International Day of Non-Violence Kicks-off Youth for Human Rights Signathon
Antonella Antonecchia | 06.10.2009 19:00 | Social Struggles
Tampa Bay – October 2-4 A three-day human rights petition “Signathon” kicked off on Friday, October 2, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi, which is commemorated by the United Nations as International Day of Non-Violence.
Known for using and promoting non-violent solutions to social injustice, human rights champion Mahatma Gandhi had a message to all of us when he said, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” This message is taken to heart by the members of Youth for Human Rights Florida, who collected over 2,500 petition signatures over the weekend.
“A lot of people I talked to didn’t even know there is a Universal Declaration of Human Rights or what their human rights are,” said 12 year-old Fiorenza Magliola who collected 390 signatures herself.
On December 10, 1948 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and asked all member countries to publicize the text of the Declaration and “to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded principally in schools and other educational institutions, without distinction based on the political status of countries or territories.”
However, more than sixty years later the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is still not a required topic in schools throughout Florida, the United States or most countries of the world.
“Students spend years in school learning about wars and who conquered whom, but they don’t learn about the solution, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” said Dustin McGahee, President of Youth for Human Rights Florida and high school senior. “Understanding human rights is the first step to making them a part of everyday life.”
As humanitarian L. Ron Hubbard stated, "Human rights must be made a fact, not an idealistic dream."
To help make human rights a reality, Youth for Human Rights Florida will use the petitions in talking to authorities about making the subject, as proposed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, part of required education in schools.
To learn more about your human rights or Youth for Human Rights visit: www.youthforhumanrights.org.
“A lot of people I talked to didn’t even know there is a Universal Declaration of Human Rights or what their human rights are,” said 12 year-old Fiorenza Magliola who collected 390 signatures herself.
On December 10, 1948 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and asked all member countries to publicize the text of the Declaration and “to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded principally in schools and other educational institutions, without distinction based on the political status of countries or territories.”
However, more than sixty years later the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is still not a required topic in schools throughout Florida, the United States or most countries of the world.
“Students spend years in school learning about wars and who conquered whom, but they don’t learn about the solution, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” said Dustin McGahee, President of Youth for Human Rights Florida and high school senior. “Understanding human rights is the first step to making them a part of everyday life.”
As humanitarian L. Ron Hubbard stated, "Human rights must be made a fact, not an idealistic dream."
To help make human rights a reality, Youth for Human Rights Florida will use the petitions in talking to authorities about making the subject, as proposed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, part of required education in schools.
To learn more about your human rights or Youth for Human Rights visit: www.youthforhumanrights.org.
Antonella Antonecchia
