UCI marks International Human Rights Day

UC Irvine faculty, students and staff marked the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – a document that laid the foundation for international human rights law – with a public reading and teach-in Dec. 10. The declaration set out to recognize the inherent dignity of all people, although parts of the world fall short of full social and economic protection for their citizens, said Alison Brysk, (pictured) director of UCI’s Human Rights Program. “From genocide in Darfur to refugees in North Korea, from torture at Guantanamo Bay to political prisoners in Iran, human rights still are threatened around the world,” Brysk said. According to Kevin Olson, political science associate professor the document is as relevant today as it was in 1948. “It’s only now coming into its proper place on the international scene,” he said. Graduate students and undergraduate representatives of Amnesty International and Invisible Children joined in the event.