Beyond Law? Undergraduates and Human Rights Advocacy

Young people are looking for ways to change the world.  Movement leaders include the Stoneman Douglas students affected by gun violence in Florida, the plaintiffs in the Juliana case out of Oregon, Greta Thunberg and her allies . . . and their activism gives all of us hope for the future.  

A new (2018) organization, the University Network for Human Rights (UNHR), aims to give more young people the tools to use human rights as one of their strategies for social change.  Founded by veteran law professor James Cavallaro and human rights lawyer Ruhan Nagra, the project focuses on training undergraduates in human rights approaches.  Initially piloted in Stanford, the project now operates out of Wesleyan University, but engages with undergraduates from around the country and the world through partnerships and its summer intensive training program. 

Importantly, the UNHR’s project selection prioritizes human rights matters that involve the United States or in which the U.S. is implicated.   For example, one of its projects focuses on environmental racism in Louisiana, while another looks at the U.S. role in air bombing in Yemen. 

As the program expands to other universities (currently Cavallaro offers a human rights seminar at both Wesleyan and Amherst, with more in the works), expect an injection of new energy and new perspectives into the “bringing human rights home” movement.  As the UNHR’s statement of belief sets out, “We believe that the human rights field is excessively legalized, that expertise from a range of disciplines is necessary to enhance the reach and effectiveness of human rights advocacy, and that young people do not need years of formal legal or academic training to be effective human rights advocates.”