WHAT ARE HUMAN RIGHTS?

1. WHAT ARE HUMAN RIGHTS? Human rights are rights which pertain to all human beings. These rights are seen as universal, which signifies that they are meant for everyone, no matter what their race, religion, ethnicityor nationality age, sex, political opinion, intelligence, disability, sexual orientation, are. They are guaranteed by the law which protects and defends individuals and groups’ rights. Founded on respect for dignity and worth of each person they are: • Universal:They apply to all people simply on the basis of being human. • Inalienable:They cannot be taken away simply because we do not like the person seeking to exercise their rights. They can only be limited in certain tightly defined circumstances, and some rights, such as the prohibition on torture and slavery, can never be limited. • Indivisible:You cannot pick and choose which rights you want to honour. Many rights depend on each other to be meaningful – so, for example, the right to a fair trial would be meaningless without the prohibition on discrimination, and the right to free speech must go hand in hand with the right to assemble peacefully. ELENA LEMME.

2. HISTORY OF HUMAN RIGHTS We cannot say exactly when human rights were born because they are the fruit of a long evolution. Both in Greece and in ancient Rome only the citizens could participate to political life, or rather adult and free men; children, women and slaves were excluded, instead. An important contribution was given by Christianity which assumed the idea of men’s equality before God. Three important documents are: • The Magna Charta Libertatum, issued in 1215. It contains a list of rights recognized only to the most important social classes (archbishops, bishops, abbots, priors, counts and barons). • The Habeas Corpus Act, issued in 1679. It established that nobody could be arrested and deprived of his own freedom, arbitrarily, that is without real evidence of his guilt. • The Bill of Rights was approved in 1689. It affirmed the freedom of religion, speech, press.

3. HISTORYOF HUMAN RIGHTS The Declaration of American Independence of the American colonies was issued in 1776. It stated that all men are created equal, so they have the right to: freedom, equality, in the pursuit of happiness. Enclosed to it, then, was also the Declaration the Right of Man which claimed: the right to life, to freedom of speech, press, religion, and political reunion. At the end of the French Revolution in 1789 the Declaration of Men and Citizens’ rights was drawn up. It established as fundamental rights: equality, liberty of press, thought, religion, the right to personal property and the presumptuousness of innocence.

4. HISTORY OF HUMAN RIGHTS While the Declaration of Independence and the French Declaration were linked to the citizens of particular countries, the Universal Declaration of Men’s Rights represents a historical step forward: because it is not the declaration of an only state. A lot of states in the world joined it, giving life to a wide organization: the Organization of the United Nations. Today the States Members of the United nations are 189. The main aim of the UNO is to keep peace and guarantee international security by promoting and encouraging the respect of men’s rights without distinction of sex, race, language or religion and to defend the rights of weak categories of people: such as women, children and refugees. ISOTTA COLANGELO

5. HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION Human rights education can be defined as education, training and information aimed at building a universal culture of human rights. Effective human rights education not only provides knowledge about human rights but also develops the skills needed to promote, defend and apply human rights in daily life. Human rights education also fosters the attitudes needed to uphold human rights for all members of society. Human rights education activities should convey fundamental human rights principles, such as equality and non-discrimination, while affirming their interdependence, indivisibility and universality.

6. HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION At the same time, activities should be practical—relating human rights to learners’ real-life experience and enabling them to build on human rights principles found in their own cultural context. Through such activities, learners are empowered to identify and address their human rights needs and to seek solutions consistent with human rights standards. Moreover for those who have the responsibility for respecting, protecting and fulfilling the rights of others, human rights education develops their capacity to do so. Both what is learned and the way in which it is learned should reflect human rights values, encourage participation and foster a learning environment free from fear. STEFANIA SCLOCCO

7. CHILDREN’S RIGHTS First of all a child is any under age human being. According to Cornell University, a child is a person, not a “sub person”. The field of children's rights spans the fields of law, politics, religion, and morality. Children's rights are the human rights of children with particular attention to the rights of special protection and care afforded to minors, including their right to association with both parents, human identity as well as the basic needs for food, universal state-paid education, health care and criminal laws, equal protection of the child's civil rights, and freedom from discrimination. UNICEF is an association that safeguards infancy, it was born In 1946. In 1959 the Declaration of Infancy Rights was issued to protect and defend children. Thirty years later, in 1989, the International Convention of Infancy Rights established: the right of life, the right of growth, the right to protection from abuse, the right to be listened.

