How is HUMAN RIGHTS Helpful?

Everyone needs access to medicine, food and water, clothes, and shelter. By including these in a person’s basic human rights, everyone has a baseline level of dignity.

The Declaration of Human Rights was created largely because of the Holocaust and the horrors of WII. During that time in history, the most vulnerable in society were targeted along with the Jewish population, including those with disabilities and LGBT

The concept of human rights allows people to speak up when they experience abuse and corruption. This is why specific rights like the right to assemble are so crucial because no society is perfect

Being able to speak freely without fear of brutal reprisal is more expansive. It encompasses ideas and forms of expression that not everybody will like or agree with

Human rights acknowledges the importance of a person’s religion and spiritual beliefs, and lets them practice in peace. The freedom to not hold to a religion is also a human right

The importance of freedom to love cannot be understated. Being able to choose what one’s romantic life looks like is an essential human right.

The right to work and make a living allows people to flourish in their society. Without acknowledging that the work environment can be biased or downright oppressive, people find themselves enduring abuse or insufficient opportunities

Education is important for so many reasons and is crucial for societies where poverty is common. Organizations and governments concerned with human rights provide access to schooling, supplies, and more in order to halt the cycle of poverty.

We live in the world, we need the land, so it makes sense that what happens to the environment impacts humanity. The right to clean air, clean soil, and clean water are all as important as the other rights included in this list.

With a standard for what is a human right, governments can be held accountable for their actions. There’s power in naming an injustice and pointing to a precedent, which makes the UDHR and other human right documents so important.