In a sweeping overview of the Obama administration's human rights agenda, Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton pledged during a speech at Georgetown to "make human rights a human reality."
As the nation marks Human Rights Week Dec. 10-17, Clinton praised the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. She said the declaration, created in 1948 in response to the atrocities of the Holocaust, has set a standard for human rights and dignity.
"We cannot deny the gap that remains between its eloquent promises and the life experiences of so many of our fellow human beings," Clinton said.
She said "there is no better place than Georgetown" to lay out solutions for that job, praising the university's commitment to human rights through research, coursework and developing the next generation of activists and advocates. The secretary made special mention of
Carol Lancaster, who worked in the Clinton administration and now serves as the Walsh School of Foreign Service's interim dean.
Georgetown President
John J. DeGioia reiterated the university's focus on human rights, calling it "an issue which certainly resonates with us at Georgetown, and with our Catholic and Jesuit heritage of promoting social justice and global equality."
Students waited in line for hours to grasp a ticket to the secretary of state's speech in Gaston Hall. A standing-room-only crowd listened as Clinton laid out components of the Obama administration's human rights approach, such as the United States holding itself to the same standards that it demands from other countries.
"By holding ourselves accountable, we reinforce our moral authority to demand that all governments adhere to obligations under international law -- among them not to torture, arbitrarily detain and persecute dissenters or engage in political killings," Clinton said.
She linked human rights within broader efforts to promote stable democracies and human development worldwide, warning that democracies will falter if people are denied access to basic rights and necessities.
"We should measure our success by asking this question -- are more people in more places better able to exercise their universal rights and live up to their potential because of our actions?" she said.
Lancaster called Clinton's comprehensive framing of human rights inspiring.
"She equated human rights not just with political rights, but with economic rights, and that's not something that's done very often by governments," Lancaster said.
Finding effective solutions to help secure human rights means looking beyond traditional approaches, Clinton explained. The State Department has a renewed focus on how the Internet and social media may help foster debate over human rights. Clinton pointed to the global attention to the recent Iranian presidential election protests, which were organized and sustained through Twitter and Facebook. She also noted the potential of the arts to influence human rights.
"The arts and artists are one of the most effective tools in reaching beyond and through repressive regimes and giving hope to people," Clinton said, adding that artistic exchanges should increase. "The spirit that lives within each of us -- the right to think and dream and expand our boundaries -- is not confined … by any regime anywhere in the world."
Jasdeep Singh (SFS'10), who helped introduce Clinton, said the world cannot bear inaction on human rights any longer. Singh, who aspires to join the Foreign Service, said the gap between the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and realities faced by millions around the world haven't gone unnoticed.
"Since the Holocaust, impassioned cries of ‘never again' have fallen upon deaf ears, as evidenced by mute responses to the genocides in Rwanda and Darfur," Singh said. "Clearly, if there is a human rights culture, it is a culture in crisis."
