Tuesday, December 30, 2014
2014 Brought Good News for Recognition of Human Rights Advocates
2014 brought recognition to human rights advocates across the globe.
"For their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education" Mahala Yoesafzai and Kaylish Satyarthi shared the 2014 Nobel peace prize.
"Bismillah hir rahman ir rahim.
In the name of God, the most merciful, the most beneficent."
With these words, Mahala began her acceptance speech. She reminded us both of her mission and her youth.
"I am proud, well in fact, I am very proud to be the first Pashtun, the first Pakistani, and the youngest person to receive this award. Along with that, along with that, I am pretty certain that I am also the first recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize who still fights with her younger brothers. I want there to be peace everywhere, but my brothers and I are still working on that."
This young woman, whose name means "grief stricken", honors her family and her work, while keeping her sense of humor. The entirety of Mahala's speech may be read here.
In his speech, Mr. Satyarthi invoked spiritual gratitude, as well.
"From this podium of peace and humanity, I am deeply honoured to recite a mantra from the ancient texts of wisdom, Vedas.
This mantra carries a prayer, an aspiration and a resolve that has the potential to liberate humanity from all man-made crises.
Let's walk together. In the pursuit of global progress, not a single person should be left out or left behind in any corner of the world, from East to West, from South to North.
Let's speak together, let our minds come together! Learning from the experiences of our ancestors, let us together create knowledge for all that benefits all."
The entirety of Mr. Satyarthi's speech may be read here.
At home we rejoiced in the award of three MacArthur fellowships to U.S. human rights advocates Mary Bonauto, Sarah Deer and Jonathan Rapping. To read more about these amazing advocates read our original blog here.
For her forthright advocacy on behalf of women, Rashida Manjoo was honored by the American Bar Association's Section on Litigation. To read more about her work and this award, read here.
Here's to honoring ourselves and each other in 2015!
https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/human_rights/2014/12/2014-brought-good-news-for-recognition-of-human-rights-advocates.html