As a Jewish human rights organisation, René Cassin draws on Jewish experience and values to speak out for dignity, equality and solidarity with vulnerable and marginalised people. Carrying in our own heritage a grave warning of the dangers of hate, we are deeply saddened by the marked increase in antisemitic incidents recorded in recent weeks.
As human rights defenders, we must stand together against all forms of hate. Our namesake, Monsieur René Cassin co-drafted the Declaration on Human Rights in response to the horrors of the Holocaust and the climate of hate it resulted from.
Committed to his legacy, we say firmly, hostility or prejudice against any community, whether motivated by religion or faith, disability, gender identity, race, sex or sexual orientation is unacceptable. Hateful language and behaviour are not the solution, but solidarity through shared values is. It is this belief that underlies our campaigns to #CutItOut when it comes to hate, and #ReachOut to our partners across faiths, ethnicities and other communities.
The Jewish community has benefitted greatly from hard-won human rights and protections, and recent weeks remind us of the work still to be done. We will continue to champion equality, dignity, and freedom in solidarity and coalition with our friends and partners across communities.
Today, 10th December, is International Human Rights Day – the 76th anniversary of the signing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.
The Declaration was a reaction to the horrors of the Holocaust. So, for Jews, today has a particuar significance.
Although rooted in response to atrocity, the Declaration was forward-looking and optimistic. It spoke for the majority of people who knew a better world was possible. The fact that it’s co-author , the French-Jewish lawyer Monsieur Rene Cassin, could draft such a hopeful document so soon after 26 members of his family were murdered by the Nazis is a testament to his humanity and the power of human rights in general.
Today, as the organisation that works in Cassin’s name, we are determined to ensure his Declaration’s vision of human rights for all is fully realised. Central to that work is a focus on so called ‘socio-economic rights’ – rights to everyday essentials like food, housing and health. This vision was best articulated in Article 25 of the Declaration:
‘Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control’.
Bolstering these rights would ensure everybody has access to the foundations on which to build a dignified, prosperous and meaningful life. They have been neglected for too long.
