issues > political
Political Issues:
Human Rights
Women's Rights
Children's Rights
Prison Reform
Capital Punishment
Conflict Resolution
Disarmament
Human Rights
back to top
Human Rights Watch
is dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around the world.
They stand with victims and activists to prevent discrimination, to uphold
political freedom, to protect people from inhumane conduct in wartime,
and to bring offenders to justice. They investigate and expose human rights
violations and hold abusers accountable. They challenge governments and
those who hold power to end abusive practices and respect international
human rights law. They enlist the public and the international community
to support the cause of human rights for all. Knowing the power of images,
HRW's site includes photo
essays that invite the viewer to places where human rights are
not upheld.
OneWorld
is dedicated to promoting human rights and sustainable development by
harnessing the democratic potential of the Internet. "Like most of our
readers, we are acutely aware of the injustices and unnecessary suffering
in the world. Our aim is to bear witness to this injustice and to help
people shed whatever light they can on it. Cruelty and injustice flourish
most freely in the dark - or in the ambiguous twilight of 'open secrets'.
Bringing issues into the light, we believe, is a first step towards positive
change."
(search by topic or by country)
Amnesty International
is a worldwide campaigning movement that works to promote all
the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
and other international standards. In particular, Amnesty International
campaigns to free all prisoners of conscience; ensure fair and prompt
trials for political prisoners; abolish the death penalty, torture and
other cruel treatment of prisoners; end political killings and "disappearances";
and oppose human rights abuses by opposition groups.
Amnesty International has around a million members and supporters in 162
countries and territories. Activities range from public demonstrations
to letter-writing, from human rights education to fundraising concerts,
from individual appeals on a particular case to global campaigns on a
particular issue.
The American Civil Liberties
Union is on the forefront of advocating individual rights -- litigating,
legislating, and educating the public on a broad array of issues affecting
individual freedom in the United States. The mission of the ACLU is to
assure that the Bill of Rights -- amendments to the Constitution that
guard against unwarranted governmental control -- are preserved for each
new generation.
Survival
is a worldwide organisation supporting tribal peoples. It stands for their
right to decide their own future and helps them protect their lives, lands
and human rights. Working in close partnership with local indigenous organisations,
Survival campaigns for the recognition of the land rights of tribes ranging
from the Indians of Amazonia to the Maasai of East Africa, from the indigenous
tribes of West Papua to the Innu in eastern Canada.
B'TSELEM
The Israeli Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories
was established in 1989 by a group of prominent academics, attorneys,
journalists, and Knesset members. It endeavors to document and educate
the Israeli public and policymakers about human rights violations in the
Occupied Territories, combat the phenomenon of denial prevalent among
the Israeli public, and help create a human rights culture in Israel.
As an Israeli human rights
organization, B'Tselem acts primarily to change Israeli policy in the
Occupied Territories and ensure that its government, which rules the Occupied
Territories, protects the human rights of residents there and complies
with its obligations under international law.
B'Tselem in Hebrew literally
means "in the image of," and is also used as a synonym for human
dignity. The word is taken from Genesis 1:27: "And God created humans
in his image. In the image of God did He create him." It is in this
spirit that the first article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
states that "All human beings are born equal in dignity and rights.
B'Tselem ensures the reliability
of information it publishes by conducting its own fieldwork and research,
whose results are thoroughly cross-checked with relevant documents, official
government sources, and information from other sources, among them Israeli,
Palestinian, and other human rights organizations.
Women's Rights
back to top
Women's Human
Rights Net works at recognizing women's human rights and
how they are violated; educating women about their rights and that they
are entitled to use them; educating the public and building support
in recognizing violations and demanding accountability of abusers; using
international human rights mechanisms and instruments; and documenting
and reporting violations of women's human rights.
The Feminist Majority
and The Feminist Majority Foundation are committed to empowering
women and winning equality through research, the sharing of information
of value to feminists everywhere, and effective action.
