More Cities Declare Freedom from Domestic Violence a Human Right
New Bedford and Fall River, Massachusetts passed resolutions declaring freedom from domestic violence a fundamental human right.
The resolutions, passed in November, resulted from the work of UMass Law students enrolled in the school’s Domestic Violence course. The students did amazing work and were 
Some student reflections follow:
“My initial understanding of the resolution, specifically why DV should be recognized as a basic human right definitely changed. As we read more and more material, it becomes obvious that although people recognize that DV is bad, attaching a human rights label forces it into the consciousness of a wider group. Instead of being labeled as a family or local problem, it becomes a national and international issue that necessitates action.”
“As we began to work on background research for our project, I felt myself becoming more interested and vested in creating the resolution. I had never worked on one prior to this course, so the task still seemed quite daunting to me. Looking back, this experience was not what I was worried it would be. I learned, I changed, and I left the meeting inspired to begin working on a similar resolution for my native city.”
“This is one of my favorite projects during my law school career because I feel like we did something that will be beneficial to members of the Fall River and New Bedford communities, now and in the future.”
“In order for the communities to stand up and take its rightful place, they must first be aware of the presence of domestic violence in their community and the complexity of the issue. I believe drafting the resolution is definitely taking the right step in the right direction.”