8. VIOLATING CHILDREN'S RIGHTS All violations of children’s rights can legitimately be described as harmful practices, but the common characteristic of the violations highlighted in this report is that they are based on tradition, culture, religion. In the world the most widespread violation of children's rights is child labour. It takes different forms: • HouseworkThe work done by the children in the house of other people. • Forced LabourChildren pay the debts of their parents working in the fields, kilns, quarries, etc.. • Sexual Exploitation  girls are mostly involved in child prostitution. Some countries allow this violation because they make huge profits. • Street Work Millions of children work in the streets selling newspapers, washing windows, scrubbing shoes, transporting goods and people • Family work it is held in the house of their parents. It is heavy when it forces children to work long hours distancing them from school.

9. CHILDREN SOLDIERS Among the forms of children’s labourthe phenomenon of children soldiers should be taken into particular account. The principal causes of this phenomenon are: • Ethnic, religious and civil reasons  they involve the whole society. • Economic reasons  children soldiers do not require payroll and can be easily influenced and controlled. • Physical reasons  they are more agile and clever. Children soldiers can carry out different tasks: • they can be involved in the transportation of ammunition, mines and guns. • they can make suicide attacks. • they are used as spies. The consequences are devastating as clearly imaginable . MARIAVITTORIA SANTARELLI

10. WOMEN'S RIGHTS Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls of many societies worldwide. In some places these rights are institutionalized or supported by law, local custom, and behaviour, whereas in others they may be ignored or suppressed. They differ from broader notions of human rights through claims of an inherent historical and traditional bias against the exercise of rights by women and girls in favour of men and boys. Issues commonly associated with notions of women's rights include: bodily integrity and autonomy; vote (suffrage); public offices; work; fair wages or equal pay; personal property; education; military service or conscription; legal contracts; marital, parental and religious rights.

11. 8th March: Women'sDayor Mimosa Day? On 8th March, 1908 onehundred and twenty-nine American femaleworkersdied in theirfactory in New York during a fire. Theyhadprotestedagainstlowwages and abuse. As a consequence, theiremployershutthem up in theirownfactory. When the factorycaughtfiretherewas no way out for thosewomen. Theyalldied. Theirgraveswereallcovered with littlebunches of mimosa, a flowerwhichgrew in the fieldsnear the factory. Sincethen, 8th of March hasbeencelebratedasWomen'sdaywhenmimosa bunchesare usuallydistributedas a present. Thenthisdayhasbeendedicatednotonly to the improvement of women's status, butithasalmostbecome a public holiday. The hope for women and fortunatelyalso for lots of men, isthat the 8th March shouldnot be the onlyday in the yearwhenwomendeserve some consideration for whatthey are and they do. This positive attitudeshouldbecome the rule. BENEDETTA BELFIGLIO

13. BULLYINGA SCHOOLMATE In classrooms, in corridors and in yards, only a few students respect rules. Students ask for rigorous punishment and they also want teachers to demonstrate their authority. 63% of students assert that they see some episodes of violence and 37% claim that they put up with it. The school should be a peaceful community, but some members do not respect rules. The most widespread acts of violence are psychological. A lot of students use some rumors to insult their peers. A third of the interviewed admits that they never defend their friends. Only few students talk about bullying with their families. The people that talk about it with their families receive only ‘’Don’t worry’’ or ‘’defend yourself’’ as advice from their parents.

14. FEMALE GANGS Female gangs are getting more and more widespread, especially in France and in Great Britain. However, also in Italy there have been similar cases. In Milan a 17-year-old girl was hit by girls. In Novara a 15-year-old girl reported to the police 4 female classmates. According to the data of the Italian pediatric society, girls in schools claim that they manage to confront their male classmates.

15. DEALING WITH BULLIES IS POSSIBLE In order to change the behaviourof a bully-boy/girl we have to change our mind first. Bullying is like mafia: it can survive only if nobody talks about it. What is ‘’a bully’’? A bully is a person who acts violently, physically or psychologically, on a victim who cannot defend himself or herself. Bullying has always existed but it became visible only when a crime was committed. But some years ago, after a boy affected by the down-syndrome was hit and mocked by 4 classmates, the problem became more serious. The association ‘’S.O.S. bullying’’ was born. Its aim is to create a solidarity culture. In primary schools there are training courses for teachers. In secondary schools there are training programs for groups of peers. That means that voluntary children from 4th and 5th classes are trained in order to protect younger children. ALESSIA SIMONE

