psychedelic influence of LSD, or to make recordings of psychiatric patients' therapy sessions, and then play a tape loop of the patient's most self-degrading statement over and over through headphones after the patient had been restrained in a straitjacket and dosed with LSD".

Any Volunteers?

2006-03-09T20:04:00.000-05:00

I couldn't believe that someone could actually tie a person to a dead animal or put insects in their ears and seal them off...

http://www.colorq.org/HumanRights/article.aspx?d=Mauritania&x=slave

Okay, So I got this From a .Gov Website

2006-03-09T18:55:00.000-05:00

Digging around a bit today (many of you already know I have no life), and found a most interesting government webpage. It's a Q&A sessions some of you may entertaining. Feel free to analyze and expand on any thing found here. I would be interested in comments from both sides o' the aisles.

Jamaicans... still slaves to the world

2006-03-09T17:58:00.000-05:00

Jamaicans suffered 400 years of slavery before they were emancipated in 1833. But after that the prison system kept them in debt and incarcerated and forced into penal servitude, a legal form of slavery which also occured in the U.S. after the emancipation. Nowadays, through the influence of the IMF, Jamaica is completely dependant on foreign exports which are cheaper than their domestic products. Jamaica is severely in debt to the IMF and probably will be for a very long time. There is widespread poverty and violence, especially violence centering around politics. Essencially the Jamaican people have been oppressed and exploited for hundreds and hundreds of years, ever since they were brought from Africa to work as slaves. It is no wonder that the island of Jamaica is an island of such extremes. They have the highest per capita in the world of both churches and bars, and also of murders. Their human rights have been and are being violated every day and the people are suffering greatly for it. How does a country who has been exploited for such a long time, and whose people have been torn apart ever come to full independance and sustainability? Is it possible? Is it possible for Jamaica to break away from the IMF trap? How would one go about instituting human rights in a place with a long and sturdy history of inequality? Can the Jamaican people ever be healed?

WWWhhhaaaTTT

2006-03-09T17:52:00.000-05:00

If our social standards are too high (mostly because our consumption is too high and therefor not sustainable) then what steps are being taken to find a happy medium between impovershed and affluent so that everyone can enjoy a reasonable standard of living?

Controversy in California- Lethal Injection

2006-03-09T17:26:00.000-05:00

With so many posts about human rights isssues and violations occuring around the world, I decided to try and bring it back to home. As we all know, the death penalty is a very controversial topic, and it clearly violates some basic universal human rights. Right now in California there is some controversy going on about lethal injection. So basically what's going down is on Feb. 21, 2006 two anesthesiologists refused to participate in the scheduled execution by lethal injection of Michael Morales. The doctors refused because they obviously didn't agree with the concept of lethal injection. In a lot of states doctors are mandated by state laws and regulations to participate in scheduled executions regardless of how they feel about it. The issue goes further with the fact that execution is not a medical procudure, and therefore should not be something required of doctors to perform. Society seeks out physcians to heal the sick, and end suffering, not to willingly execute a person.

peace,
Crystal

Websites of Interest

2006-03-09T15:47:00.000-05:00

As everyone is almost certainly aware, there are lots of ways ordinary ladies and dudes like us can help out with human rights violations around the world. I've found a few good websites in my journeys through the internet that can help facilitate our activism. They're fairly popular, so I apologize if I'm not making any revelations here, but there's a chance this could be new to someone.

Amnesty International
http://www.amnesty.org/
This is a great and popular organization that focuses on alleviating all kinds of human rights violations around the world. This site provides many ways to help. You can donate money to aid their very worthy cause, you can help by sending letters to concerned parties with the power to end violations, or you can help by buying cool stuff from them. All are quite easy and not very time consuming. If you're interested, you can also check out local chapters of Amnesty, which are often school sponsored. I know App has one. Amnesty is probably the most widely known NGO focusing on human rights, so I doubt I'm making any revelations here.

