MollyStahl FinalDraft

HumanRightsEssay 12/18/12

AfterWorldWarII,theUnitedNations(U.N.)decidedtomakeadocumentthatgave everyhumanbeingthebasichumanrights.ThisdocumentiscalledtheUniversalDeclarationof HumanRights(U.D.H.R.)andhashelpedmanypeople.ButtheU.D.H.R.isviolated.Human rightsviolationshavehappenedinthepastandcontinuetohappentoday.Therearemanyways thattheU.D.H.R.isviolated,butthreeofthemare:slaveryandservitude,discriminationand peoplegettingterrorized.AllthreeofthesegoagainsttheU.D.H.R.allthreewillbedescribed throughoutthispaper. Slaveryishappeningintheworld.U.D.H.RArticle4dealsdirectlywithslaveryand servitudestatingthat,"Apersonmaynotbeboughtorsold."Oneexampleofslaverygoingonin theworldisduringWorldWarII,aftertheJapanesebombedPearlHarbor,FranklinDelanor Roosevelt,thepresidentatthattime,puteveryJapaneseAmericaninaninternmentcamp,just becauseoftheirrace.This,however,isnotslavery,thisisfalseimprisonment. Butanexampleofslaveryis,inSudan,therewasawargoingoninthelate1900sandearly 2000s.Insteadofusinggrownmenforthejobofsoldiers,theyusedchildrenasyoungas7.It wasbecausetheywereeasytocontrol,theywouldlistentowhattheadultswouldsay.They wereforcedtofight,somethingakidshouldneverhavetodotheyweregivenguns,putinthe frontlines,andcouldeasilygetshot.Thatwasstopped,butslaveryandservitudehavenot.An exampleofthisisin2006TheNewYorkTimesdidanarticleonaboyinLakeVolta,Ghana abouta6yearoldboybeingforcedtoworkonafishingboat.Hisparentssoldhimfor$20a year.Hemaybeatalakeonafishingboat,butpeoplearesoldtoworkinquarries,cocoaand riceplantations,streetmarkets,etc.Inmanywaysthereisslaveryintheworld,someexamples

are,falseimprisonmenttoforcedlabor,buttherearemoreviolationsintheworld. TheU.D.H.R.isbeingviolatedinthepastandinthepresent.Anotherwayis discrimination.Article2oftheU.D.H.R.clearlystatesthatnodiscriminationofanykindwillbe tolerable.OneexampleofdiscriminationintheworldisintheUS,inthe1950s.Duringthattime period,theAfricanAmericanswerenotallowedtodothingsthatthewhitepeoplewere.They werenotabletousethesamewaterfountains,sitinthesamepartofthebus,getthesame service,etc.Untilonecourageousman,MartinLutherKingJr.,stooduptoitall.Evenafterthat amazinguprising,violationsofhumanrightscontinuetohappen.Afterthe1950s,inthe1990s and2000s,Sudan,Africawasinacivilwar,northagainstsouth.Thenorthernerswantedsouth SudantobeaMuslimcountryandtofollowIslamiclaw.Theyhurtthesouth,tribalorChristians, becausetheywerentMuslim,thatisthemainreasontheirwarstarted.Theeffectsofthewar wereawful,itforcedthousandsofchildrentowalkthousandsofmiles. ButevenaftertheUNcameandhelpedeveryonerecoverafterthewar,violationsofthe U.D.H.R.happen.Intheyearsbefore2008,girlsandwomenwerenotallowedtogotoschool andgeteducatedinAfghanistan.Thegovernment,calledtheTaliban,thoughtthatifthegirlsare educatedtheywillfindotherthingswrongwiththeirrightsandwillbeginanuprising.Itwasnt until2008thatawomanstooduptotheTaliban.ThiswomanhadgonetoAmericatoget educatedandcreatedaschoolforgirls.TheTalibanwasattackedafter9/11andthrownoutof power. Theviolationsgoon,todayandinthepast.Anotherwayviolationshappenispeopleget terrorized.Articles3and5oftheU.D.H.R.clearlystatethatallpeopleshouldbekeptsafe.One exampleofpeoplegettingterrorizedisduringtheSudanesecivilwar,manychildrenwereforced outoftheirhomesbybombsandforcedtowalkthousandsofmiles.Theysufferedverymuch butonewaytheywereterrorizedistheyhadtocrossthealligatorinfestedNileRiverwhilebeing

shotatbysoldiers.TheUNeventuallyhelpedthemfindhomesinbettercountries,butviolations stillhappen.Whilethechildrenwerewalking,childrenwerealsobeingforcedtobesoldiers. TheyweredruggedsotheywouldbecomedependentontheSudanPeoplesLiberationArmy (SPLA),theyalsoforcedthechildrenintothefrontlinesofbattlesoitwaseasierforthemtoget shot.ThatwasstoppedbytheUN,buthumanrightsviolationsstillhappen.AftertheTalibanwas outofpowerinAfghanistan,peoplestillthoughtthatgirlswerenotsupposedtogotoschool.The schoolwasshotat,agrenadewasthrownintheschooland100girlswerekilled,acidwas throwninthegirlsfacesandtheirwaterwaspoisoned. Inconclusion,humanrightsviolationshappeninmanyways,suchas,slaveryand servitude,discriminationandpeoplegettingterrorized.TheUNhasstoppedmanyofthesepast andpresentviolations,butstill,manygoonintheworldthissecond.