Upholding human rights enables a society to put people at the center of all policymaking – political, economic and social – thus protecting the life and dignity of the human person whatever its condition or stage of development. In the year 2020, the world entered into the novel coronavirus pandemic, an unprecedented crisis that impacts all aspects of life and presents new threats to upholding human rights.
December 10 is International Human Rights Day. Join us in reciting this prayer by Rabbi Brant Rosen. Explore our Lenten Reflection Guide on human rights.
To understand what our faith teaches about human rights, see “Catholic Social Teaching and Human Rights.”
To learn about Maryknoll mission experience honoring and protecting human rights and the life and dignity of the human person, especially those who are poor and vulnerable, read Maryknoll’s 100 Years of Mission.
To learn about human rights advocacy, watch a 30-minute webinar, “Human Rights Advocacy and the Legacy of Sr. Dianna Ortiz.” You will also find a corresponding page of resources on current human rights issues.
To learn about new threats to human rights, see our articles featured in Maryknoll Magazine:
Upholding Human Rights During the Pandemic
A “David and Goliath” Story of Water Defenders
The following is an excerpt from a letter sent in October to Congressional leaders as they work on the Fiscal Year 2015 State and Foreign Operations bills; it was signed by 52 faith-based, humanitarian, labor, and human rights organizations including the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns (MOGC).
The Darfur Women Action Group held its third annual symposium in Washington, D.C. on October 25-26.
The Pan African Network on Nonviolence and Peacebuilding has issued this statement which connects the spread of the Ebola virus with the potential for increased violence and conflict in countries most affected.
Two policy proposals offer an excellent opportunity to unite labor and environment to achieve important changes that will be essential to both worker security and environmental sustainability in the future.
Recent Bolivian presidential and legislative elections showed the consolidation of the political power of the charismatic indigenous leader Evo Morales and his Movimiento a socialismo (Movement to Socialism, MAS) party in electing him to serve an unprecedented third term with a resounding 61 percent of the popular vote.
That there is an immigration crisis in this country with great humanitarian concerns is widely acknowledged; the question remains how to address this complicated legal, political and community issue.
According to a report crafted by the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) and the Jesuit Conference of the United States, the recent drop in the number of migrants from Central America trying to enter the U.S. through the southern border can be attributed to the policies being implemented by the Mexican and Central American governments at the behest of, and with funding from, the U.S. government.
You are invited to a webinar on the Catholic response to the New Sanctuary Movement.
Bertha Haas, a former lay missioner, prepared the following reflection.
From Nov. 5-13, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Justice for Immigrants campaign will sponsor a week of call-in days to the White House to urge protection for families facing deportation.
The following press release from Carbon Market Watch reports on efforts by civil society organizations to raise awareness around the troubling classification of a dam project in Guatemala.
Use this link at the Justice for Immigrants’ website to send a message to the president and Congress opposing the use of family detention in regards to Central American and Mexican migrants at the U.S. border.
Financial support for reconstruction in Gaza is urgently needed. Adequate oversight will be important to ensure that materials are used for their intended purposes, but restrictions should not be so onerous that they tie the hands of those seeking to rebuild. In addition, to end the cycle of violence, underlying causes must be addressed, including the lifting of the Gaza blockade.
Hear Rebecca Gordon as she discusses and signs her new book, Mainstreaming Torture: Ethical Approaches in the Post-11 United States.
The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns is a cosponsor of this event along with Witness for Peace and the Institute for Policy Studies.
The following reflection was prepared by Fr. Dave Schwinghamer, who spent much of his mission life in Tanzania. He currently serves with the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns.
The following reflection was prepared by Judy Coode who works at the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns.
El Paso’s Annunciation House, which has provided shelter for migrants for decades, has drafted this petition to President Obama, urging specific and immediate action on immigration.
