Human rights are not partisan issues

Human+rights+are+not+partisan+issues

Human rights are not partisan issues

By Managing Editor

Climate change, access to healthcare, women’s health, supporting individuals with disabilities, access to education and many more issues are considered human rights by the U.N. Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner. 

UNROHC also states that “Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, language or any other status.” 

The GOP has actively campaigned against these rights even before Trump and denied the reality of man-made climate change, opposed civil rights, LGBT rights and gender equality. With Trump’s plan for his first 100 days in office, the GOP agenda is likely to become the law of the land.

Trump plans to cancel payments to U.N. climate change programs and remove roadblocks to environmentally disastrous projects like the Keystone Pipeline. The ink is barely dry on the historic Paris Climate Agreement, which he intends to renounce—an action that alarmed the U.S. and the rest of the world.

He also plans to redirect education funding to “give parents the right to send their kid to the public, private, charter, magnet, religious or home school of their choice.” The public school system is funded and in place to fulfill the human right to education for all students regardless of socioeconomic status. The system does not always work, but Trump’s plan will reduce public education resources and quality.

Trump’s plans to stop funding Sanctuary Cities, suspend immigration from terror-prone regions and construct a wall along the Mexican border by way of his End Illegal Immigration Act—supposedly to be paid for by Mexico. All support racial profiling and treating people differently based on national or ethnic origin, color, religion or language.

He also intends to repeal Obamacare, which will affect 21 million people’s healthcare coverage, according to a Nov. 9 Vox News article. While the current system has flaws, abolishing the program instead of making attempts to fix it is a huge step backward.

Trump maligned Latinos as criminals and rapists, mocked a reporter with a disability and repeatedly disrespected and demeaned women through his words and actions. His vice president, Mike Pence, is one of the few people to still support conversion therapy for LGBT individuals. These individuals are expected to lead a diverse country, but have made it clear that they do not see all individuals as equal and deserving of human rights.

Other aspects of the Trump agenda may be disturbing but are not blatant violations of the most basic human rights. These include withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, renegotiating NAFTA, implementing a hiring freeze on all federal employees and lowering the tax rate for businesses from 35 to 15 percent.

The U.S. has been a world leader in human rights and in democracy. Many believed this to be the strongest pillar of values in this country, and now it has been proven extremely fragile. All citizens must remember that their human rights are not a business deal; they cannot be negotiated.