UNA Chicago Chapter Holds Universal Periodic Review Consultation

On May 1, the UNA Greater Chicago Chapter convened a UN “Universal Periodic Review”(UPR) consultation event among dozens of community leaders, grassroots activists, and students at the Mars Gallery in Chicago. The event focused on the overarching theme of “Core International Human Rights Treaties.” After learning about the UPR, a tool of the new UN Human Rights Council which assesses the human rights records of all 193 UN member states, attendees separated into smaller groups to discuss the topic in more detail with a specific focus on the U.S. human rights record. One group, for example, focused on the protections in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) while another prioritized the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). At the end of the meeting, all groups agreed that the U.S. should strive to advance its principles and global human rights leadership through ratifying instruments like the CRPD and CEDAW.

According to the Chapter’s Director of Program’s, “​Chicago’s Universal Periodic Review event reflected the values of a diverse community that is anxious to play a meaningful role in shaping the UN policy agenda. The United Nations Association is uniquely positioned to facilitate that connection, and we are honored to be part of an organization that is driven by the input of such an engaged and empowered membership.”

The UNA Chicago event was the latest in a series of consultations UNA-USA is holding across the country in the run up of the UPR of the U.S. human rights record in 2015. Another UPR consultation meeting is scheduled for May 21 in New York and will focus on combatting human trafficking and the rights of women and girls. In summer 2014, UNA-USA will submit a report to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the State Department detailing the outcomes, conclusions, and recommendations of the nationwide UPR consultations.