{"id":19796,"date":"2022-01-25T03:09:37","date_gmt":"2022-01-25T02:09:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.humanrightscareers.com\/?p=19796"},"modified":"2022-01-25T03:09:48","modified_gmt":"2022-01-25T02:09:48","slug":"what-are-human-rights-cities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.humanrightscareers.com\/issues\/what-are-human-rights-cities\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are Human Rights Cities?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Urbanization is on the rise. According to the United Nations Population Fund<\/a>, more than half of the world\u2019s population lives in towns or cities. By 2030, that number could reach 5 billion people. This is significant because inequality often slices cities into divisions of wealth and poverty. A human rights approach can address this problem and promote cities as spaces of equality<\/a>, inclusion, and empowerment. When different stakeholders in a city – the local government, civil society, and private sector – come together to adopt human rights principles and laws, a human rights city is born.<\/p>\n

The history of human rights cities<\/h2>\n

The impact of cities on human rights is not new considering how cities can be home to high levels of poverty, inequality, environmental decay, and so on. The organization the People\u2019s Movement for Human Rights Learning (formerly known as the People\u2019s Decade for Human Rights Education and still known by the abbreviation PDHRE<\/a>) launched the more formal understanding of human rights cities. It was just after the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights<\/a> in Vienna, Austria, which represented a reinvigorated commitment to implement human rights instruments. The PDHRE\u2019S Human Rights Cities initiative sought to mobilize communities to engage in dialogue and take action on improving life and security for people based on a human rights standard.<\/p>\n

The first Human Rights City<\/h2>\n

Rosario is the biggest city in the central Argentinian province of Sante Fe and the third-most populous city in the country. Tourists are drawn to its centuries-old architecture in the neoclassical, Art Nouveau, and Art Deco styles, as well as its many museums. Football legend Lionel Messi is from Rosario. In June of 1997, more than 100 people, including groups representing women, children, the academic community, and indigenous people, met with the municipality at City Hall. The executive director of PDHRE was there, too. The groups signed a proclamation committing to turn Rosario into a \u201chuman rights sensitive city\u201d that would promote equity, peace, and respect for human rights.<\/p>\n

Rosario drew up plans<\/a> to implement the proclamation. All sectors of society were represented on a Citizen\u2019s Committee, which began analyzing how human rights violations<\/a> were connected and initiating neighborhood dialogues about a human rights framework. A sub-committee looked at the government\u2019s obligations under international law and solutions to poverty, violence against women and the LGBTQ community, police brutality, poor education, and more. Human rights experts, educators, lawyers, and media members made a supporting volunteer group while trainings were held for and by police, judges, business people, teachers, and others. Specific principles guided the process: transparency, participation, accountability, reciprocity, and a commitment to eliminate poverty.<\/p>\n

Other Human Rights Cities<\/h2>\n

Other areas embraced the concept of human rights cities. In 2000, Saint-Denis in France adopted the European Charter for the Safe Guarding of Human Rights<\/a> in the City. In 2009, Gwangju in South Korea established a human rights municipality and in 2011, held the 1st World Human Rights Cities Forum. The event is held annually and is an essential gathering for the human rights cities movement. The forum defined human rights cities as \u201cboth a local community and a socio-political process in a local context where human rights play a key role as fundamental values and guiding principles.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are currently human rights cities in Asia, Africa, Europe, Canada, the United States, and Latin America. Examples include Timbuktu, Mali; Nagpur, India; Nuremberg, Germany; Madrid, Spain; Seattle, United States; and Winnipeg, Canada.<\/p>\n

How do cities become \u201chuman rights cities?\u201d<\/h2>\n

There is no standardized process for a city to become a \u201chuman rights city.\u201d According to the Human Rights Cities Network<\/a>, an online platform that promotes the development of human rights cities, there are two processes: an informal one and a formal one. The informal process is when a city promotes human rights at a local government level without officially labeling itself a \u201chuman rights city.\u201d These cities embrace concepts like sustainability (\u201cgoing green\u201d), welcoming refugees, being inclusive to all genders and sexualities, and so on. The success of these cities varies widely; cities often make big promises they don\u2019t keep. Some cities have embraced human rights agendas and implemented norms, but haven\u2019t adopted broader declarations. Chicago, Illinois is one example. The City Council passed a resolution in 2009 supporting the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For the formal process, a city announces itself as a \u201cHuman Rights City\u201d and makes an official commitment. They often adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as their norm of governance and establish a process where the community and municipality cooperate on implementing a human rights approach. Implementing a specific human rights framework for governance sets true human rights cities apart from cities that enjoy a human rights label, but aren\u2019t going to take real action. Every city\u2019s process looks a bit different based on relevant issues, government structure, and so on. The key is that policies and governance center residents\u2019 human rights as described in the UDHR<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The benefits of human rights cities<\/h2>\n

When taken seriously, human rights cities rely on a framework based on human rights principles like equality, participation, transparency, and accountability. This framework is essential because it guides decision-making on every level, ensuring a systemic shift in how cities conduct business. We can see these principles in the Gwangju Guiding Principles for a Human Rights City (2014):<\/p>\n