Greenpeace
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/
This is not a site concerned directly and exclusively with human rights, but if you consider environmental protection essential for human rights protection, it is definitely relevant. Greenpeace is another quite popular NGO in the realm of environmentalism. You can donate, send letters, buy stuff, etc. through the site, much like Amnesty, just from the environmentalist stance.

The Hunger Site, etc.
http://www.thehungersite.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/CTDSites
This is a really cool site, where you can click a button and fund humanitarian aid through sponsorship. It also has links to other specific issues that function in much the same way. There are links to fund relief for hunger, breast cancer, children's health issues, illiteracy, and rainforest clearing, all of which are directly related to human rights. It's easy, free, and almost too good to be true.

In light of the fact that most of us don't have excessive loads of money lying around, some of us are trying to pay for college, and most of us are probably interested in alleviating human rights violations, I thought these sites might provide at least some way to facilitate the latter within the restrictions of the former. Peace.

The Draft, etc.

2006-03-09T14:49:00.000-05:00

As I was perusing the list of human rights provided by Donnelly on page 24, I observed that at least a couple of them contrast very sharply with the beloved institution of forced military conscription. One such contrast that particularly struck me was between the draft and the human right to "Liberty and security of person." If anyone can explain to me how compulsory military service is remotely compatable with individual liberty, please do so, and none of that "war protects freedom" bullshit. On the other hand, if we concede that the draft does indeed violate this fundamental human right, the argument can be taken further. Conscripted soldiers are paid, therefore military service becomes their occupation, raising the issue of workers' rights. The strongest contradiction to the draft, in this respect, seems to be the human right to "Just and favorable conditions of work." If the occupation of military service is forced on a person through a violation of human rights, then I have a hard time seeing anything just about such work. Furthermore, I don't think it would be too bold to state that military conscription presupposes military conflict, making it probable that those conscripted will be directly involved in fighting. Aside from violating the right to security of person, I would hardly consider warfare coupled with military discipline to be favorable conditions of work. I also found it interesting that there is a listed prohibition of war propoganda, but no prohibition of military conscription. It would seem sensible to me to assume that war propoganda is prohibited to prevent governments from manipulating their citizens into fighting. However, it is acceptable to force citizens to fight? This makes no sense to me. The violations could go on, but they become a bit stretched and I think my point has been made. Ironically our beloved United States, historically (though perhaps only publicly) an advocate of international human rights, has legislation enabling our government to employ the draft. Fortunately though, Americans supposedly have the power to change legislation with popular opinion. I humbly suggest that it would be in our best interest to do so.

Genocide happening while we sleep, eat, watch TV, complain about school, and party the weekend away: The Horrors in Darfur

2006-03-09T12:54:00.000-05:00

Last year during my senior year in High School, I took a class called "Human Geography." We studied many different aspects of the world and the people who inhabit it. We spent about two months keeping up with the Janjaweed's (a government sponsored militia of Muslims who ride on camel and horseback and destroy entire villages with explosives and automatic weapons) attacks on the black inhabitants of Darfur. I really cant do justice to the horrors that have been occurring every day in Darfur.

"The Sudanese Government, using Arab "Janjaweed" militias, its air force, and organized starvation, is systematically killing the black Sudanese of Darfur."

Just imagine a living peacefully in a village in Darfur one day, everything is peaceful and the sense of community remains calm and solid. Everyone knows one another, and life is generally good. People wear colorful garbs of clothing and dance and sing together during the week. Then during the night, camel riding forces and air strikes level your village, kill off all of your family, neighbors, friends and relatives, and all that was once beautiful and carefree is turned into a bloody mess of scorched bodies, plundered and pillaged homes, starving citizens, and burned crops and food supplies. Everywhere you look there are mutilated bodies and starved corpses, and you have nowhere to go. There are over 2 million people in this predicament right now. They are deep within the country and cannnot be evacuated safely.

