DAY 24

Credit: Artist Meredith Stern

“Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.”

Today’s post is devoted to Article 6 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This article necessitates legal protection wherever you may be, no matter your race, gender, national origin, religion, or political affiliation.

A hierarchy of power may seem to be present in the judicial system, but know that you have the power and the right to a fair hearing by an impartial tribunal (Article 10 and 6th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution), be presumed innocent until proven guilty (Article 11), and decline to answer questions if you are worried about self-incrimination (5th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution). You can also visit this link- https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights – to know what your rights are in different circumstances, such as in prison or jail and during interrogations, stops, and arrests.

However, this idea of treating everyone as equal is not just limited to the legal sphere–the entire foundation of human rights is based upon our common, inalienable humanity. We should try our best to ALWAYS be conscious of how our words and actions are affecting others and ensure that we are not degrading someone’s identity.

We can show that we value other people as human beings through many different ways in our daily lives, such as being aware of how your background shapes you and not assuming “sameness”; attempting to understand and then disagreeing in discussions and dialogue; and viewing others not as enemies but as fellow humans and potential comrades.

Acknowledgement and recognition of all people is always the first step, and it’s something all of us CAN do! Let us all try our best to eliminate our biases and strive for equality. If we are not seen as equal human beings with equal rights before the law, and if we do not view others as human beings with unique ideas, thoughts and opinions, we will not be able to tackle any human rights issue no matter how hard we work.

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