CEDAW, the Universal Periodic Review, and U.S. Women's Rights

During its upcoming Universal Periodic Review in 2015, the U.S. will report on its overall human rights record under the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as its compliance with specific treaty obligations.  Though the U.S. has not ratified CEDAW, principles of equality and the importance of supporting families are pertinent under the UDHR.

The World Policy Forum, an excellent source of authoritative data on issues relating to family, work, and inequality, posts this dramatic map showing just how isolated the U.S. is in its failure, at the national level, to provide ANY paid leave to mothers of infants.  The U.S. shares this distinction with Suriname and Papua New Guinea; every other country in the world provides at least some assurance of paid leave to mothers, if not to both parents.

The U.S. is also isolated in its failure to ratify CEDAW.  Only seven countries in the world -- the U.S., Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Iran, Palau and Tonga -- have failed to ratify the treaty. Earlier this week, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations, Human Rights, Democracy and Global Women's Issues held an important hearing on combatting violence and discrimination against women.  An unprecedented number of Senators, both men and women, participated in the hearing and called for ratification of CEDAW as a tool to address violence against women and girls across the globe.

The upcoming UPR process will provide an important occasion to assess U.S. policies relating to gender equality against international human rights standards.  While CEDAW ratification would help the U.S. provide leadership in combatting violence against women globally, the World Policy Forum's data provides dramatic evidence of the work that CEDAW could do to further women's rights at home.

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