Now imagine that same situation happening today, everyday for the past three years. Imagine over 400,000 dead, 3.5 million people starving, and another 2.5 million homeless fleeing their country across the border into Chad. Imagine these atrocities still occurring today and being overlooked as simply "too bad" or "not of my concern." These things are happening today. This is one of the most disturbing cases I currently know of because it's happening across one ocean, and there has been little action to stop the genocide. If we know that such horrors are occurring in our world when it is occurring, how can we stand idly by? Please educate yourself on the issue today and hopefully the silenced voices of Darfur might finally be heard.

For more info on the genocide in Darfur:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3918765.stm

http://savedarfur.org/go.php?q=home2.php

http://www.darfurgenocide.org/index.php

http://www.unitedhumanrights.org/sudan_genocide_genocide_in_sudan.php

Here are some photos of the atrocities that are occuring in Darfur (be forewarned, these pictures are graphic):
http://www.darfurgenocide.org/darfur.php

How you can help:
http://www.savedarfur.org/

http://www.unicefusa.org/site/pp.asp?c=duLRI8O0H&b=50755

Environmental Rascim

2006-03-09T12:41:00.000-05:00

I found another article in the book Ecology that deals with environmental rascim. The author of the article, Robert Bullard who is one of the leading environmental scholars in America, states that the fastest growing environmental groups in the country is the minorities. However these groups usually arent in conjunction with mainstream environmental movements. If this knew demographic could get involved with mainstream environmental groups, they would have a much larger effect.
Posted by Thomas Thornton, Marcus' roomate

Environmental Rascism

2006-03-09T12:36:00.000-05:00

I found a very interesting article dealing with Chuck's presentation of environmental rascism in the book, Ecology. One of the most interesting topics in this essay talked about race having more to do with being polluted than class. This is because white people can move into an affluent white neighborhood if they get more money. However, black people, no matter how rich or poor arent widely accepted in white neighborhoods and therefore continue to live in polluted areas no matter how much money they have.
Posted by Thomas Thornton, Marcus' roomate. (My computer is experiencing technical diffulties so i used Marcus' computor.

Guantanamo Bay (and all that jazz)

2006-03-09T12:18:00.000-05:00

Annan backs UN Guantanamo demand
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4722534.stm

Amnesty International: The human rights scandal of Guantanamo Bay
http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/ENGIOR410242004

Nationality of Guantanamo Bay Prisoners (a really sweet site)
http://style.org/campdelta/

U.S.: Landmark Torture Ban Undercut
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/12/16/usdom12311.htm

As many of you may have heard, the UN (first link) has brought up sanctions against the practices employed at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, a political prison run by the US government. It is high time that the US is called out for their hypocrisy concerning torture and the treatment of international prisoners. The first link is a press release by the BBC on the issue itself. The second is Amnesty International agreeing with the UN for its sanctions and stating that they have always been behind actions such as these. The third (my favorite) is a site on style.org (all kinds of cool stuff) in which the nationalities of guantanamo bay prisoners is revealed (rather interesting, and very aesthetically pleasing... then again, it is style.org). The final link is one given to me by Haiz where the US essentially condemned torture... except in respect to our own actions because we're exempt (ahem). So check 'em out for a little more insight into the situation.

Aids in China

2006-03-09T11:52:00.001-05:00

This article discusses what's happening in China concerning the poor treatment of their AIDs patients.

Food supplies to Mullaitivu cut off, article and my comments

2006-03-09T11:52:00.000-05:00

Food supplies to Mullaitivu cut off

Source: TamilNet
Date: October 21, 1997

Officials at the district secretariat in Vavuniya confirmed today that food supplies cannot be sent to the eastern part of the Mullaithivu district, as the Sri Lankan army has stopped all supplies from passing on the Mankulam - Ottisuddan - Mullaithivu road.

They said that the Sri Lankan army has established a series of camps and supply depots on this road and that as a consequence, people are abandoning villages and settlements that have come under its artillery range.

Reports from the area say that the Sri Lankan army's big guns have been pounding the Mullaitivu region for over a week.

The Government agent for Mullaithivu, Mr. M. Tharmakulasingham has stated that the situation is serious as he has only about three weeks of food supply left.