16. A BULLYING EXPERIENCE In one class, there was this boy who sat in my group." He looked like a nice guy, but wow, was I wrong about that. This boy only saw me as an easy target. I had big glasses at that time, so maybe that just spelled out "nerd" in his mind. I'm not sure what his reasons were, but I didn't want to get to know him better just to figure that out. Anyway, he didn't throw punches or do anything violent like that, but he teased me as if there was no tomorrow. He made fun of me about my look, the way I acted and talked, and so on. Whatever I said to him, he didn't take it seriously and just said "you're stupid". My mum found out that someone was making me unhappy at school and she said that I should go and speak to a teacher for help. So, I went up to the teacher and I said: “He has teased me for days, and I really don't like it." The teacher told the boy: “Be kind to Luigi. Have I made myself clear?" He didn't really react, just gave a quiet nod or a short "Okay." . Indeed things have not changed since then and I'm still afraid of him. Luigi Chiavetta’sinterview

17. INTERVIEW J: Hello! We are carrying out a survey on “What people think of human rights”. Do you mind answering some of our questions? A: Surely not! J: What is your name? A: I am Alessia Simone. J: Nice to meet you, Alessia. What do you do? Do you work? A: No, I’m unemployed, it’s hard to find a good job opportunity today. J: Yes, I think so, too. This survey is about “what people think of human rights”. So, to start…, what do you think of “The right to work? A: All people should find a job suitable to their inclinations and interests. J: How should a State which bases its constitution on labour be like? A: Any State which bases its constitution on labour should guarantee the right to exercise and protect it. Each work should be constructive for the moral or the spiritual growth of the company. Although work is a right, it is not guaranteed to everyone. J: Thank you for your kindness. A: You’re welcome, bye. J: bye. Alessia Simone’s interview

18. INTERVIEW J: Hello everyone, I am in the “Mazzocco” middle school, here with me there is a teacher, StefaniaSclocco, she is going to talk about the education to the respect of human rights for children? S: The education to the respect of human rights for children is a fundamental theme because childhood is the ideal time to start talking and learning about human rights. J: Which are the fundamental bases of education? S: Human rights education must be based on the respect of the personal self and others’, on the appreciation of differences and on the respect of the dignity and worth of each person. J: Thanks a lot for your answers, goodbye. S: Goodbye.

19. INTERVIEW J: Hello Jane. What can you tell us about human rights? JA: Hi! What do you want to know about them? J: First of all, why don’t you explain the meaning of human rights to us? JA: Well, Human rights are those rights which are inherent to the human being, without distinction as to social origin, race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion. J: Are human rights guaranteed by someone or something? JA: Oh yes, they’re legally guaranteed by human rights law that does not establish them because they are inherent entitlements which come to every person as a consequence of being human. J: What are their main characteristics? JA: The most important are: they are founded on respect for the dignity and worth of each person, they are universal, which means they are applied equally to all people, they are inalienable or rather no one can have his or her human rights taken away; in the end they are indivisible, interrelated and interdependent, in practice, the violation of one right will often affect respect for other rights. J: So this is all we should know about human rights, isn’t it? JA: Yes, this is the basic information to must know about the topic. J: Thanks for answering our questions, bye, bye! JA: Bye. Isotta Colangelo interview..

20. INTERVIEW J: Good morning. B: Good morning. J: Do you mind if we ask you some questions? They concern “Human Rights”. B: Of course not. J: Okay. So, what is your name? B: My name is BenedettaBelfiglio. J: Well, Do you work? B: Oh, I don’t work because I have three little sons and I “work” with them all days long. J: Considering your large experience as a mother, in your opinion: “What is a child?” B: Well, first of all a child is aperson like the others, endowed with the same rights as any other being. According to Cornell University, a child is a personthat must be encouraged, listened and encouraged. The field of children's rights spans the fields of law, politics, religion, and morality. J: What are children’s rights? B: Children's rights are the human rights of children with particular attention to the rights of special protection and care afforded to minors, including their right to association with both parents, human identity as well as the basic needs for food, universal state-paid education, health care, equal protection of the child's civil rights, and freedom from discrimination. J: Can you mention an association safeguarding infancy? B: UNICEF is an association that safeguards infancy, it was born In 1946. In 1959 was issued the Declaration of infancy rights to protect and defend children. In 1989 was passed the International Convention of Infancy Rights that established: the right of life, the right of growth, the right to protection from abuse, the right to be listened. Personally, I think they are all really important to live in a better world. J: I think so, too, goodbye. B: Goodbye. BenedettaBelfiglio’s interview