Friday 17 July 2009

I used to think human rights were not important…

I used to think human rights were not important… There is essentially nothing in nature that makes rights rights – they are at the end of the day only things people have agreed on as just principles. If you looked in on society from space you’d see that the only natural law we are bound by is the law of the jungle – people, and governments, do what they can get away with.

The principle still stands… but human rights do matter. They matter because we choose to make them matter. We choose to live our lives according to principles. How we expect to be treated is how we should expect others to be treated.

People and governments do what they can get away with. But rights matter… and that means that each of us has a responsibility to see that they don’t get away with breaching our rights – not individually and not collectively.

Rights come with responsibilities – and our responsibility is to see that everyone gets to enjoy the same rights that we enjoy and take for granted.

Inactivity is acquiescence.

..supporting Bloggers Unite for Human Rights 2009

1 comment:

Steve Wallace said...

In order to develop a society where people can live as they please, accomplish their goals, and live a comfortable life, human rights must be available. Humans have much different needs than animals, and by allowing all people to live in a way that allows them to satisfy those needs, we can create a place where everyone can live a happy life.