The Government Agents of Vavuniya and Mullaithivu are trying to secure permission from the Sri Lankan MoD to take supply lorries to the Vanni interior and Mullaithivu to avert the imminent crisis.

It is expected that the displaced persons from Jaffna who have settled in large numbers in Mullaithivu would be the first to be affected.These refugees largely depend on dry rations distributed by the GAs.

My Comments: This article seemed interesting to me because its very terrible that because of the Sri Lankan Army, food supplies cannot be sent to Mullaithivu. Without food they will be forced to leave some how or starve to death which is very unfortunate. This is definently a human rights violation, as they have the right to have food an nourishment. I hope that they did infact get food, and most if not all survived this terrible situation.

Shelling kills child, injures 12, article and my comments

2006-03-09T11:43:00.000-05:00

Shelling kills child, injures 12

Source: TamilNet
Date: November 05, 2000

A two-year old child was killed and twelve others were wounded, five of them seriously when Sri Lanka Army and Police shelled the villages of Ramespuram and Sunkankerny north of Batticaloa Sunday evening residents said. Thirteen houses were also damaged in the shelling.

The child who was killed in the shelling was identified as K.Sathees. The wounded civilians were identified as: Thavapiriya,2, Veerasaingham,28, Nakenthiram,40, Shanmukarasa,60, Kamaleswaran,23, Vimaleswaran,26, Subajini,19, Shanmukasuntharai,39, Sivapiriya, 19, Sripiriya,20, Karuna,37 and Aruna,16.

Sources said the army and police were retaliating to an attack by the Liberation Tigers on a police post at Eravur and a SLA post at Chenklady around 7.15 p.m. Sunday.

Residents said the troops opened up heavy shelling which went on for nearly 30 minutes.

Rameshpuram is near Chenkalady, about 17 km. north of Batticaloa, and Sunakankerny is further 8 km. north of Chenkalady.

My Comments: After reading many articles this one just seemed so stupid to me that they would just shell this villages without thinking of the damage they could produce. It was a cold and heartless retaliation by the Sri Lankan Army, and made me sick when i found out the one person that did die was a 2 yr old. I feel sorry for people living in that area and i wish for the best look for them aswell as hopeful prosperity.

Ongoing Human Rights Violations in Chechnya

2006-03-09T11:08:00.000-05:00

This article is about the war crimes committed during the Chechen War which started in September of 1999. War crimes from Russian forces include "arbitrary arrest, unlawful detention, torture, murder, attempted murder, disappearances, bribery, and shelling of population centers." Physicians for Human Rights conducted a survey of 1,143 people, in which 46% said they had witnessed at least one killing of a civilian by Russian forces. These war crimes were committed very recently and I think it is important to see and study cases of Human Rights violations that relate to our time period.

Poverty in Zambia Driving Children to Sex Work

2006-03-09T09:05:00.000-05:00

I found this article when I was searching for my human rights project. I was appalled to find out that children are having to sell themselves for sex to be able to live. This is causing the HIV/AIDS rate to rise and even the STI rate to rise. There has to be something that can be done about the poverty levels in this country. Implementing sex education programs to the younger population in this country could help with the rising levels of sexual diseases instead of only educating those who are already having sex for money.

South African Violence Against Lesbians

2006-03-08T23:01:00.000-05:00

This article highlights both the best and the worst of the happenings in South Africa related to homosexuals. While South Africa does have homosexuals as a group specifically protected from discrimination by their consitution. The country even recently decided to give full marriage rights to same sex couples. But all these good things happening in this country still did not stop a young lesbian woman from being murdered recently. In fact there is still a lot of violence towards lesbians in this country because they do not fit into the roles that are expected of women. Although the murder is being investigated there are many women who were friends with the murdered girl who are now at risk because of this event.

Rape Victems in Mexico

2006-03-08T22:51:00.000-05:00

According this article, rape and incest victems in Mexico are given the legal right to have an abortion but then denied it at every turn. The strategy seems to be to delay the abortion until it is too late for it to be carried out safely. And in cases of incest abortions are not legal since the law defines incest as consensual sex between family members, and abortions can only be provided to women pregnant because of nonconsensual sex. This is clearly a violation of not only their Human Rights but the rights the law in Mexico gives them as well. It is hard to believe that the government will find ways to keep these girls from having abortions at all cost. All too often young rape victems are fed false information to get them to carry the baby to term instead of allowing them to have an abortion.

