Category: Human Rights

Shell settlement with Ogoni people stops short of full justice

August 12, 2021

Shell’s decision to settle out of court with a group of Ogoni people rather than take them on in New York means a measure of justice has come to the Niger Delta. The sum of $15.5m (£9.6m) may be peanuts for the company and nothing can compensate the 500,000 Ogoni people for generations of devastating pollution, human rights abuses and persecution. But while Shell insists that the result is no admission of guilt, it nevertheless represents a triumph for an impoverished community over one of the richest companies in the world.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/cif-green/2009/jun/09/saro-wiwa-shell

A Genocide Incited on Facebook, With Posts From Myanmar’s Military

August 12, 2021

Members of the Myanmar military were the prime operatives behind a systematic campaign on Facebook that stretched back half a decade and that targeted the country’s mostly Muslim Rohingya minority group, the people said. The military exploited Facebook’s wide reach in Myanmar, where it is so broadly used that many of the country’s 18 million internet users confuse the Silicon Valley social media platform with the internet. Human rights groups blame the anti-Rohingya propaganda for inciting murders, rapes and the largest forced human migration in recent history.

French police make woman remove clothing on Nice beach following burkini ban

August 12, 2021

Last week, Nice became the latest French resort to ban the burkini. Using language similar to the bans imposed earlier at other locations, the city barred clothing that “overtly manifests adherence to a religion at a time when France and places of worship are the target of terrorist attacks”.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/aug/24/french-police-make-woman-remove-burkini-on-nice-beach

Choices Unit: The Syrian Civil War

August 12, 2021

What caused the conflict in Syria, and how should the international community respond?

The Syrian Civil War and resulting refugee crisis is one of the defining humanitarian issues of our time. Since 2011, the violence of the conflict has prompted about half of the country’s population to flee from their homes—nearly seven million refugees have fled the country and more than six million Syrians are internally displaced. The war has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians and injured more than a million people. The Syrian Civil War provides students with the historical basis to understand the recent conflict, exploring the legacies of colonialism, sectarianism, and authoritarianism that continue to shape the country today. Throughout the curriculum, students explore how Syrian social movements and resistance have shaped the country’s history, considering the experiences and perspectives of Syrians from the past to the present. The unit is divided into three parts. Each part includes:

The Syrian Civil War

Human Rights Course Online Video Series

August 12, 2021

This free digital course about human rights is meant to expose students to the concept of human rights. Our goal is to leave students with an understanding of what rights they have, and why they are important. Students should also leave the course with the ability to identify their rights and those of people in their family and community. You can watch it here on Youtube, or to get the full experience you can check out the full course at http://www.allversity.org!