NAME:_____________________________

HUMAN RIGHTS & GENOCIDE

World Geography

Eisenhower Middle School

Mr. DeLoughry

What are Human Rights?• Human rights: fundamental rights,

especially those believed to belong to an individual and in whose exercise a government may not interfere, as the rights to speak, associate, work, etc. (dictionary.com)

• U.N. Commission on Human Rights established in the original U.N. framework– Replaced by Human Rights Council in

2006

• Universal Declaration of Human Rights issued by the U.N. in 1948

• Over a dozen international treaties deal with human rights

Examples of Human Rights Abuses or Violations

• Former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet’s use of military and secret police to “disappear” his opposition

• U.K.’s restrictions on the rights of India’s citizens prior to India’s independence

What is genocide?

• The deliberate and systematic extermination of a national, racial, political, or cultural group (dictionary.com)

• First coined in 1944 by Raphael Lemkin

• From the Greek génos (birth, race, stock, kind) and Latin –cidium (cutting, killing)

Examples of Genocide

• Examples vary depending on how rigid of a definition is being used

• Holocaust is the “best” example

• Mongols’ extermination of Chinese peasantry in the 13th century

Who decides what is a human rights violation?

• U.N. Human Rights Council and other government organizations

• Countries usually do not admit to having violated human rights.

• Other nations often call attention to policies or actions that they see as violations.

• Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, also call public attention to violations. Example: Recent Internet campaign against Joseph Kony of Lord’s Resistance Army in Uganda.

How are violations ended?• Countries sometimes put

pressure on other countries to stop violations. Ex. Many nations refused to trade with South Africa because of apartheid.

• Changes can be negotiated by the United Nations or others

• U.N. troops/peacekeepers can be sent to a country to intervene in a situation to stop it or prevent it from getting worse

Is U.S. Accused of Violations?

• Discrimination against African Americans until 1960’s was criticized.

• Treatment of Native Americans on reservations also criticized.

• Some raise issue of overcrowding in U.S. jails or immigration facilities.

Other Modern Issues

• Does Israel violate human rights of Palestinians?

• Do U.S. drone attacks violate human rights of Pakistanis or Yemenis?

• Is Syria’s army violating human rights of Syria’s citizens?

What can we do to protect the rights of other humans?

• Ask U.S. leaders to get involved

• Participate in marches or protests to bring attention to an issue

• Boycott trade with a country or boycott world events. Ex. U.S. boycott of Moscow Olympics in 1980

• Use social media to educate others and gather support

Respect the rights of those around you

• "Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home - so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm, or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.”

--Eleanor Roosevelt, an author of U.N.’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Final Project: Real Examples of Human Rights Abuse &

Genocide• Research one of 15

topics• Create a blog post to

educate your classmates about your topic.

• Read the posts from classmates and add comments & questions