Ukraine: Anti-AIDS Efforts Undermined by Rights Violations

2006-03-08T22:35:00.000-05:00

This article focuses on the Human Rights violations happening in Ukraine in relation to AIDS sufferers. While Ukraine has good HIV/AIDS policies in general their effectivness is being severely undermined by Rights violations being carried out againts the ones who are the most at risk. The article states in detail the how these rights are being violated and to what extent.

Intransigence of U.S. Endangers Rights Watch

2006-03-08T21:43:00.000-05:00

This article demonstrates how the United States has been effecting Human Rights recently. By pushing the voting for the new human rights council forward the U.S. is treatening the strength of this new council. The new council, while not as good as what human rights watch wanted is a major step up from what was previously in place and everything that can be should be done by the U.S. to make it as strong as possible.

Chuck's inspirational substitute teaching

2006-03-08T21:26:00.000-05:00

in the spirit of positive action and a change from the endless reporting of violations and human rights abuses, here is a program from glaxo wellcome that will help organisations of people living with HIV/AIDS to strengthen their management systems and increase their involvement in national and international affairs as well as to educate people about living with the virus. they are starting in nairobi to plan projects for the program.

http://www.cafs.org/glaxo.html

its good to see people, companies, and organizations doing things to help others in the global community

Lower Standards in "Lower" Countries

2006-03-08T21:17:00.000-05:00

Today we talked a little bit in class about how first world countries are utilizing the cheap labor of undeveloped countries. They (mostly the five veto countries which consist of the United States, Russia, the People's Republic of China, France and the United Kingdom) find these poor countries more suitable to manufacture in because the labor comes at a much cheaper price, the environmental and labor regulations are few or non-existent, and now they aren’t shitting where they eat.

I was reading an article for my politics class and I discovered this wonderful internal government document that leaked out and caused quite a bit of controversy. This particular document was written in December of 1991 by Lawrence Summers, chief economist of the World Bank (at that time) and concerns our country’s Third-World Dumping Policy. For people in the highest ranks of our government to be thinking along these lines, at any recent point, is both irresponsible and arrogent. So, for the sake being both blunt and brief here are some excerpts: “I [Mr. Summers] think that the economic logic behind dumping a load of toxic waste in the lowest wage country is impeccable and we should face up to that.” “I’ve always thought that under-polluted areas in Africa are vastly UNDER-polluted; their air quality is probably [and for good reason] vastly inefficiently low [in pollutants] compared to Los Angeles or Mexico City.” “The problem with the arguments against all of these proposals for more pollution in LDC’s [Less Developed Countries] (intrinsic rights to certain goods, moral reasons, social concerns, lack of adequate markets, ect.) could be turned around and used more or less effectively against every Bank proposal.”

We go into an underdeveloped country and tell them that we are going to build a plant (even though they have little choice) to give their people jobs and help bring them up to pace with the rest of the developed world (plus to put some money in the pockets of the leaders but the citizen see none of that). What we are really doing in most cases is exploiting cheap labor (laborers are sometimes children and defiantly have no union to look after them) and exposing workers and their families to hazardous chemicals, wastes, and pollution (explicitly so we can make more money, Money, MONEY). Just because a certain developing county has no environmental standards for factories and industrial buildings does not mean that we as a developed country should go and take advantage of the “opportunity” (plus we are violating rights right and left all along this path).

The link I included is the Wikipedia article about the incident in India known as the Bhopal disaster; you know the one of the examples used in class. It was really pretty horrible (and that is quite an understatement) and just goes to show how shitting in other countries can have it’s repercussions and end up killing many hard-working and innocent people.

march 8

2006-03-08T20:41:00.000-05:00

After so many depressing posts about human rights violations, I thought I'd post something uplifting. Today is a human rights celebration as today (March 8) is International Women's Day. While the founders of this holiday aren't necissarily people I agree with (The Socialist Party of America) I think that their aims were admirable, as the day was created to give respect and honor to the every day women who make advancements for women's rights, and the case for women's equality to men.