The name Feminist Majority is a consciousness-raiser, inspired by a Newsweek/Gallup
public opinion poll that showed the majority of women (56%) in the United
States self-identified as feminists. Most polls since then reveal that
this majority continues with over two-thirds of young women self-identifying
as feminists. Most men, especially young men, view themselves as supporters
of the women's rights movement.
What is a Feminist Anyway?
Our definition of feminism is simple yet broad: "the policy, practice
or advocacy of political, economic, and social equality for women." A
feminist is any person -- woman or man, girl or boy -- who advocates feminism.
The Feminist Majority Foundation views feminism as a global movement dedicated
to equality and seeks to eliminate discrimination of all kinds -- sex,
race, sexual orientation, age, religion, national origin, disability,
and marital status. And, like feminists since the late 19th Century, we
advocate non-violence and work to eliminate social and economic injustice.
WomensNet,
supports women's organizations locally, nationally and worldwide by providing
and adapting telecommunications technology to enhance their work.
WILPF works to
acheive through peaceful means world disarmament, full rights for women,
racial and economic justice, an end to all forms of violence, and to establish
those political, social, and psychological conditions which can assure
peace, freedom, and justice for all.
Children's Rights
back to top
UNICEF advocates
and works for the protection of children's rights, to help the young meet
their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full
potential.
Prisons Reform and Crime Prevention
back to top
Prison Activist
Resource Center "We believe that progressive social change, not
mass incarceration, is the solution to crime. We further believe that
nonviolent direct action is the only effective antidote to the many forms
of institutionalized violence both inside and outside America's prisons."
PARC's goals are to expose the myths that sustain widespread injustices
in prisons and in the communities most affected by mass imprisonment;
to inspire and motivate people to take positive action against the mass
incarceration system and for prisoners' human and civil rights; and to
provide practical support to activists who are taking such action.
The National Center on Institutions and Alternatives (NCIA)
has been on the cutting edge of criminal justice reform in the United States
since its founding in 1977. With a full-time staff of over 300, NCIA is
a private, nonprofit agency providing training, technical assistance, research
and direct services to criminal justice, social services, and mental health
organizations and clients across the country.
The Center on Juvenile and
Criminal Justice is a private non-profit organization whose mission
is to reduce society's reliance on the use of institutionalization as a
solution to social problems.
Capital Punishment
back to top
The National Coalition
to Abolish the Death Penalty , a coalition of organizations and
individuals committed to the abolition of capital punishment, provides
information, advocates for public policy and mobilizes and supports people
and institutions that share an unconditional rejection of a state's use
of homocide as an instrument of social policy.
The Death Penalty
Information Center is a non-profit organization serving the media
and the public with analysis and information on issues concerning capital
punishment. The Center was founded in 1990 and prepares in-depth reports,
issues press releases, conducts briefings for journalists, and serves
as a resource to those working on this issue. The Center is widely quoted
and consulted by those concerned with the death penalty.
Conflict Resolution
back to top
The International
Peace Academyis an independent, non-partisan, international organization
dedicated to promoting the peaceful settlement of armed conflicts between
and within states.
The mission of the Department
of Defense of the United States is to provide the military forces
needed to deter war and to protect the security of the USA.
The North Atlantic Treaty
(NATO) was signed in Washington on 4 April 1949, creating an alliance
of 12 independent nations committed to each other's defence. Four more
European nations later acceded to the Treaty between 1952 and 1982. On
12 March 1999, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland were welcomed into
the Alliance, which now numbers 19 members.
Peacekeeping was pioneered and developed by the UN
as one of the means for maintaining international peace and security.
Most The United
Nations Peacekeepers , often referred to as "blue helmets", have
been soldiers, volunteered by their Governments to apply military discipline
and training to the task of restoring and maintaining the peace. UN peacekeepers
were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988.
Disarmament
back to top
The
United Nations Department for Disarmament Affairs
Peace
Action displays information about nuclear abolition, weapons trafficking,
human rights and the peace economy on maps of the world.
Move Our Money
The goal of Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities is to insure that
- in the next century and beyond - the United States retains its position
as the economic and military leader of the world.
Comments, questions, or suggestions for our issues initiative? Write to us at: issues@humanity.org
|