The twenty-first century has been marked by countless natural disasters. Just to name a few – a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and ensuing tsunami in northeastern Japan in 2011, severe monsoon flooding that affected 17.2 million in northwestern Pakistan in 2010, and a cyclone that killed as many as 100,000 in Burma in 2008. According to the … Continue reading
Due to a rise in mass shootings in recent years, debate over implementing stricter gun laws has seized the United States yet again. While it is impractical to ban firearms altogether, enforcing tighter gun control would not restrict or threaten any basic rights that gun enthusiasts currently enjoy. It would simply make the country more … Continue reading
Religious expression constitutes an essential part of our human rights, thus the banning of such expression from the public sphere implies a direct violation of our rights. Indeed, this type of prohibition inevitably triggers controversy, as recently observed in Quebec, where the Parti Quebecois (PQ) has introduced their proposed Charter of Quebec Values. If this Charter goes … Continue reading
Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act – this is the title of Bill C-31 introduced by Canadian Minister of Immigration Jason Kenney, which received royal assent on June 28th 2012. The bill introduced several major changes to Canada’s refugee system. I will address the three clauses that, I find, cause the most doubt on Canada’s respect of the conventions … Continue reading
MADELEINE SHEA Part Three: Things to Think About Marketing and education have a pervasive influence on how both men and women view contraception. The women that were interviewed were aware of the wide range of contraceptive products available to them. They know the procedures they have to go through to get them (doctor’s appointment, prescriptions … Continue reading
MADELEINE SHEA Part Two: The Men Unlike the women, the men all stated that they currently used a form of contraception: condoms. They had differing opinions when I asked if they would be willing to consider a new form of contraception if it theoretically became available. Some of them said yes without hesitation; one stated … Continue reading
VINCENT CARNEY The word Islamophobia is everywhere. It is one of those pervasive, ball of wax terms that is sufficiently meaningful yet vague that no one questions what it stands for. The word itself was coined over a hundred years ago, but its new-found popularity with the rise of human rights discourse and globalization has … Continue reading
HATTY LIU I’m watching the forecast for Hurricane Sandy halfway across the world and the weather map invariably shows a storm on the move. The clouds stewed briefly above the Caribbean, sure, but the chief attraction is to see them pinwheel up the Eastern US Seaboard. It’s a heart-pumping prelude to a “frankenstorm’s” showdown with … Continue reading
VINCENT CARNEY The universal nature of human rights compels governments and people to be concerned with individuals and populations living under worse conditions beyond their own borders. International law imposes an obligation on states to guarantee the protection of not only their own citizens but also those persons in other nations whose governments have either … Continue reading
JESSICA NEWFIELD “The threats [of terrorism] are real and call for a firm response from states. The response should, however, be proportional to the danger involved…the danger includes not only the harm done by terrorism, but also the harm done to the fabric of our societies by disproportionate responses that undermine democracy itself.” – Arthur … Continue reading
OLIVIA ZEYDLER “Everyone’s rights are the same, student or not, your voice will be heard”, stated one 19-year-old McGill student in reference to the tuition hikes. Students took to the streets on March 22 to strike and speak out against tuition hikes. Students of all different backgrounds united on common ground, utilized their rights as … Continue reading
PAULINE CHERY No other documentary concerning Uganda’s security situation has made its way around the world faster than Invisible Children’s Kony 2012. But for all the hype generated by Facebook and Twitter, the video has been greeted with an equally fierce backlash amongst prominent Ugandan and western experts. Kony 2012 has raised many questions on … Continue reading
MORGAN VLAD-MCCABE The New York Times’ Nicholas Kristof wrote in his blog, “Microcredit is undoubtedly the most visible innovation in anti-poverty policy in the last half century.” According to the World Bank, in some developing countries, upwards of 50 percent of adults lack access to basic financial services such as the procurement of loans or … Continue reading
The Arab Spring began as citizens across the Arab world become dissatisfied with their political and economic situations, and fed up with their repressive government regimes . Frustrated with the high income inequality and mass unemployment, the youth decided to finally take hold of their fate and contest the status quo. Fortunately for them, the … Continue reading
Advances in technology have decreased the supply of human rights on the Internet. More software capable of monitoring Web activity is being developed each day. The immediate example most people can name is China’s Golden Shield Project, among its other, extensive Internet regulations. It can be tricky to strike a balance between media transparency with … Continue reading
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