If you would like to ease the guilt we all shared after Chuck's speech today, you can contribute to the cause by donating money here:
http://www.worldvision.org/get_involved.nsf/child/gc_women&children5?Open&campaign=1285170&cmp=KNC-1285170

If you're stoked to be a liberated women, or want to send out the word about today in order to empower other women, go to this site from our friends in the UN:
http://www.un.org/ecosocdev/geninfo/women/womday97.htm

Gastonia

2006-03-08T20:23:00.000-05:00

This one is for John B., who told me earlier this semester he was from Gastonia, but had never heard of this. For any of you who are "history focused," strikes such as these make good research paper fodder. I know some people who are working on them at the graduate level. It may seem a little dated, but it's still relevant.

Just a friendly reminder

2006-03-08T19:07:00.000-05:00

Hey guys, I have had questions in the past about this so I'll put it out for those that do not know. If you don't find anything you want to comment on the main screen, feel free to look at the archived months. I believe it's located somewhere on the left of your screen. Those in "Human Rights" can find stuff dating back until January. So be sure and check it if you don't see anything you like---there are some interesting things there. Also I know this won't reach everyone, but if you are posting for a grade and have used an alternate email address and a username that I can't easily identify as being you pls shoot me an email letting me know who's who. I can figure it out on my own, but hey it's almost spring break and I am lazy. For those of you I don't see over the break, I hope it goes well.

Balkan War Crimes

2006-03-08T19:03:00.000-05:00

This article recounts war crimes that occured in Bosnia. Dragan Nicolic, a notorious Bosnian Serb commander of a detention camp, was taken into custody and was accused of murdering at least eight Muslims and torturing 10 others. However, the court trying this man is stripped of cash and therefore may not be able to see through the prosecution of criminals. This article gives justification of how hard it is for third world nations to battle for human rights. Financial backing, a stable government, and non-corrupt judicial system is needed to preserve human rights.

Iran: Alarming Increase in Executions

2006-03-08T18:52:00.000-05:00

Hey this is Daniel Rosenberg. My username is the same since 7th grade. I wanted to talk about the article concerning Human Rights in Iran. The article voiced concern about how ever since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been in power the number of executions has gone up. The article also discussed how the prisoner did not get a fair trial in the eyes of the Human Rights Watch. Human Rights Watch has called on the Iranian government to end these injustices. On a broader scale, President Ahmadinejad is working hard at acquiring nuclear weapons. He has publically declared his intent to drive Israel off the map, and if this man gets the weapons the Middle East becomes much more instable. The Iranian regime not only presents human rights issues to its own people, but potentially to the entire world. Human Rights Violations has called on him to stop, but Ahmadinejad has already said he would violate UN regulations regarding acquiring a nuclear weapon. I want to make the point that this man has the potential to violate human rights regulations for the entire world.

Prison Labor

2006-03-08T17:33:00.001-05:00

Most correction officials would say that convict labor is completely voluntary. In many states though, prisoners are classified by the work they do, and the prisoners who refuse to work are punished. For example, California's Department of Corrections reduces an inmates sentence by a day for every day worked. This means that those who refuse to work serve twice as long as those who agree to work. Many other privileges are also taken away. Prisoners who refuse to work are not entitled to family visits, are limited to one-fourth of the maximum monthly canteen draw, are not permitted to use the telephone except for an emergency, and have limited access to recreational and entertainment activities that are provided for others.
It can be very hard to draw the line for humane imprisonment and punishment. I personally don't believe that servitude as punishment is a violation of human rights, as long as it is done humanely and by choice. I do, however, feel that prisoners' rights are violated when they are forced into labor, and then punished for choosing not to work.

Here is another interesting article I found:

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2000/may2000/pris-m08.shtml