Tag: Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Death to the death penalty

Posted on by kathiemm

October 10 is World Day Against the Death Penalty, launched by the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty in 2003.

Every year since 1997, first through an initiative from Italy and then from efforts of the European Union, the United Nations Commission of Human Rights (UNCHR) has approved a resolution calling for a moratorium on executions. The ultimate goal is an international ban on capital punishment.

In its 2007 resolution (62/149), the United Nations General Assembly, appealing to the General Charter,  the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, reminded the world of the following points:

  • the death penalty undermines human dignity
  • a moratorium on use of the death penalty contributes to the development of Human Rights
  • there is no conclusive evidence that the death penalty has any deterrent value
  • any miscarriage or failure of justice in use of the death penalty is irreversible and irreparable.

Amnesty  International also takes on the death penalty, calling it  “the ultimate denial of human rights. It is the premeditated and cold-blooded killing of a human being by the state.”

As indicated in the Amnesty International 2012 video at the beginning of this post, support for a moratorium has  increased, but the United States joined such countries as China, Iran, North Korea, Syria, and Zimbabwe in opposing the non-binding moratorium resolution in the General Assembly’s rights committee.

This year, Maryland became the 18th U.S. state to abolish the death penalty.

Time for more states to join the odyssey.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

Do you know your rights?

Posted on by kathiemm

December 10 is Human Rights Day, a global day of observance, on which countries around the world honor the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations in the wake of World War II.


Before you watch this video, consider the statements below. Check off the statements you think are included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which the United States is a signatory.

1. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

2. Everyone has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

3. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

4. Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.

5. Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family.

6. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

7. Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

8. Everyone has the right to equal access to public service in his country.

9. Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.

10. Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

To determine the level of your knowledge concerning universal human rights, view the video at the beginning of this post, or read the Declaration itself.

Give yourself one point for each item that you correctly identified as being included in the UDHR and subtract one point for each item that you incorrectly included in the list.

Please let us know how you did.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

Perspectives on peace (Perspective-taking, part 1)

Posted on by kathiemm

[Note from Kathie Malley-Morrison:  Today we welcome the first of several contributions by Sherri Nevada McCarthy, a member of the Engaging Peace board of directors. Dr. McCarthy is a professor of psychology at Northern Arizona University-Yuma, and has published widely in the area of international psychology. She is co-editor with me of two upcoming volumes to be published by Springer Publishing: International Handbook of Governmental Aggression and International Handbook of Peace.]

Drawing of two faces with dots overhead, suggesting they are thinking about each other

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, asserts that all of humanity is entitled to a social and international order in which all safely co-exist, free from torture, slavery, threat or discrimination.

Still, more than 60 years later, many on our planet live in fear of genocide, invasion and other threats. Discrimination persists. Despite good intentions, rights are sometimes taken away by the very people who claim to be upholding them.

Why is this, and what can each of us do to help prevent it?

Psychologists have identified several mechanisms that may help to shed some light on these questions. Albert Bandura’s mechanisms of moral disengagement, previously discussed on this blog, are one example. Another is the concept of “perspective-taking.”

Perspective-taking has been widely researched over the years by both developmental and social psychologists. Developmental psychologist Robert Selman identified stages of perspective-taking that develop as children mature, and many tests of children’s cognitive and social competence used today incorporate these stages. (In future posts, we will explore Selman’s work in more detail.)

Perspective-taking, or the ability to see things from another’s point of view, is essential for social competence. Without this ability, people would remain unable to relate to the needs, interests or rights of others. Reasoning would also be impaired—especially about ideas such as justice and fairness.

It is worth noting that knowledge of another’s perspective does not guarantee that we will ensure human rights. This knowledge could instead be used to manipulate or harm. Still, being able to discern and understand the points of view of others is an important skill in peaceful conflict resolution. Finding ways to make sure this ability develops, whether in the schools or through other means, is an important first step toward engaging peace.

Sherri Nevada McCarthy, Ph.D.