Human Rights Watch

Lesbian rights are human rights.
Gay rights are human rights.
Bisexual rights are human rights.
Transgender rights are human rights.

Happy #Pride!

Tens of millions in North America are experiencing dangerous air quality levels due to intense wildfires burning across Canada.

As the climate crisis worsens, wildfires will become more frequent and destructive, driving health inequities.

The time for climate action is now.

As the world turns its attention to the missing Titanic submersible, don't look away from the crisis off the Greek coast.

More than 500 refugees are presumed to have drowned, in what is likely one of the worst refugee and migrant shipwrecks on record. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/06/21/titanic-submersible-greece-migrant-ship-pakistan/

Israeli forces have killed at least 8 more Palestinians in Jenin today—continuing its record-high pace of West Bank killings.

They have a track record of launching airstrikes that unlawfully kill civilians and amount to war crimes. The International Criminal Court should investigate.

This week, the US state of Illinois became the first in the country to prohibit book bans, following a school year marked by an escalation of book bans.

Access to diverse stories should be celebrated, not restricted.

There has been serious unrest across France after police killed a French 17-year-old boy of North African descent in a traffic stop.

Reform is needed to eliminate racial profiling and other discriminatory practices. https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/07/05/france-reform-police-stop-practices

Great #PrideMonth news! Estonia has passed legislation to allow for same-sex marriage, becoming the first ex-Soviet country to do so.

The country’s parliament passed a law this week which will allow two adults to marry “regardless of their gender.” https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/06/22/estonia-legalizes-same-sex-marriage

Israeli settlers have again gone on a rampage this week in the occupied West Bank.

Israel’s endemic impunity for serious abuses emboldens settlers to attack Palestinians (and Israeli soldiers to use unlawfully excessive force against them).

This impunity must end.

Iranian authorities have brought vague “propaganda” and “national security” charges against 3 journalists.

Authorities should drop the charges and end the ongoing harassment, prosecution, and punishment of those exercising their rights to free speech. https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/07/03/iran-new-charges-against-journalists

Caster Semenya, a South African Olympic runner, won her discrimination case in the European Court of Human Rights last week.

Yet paradoxically, Semenya and many other women athletes may still be banned from competing under World Athletics regulations.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/07/18/caster-semenya-won-her-case-not-right-compete

At least 150 people were detained in Turkey this weekend after Pride celebrations.

Demonstrators were celebrating LGBT Pride despite the country's ban on all Pride events. https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/06/27/turkey-mass-detentions-pride-marches

“Deeming race irrelevant in law does not make it so in life."

The US Supreme Court’s decision today outlawing affirmative action further entrenches US refusal to honor its human rights commitments to end racial discrimination.

Hundreds are missing and presumed dead following a shipwreck off the coast of Greece.

With many facts still unknown, this much is clear: dedicated state-led search and rescue missions to respond to migrant boats in distress could avoid continued carnage in the Mediterranean.

We only have one planet.

The time for climate action is now.

#WorldEnvironmentDay

“We just refuse to submit to that."

Florida’s legislature has signed a slew of anti-LGBTQ bills, but some local organizations are doubling down on celebrating Pride Month.

During Pride and every other month — people have a right to express themselves. https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/florida-pride-concerns-anti-lgbtq-legislation-1.6859498

Israel's use of invasive surveillance technologies is resulting in the digital dehumanization of Palestinians.

The consequences will be even more dire when autonomous weapons systems are used. https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/06/06/palestinian-forum-highlights-threats-autonomous-weapons

A 44-year-old mother of three in the UK has been sentenced to 28 months in prison for terminating her pregnancy after the 24-week limit.

The UK should reform its outdated abortion laws.

Access to abortion is a human right.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/6/13/as-a-woman-is-jailed-uk-urged-to-reform-outdated-abortion-laws

As Canada’s wildfires lead to unpleasantly hazy skies and unhealthy air across large swathes of North America, a reminder that maternal health, including fetal development, is especially vulnerable to air pollution.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/06/07/wildfire-smoke-north-america-threatens-pregnancy-rights

AI is a human rights issue, and powerful technology must be used in line with existing human rights laws.

The “extinction threat” narrative ignores the very real and current impact of this tech in fueling human rights abuses.

More on AI and human rights:
https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/05/03/pandoras-box-generative-ai-companies-chatgpt-and-human-rights