I’ve always been in favor of the race of:
EVERYONE.
Would you like to join me?
(Let’s get our birth certificates changed immediately. If and when you have a baby and they ask you to name its race, make sure you say, “Everyone.”)
I was struck by how amazing it is that human beings still haven’t mastered these basic concepts, despite the fact that the Divine has been sending people like Eleanor Roosevelt to us for millennia, from Krishna, Jesus, and Buddha to Gandhi, Rumi, Amma, and The Mother. Think about it. We have been on this earth for tens of thousands of years, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was just written 62 years ago! What is going on here? The progress of humanity is too fucking slow, and that is an understatement. As humans, we are inclined to repetition, not progression. It’s easy to forget that 50 years ago, dark-skinned people still had to use separate bathrooms in some states in this country, and it was against the law for women to fly commercial planes.
I firmly believe that the United Nations needs a new PR team.
When the declaration was signed, the United Nations stated countries should “cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded principally in schools and other educational institutions, without distinction based on the political status of countries or territories.” It was intended to blanket our civil institutions almost like the choking poster. But that never happened. Despite the fact that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights has been referred to as “the single most important reference point for discussions of how to order our future together on our increasingly conflict-ridden and interdependent planet,”2 most of us have no idea it even exists, let alone have taken the time to read it as adults. And we are definitely not talking to our children about this.
The more I thought about it, the more I was embarrassed that I’d never really read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, or learned much about Eleanor Roosevelt either. Here I was, an American woman from an iconic place (near the Yellow Brick Road, the birthplace of the suffragist/suffragette movement, and the Underground Railroad!) with little or no knowledge of many of the women who have fought with both fierceness and compassion for my rights, your rights, and others’ rights throughout history. I hope I can inspire you to read about Eleanor and her work.
For posterity’s sake, and the future’s sake, on the next few pages we’ve included the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in its entirety.
THE UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,
Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,
Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,
Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,
Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,
Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.
Article 1. All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
Article 2. Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.
Article 3. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.
Article 4. No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.
Article 5. No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Article 6. Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.
Article 7. All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.
Article 8. Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by
