Human Rights Revolution

05/15/2026

It would seem our world has turned its back on human rights and governments are shirking their responsibilities to the people they serve.

Human rights exist where there is democracy and democracy holds the ideal of self-government of, by, and for the people.

For human rights to thrive, for people to flourish, we have to take responsibility and run for office, be active in our communities, be informed, challenge existing power structures by holding them accountable.

For our systems to work the people must hold up their end of the bargain and claim it and their human rights as their own.

There are certain things we should never compromise on. We must be the people who make it so we never have to.

04/04/2026

The United Nations is made up of member states and corporations. Their interests and concerns do not match the needs of the earth’s 8 billion people.

A true Human Rights Revolution will turn this world on its head and put people first, people before profits.

This is a difficult revolution because with 8 billion voices you have 8 billion dreams. If we do not change how the planet is governed, if we do not change those now in place who head governments and corporations there will be no place on earth that is safe for humanity.

Making these changes will be revolutionary, doing nothing will lead to disaster for many and a life not worth living for billions more.

Starting with the concept of human dignity for every human being sets a high, but understandable bar to begin with. Human Rights are foundational everything can be built on that platform. Without that fundamental framework, individuals and the communities we establish will always be under the thumb of power and money seekers.

A toast to the people of the world…the humans.

03/28/2026

Dignity is the cornerstone of a civil society. For that to happen, you first have to treat others as you would want to be treated. We all must be strong if we want to build a more humane world.

The promise of a better tomorrow rests in our ability to treat others well. It is your actions, combined with your neighbor’s actions that move us closer to the promised land where freedom, justice and dignity are held by everyone.

03/22/2026

For those in NYC and interested in how LGBTQ+ issues are being addressed at the United Nations

NGO Committee on Human Rights
Presents:
Understanding LGBTQ+ Rights in Global Context:
History, Advocacy, and the United Nations Human Rights System
Tuesday, March 24, 2026 ­­| 1pm – 3pm

11th Floor Church Center
(East 44th Street and 1st Avenue)

Description
The recognition and protection of the rights of le***an, gay, bisexual, transgender, and q***r (LGBTQ+) individuals has emerged through decades of advocacy, scholarship, and grassroots mobilization across the world, often in the face of significant backlash. While initially not approached in its specificity by the international human rights system, activists, civil society organizations, and scholars have persistently committed to bring the issues of sexual orientation and gender identity into broader global human rights discussions.

In recent decades, LGBTQ+ advocates have increasingly engaged international institutions, particularly the United Nations, to draw attention to the disproportional violence, discrimination, and exclusion experienced by LGBTQ+ communities worldwide simply based of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. These efforts have contributed to growing recognition that protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity are integral to the broader framework of universal human rights.

This event aims to provide participants with a historical and global overview of LGBTQ+ rights struggles, while revisiting the role that the UN human rights system has played in shaping international recognition of these issues. The discussion will also highlight the work of advocates who have engaged within and alongside UN institutions to advance LGBTQ+ rights. By situating contemporary debates within a broader historical and institutional context, this event seeks to offer a nuanced understanding of how international advocacy, policy engagement, and civil society mobilization continue to resist setbacks and advance the trajectory of LGBTQ+ human rights.

Welcome and Introduction:
Dr. Bobbi Nassar
Chair NGO Committee on Human Rights
International Federation of Settlements and Neighborhood Centers

Panelists:

Mr. Bruce Knotts
President and CEO NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace, and Security
Presentation:
Retired U.S. Foreign Service Officer who was a leader of the Department of State's "G**s and Le****ns in Foreign Affairs Agencies", which advocated for LGBTQ rights for all U.S. agencies working globally. He was the E.D. of the Unitarian Universalist office that worked to mainstream LGBTQ rights at the UN.

Mr. Rio Hada
Chief, Equality Development and Rule of Law Section in the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Presentation:
Briefing on the status of LGBTQ human rights within the UN system including recent resolutions both at the General Assembly and the HRC. Will provide an update on the impact of funding cutbacks on the functioning of the OHCHR.

Mr. João Carvalho, M.A. MPhil
NGO intern, Representative for the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues at the UN
PhD Candidate in Critical Social Psychology at the Graduate Center, CUNY
Presentation:
Drawing on community narratives of lived experiences, this dialogue explores the impacts of political hostility towards LGBTQ community in Brazil after the results of 2019's election, influencing many LGBTQ people to seek more safety in Portugal, a country known for being progressive towards LGBTQ rights. The conversation aims to cover the strategies of belonging negotiation, access to institutional resources and the challenges of social inclusion and xenophobia.

Bobbi Nassar Bobbi Nassar Stonewall National Museum, Archives, & Library

12/02/2025

December 10th is International Human Rights Day...The 77th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The Declaration has 30 articles and is still the best blueprint for building a robust civil society. So, why is it still one of the great secrets in our modern world?

On Wednesday, December 10th find a copy of the Declaration and read it to yourself, with others, out loud, post it on your social media, celebrate it as the treasure it is.

Before we are anything, we are humans. As much as we need air to breathe, water to drink, food to eat, we need each other. Nothing is more basic, nothing is more conclusive, nothing is more worth fighting for.

Extend a hand, share a smile, say hello to the stranger you pass along the way. Allow your humanity to show and change the world.

Eight Days Away.

04/05/2022

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/execution-robert-kesten

Even in normal times it is far too easy to point out problems over cures. In troubled times it becomes the norm, as it is harder to identify solutions when we feel our world sinking around us.

03/05/2022

March is and March 8th is Celebrate by reading the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the first document to recognize women, worldwide as equals in every way. https://lnkd.in/eycHmyB5

Excerpts from The International Bill of Rights, Fact Sheet #2, UN Centre for Human Rights: The adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 "was the first occasion on which the organized community of nations ... made a Declaration of human rights and fundamental freedoms...." "Conce...

02/13/2022

Saving democracy and fighting inhumane laws. Making yellow stars and pink triangles to hold anti-democratic legislators & executives accountable. Be proud, be bold, be courageous. If you do not stand up today, who will stand up for you tomorrow?

02/07/2022

How human are you?

Humans are social beings. Religion, government, culture, sports, and other established systems have developed over time to provide human beings with the tools needed to live in community with others.

02/05/2022

Who wins?

The athletes marched into the stadium kicking off the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. From the smallest of nations to the largest, from the wealthiest to the poorest countries were in attendance.