MEDIA ROOTS- The vast majority of the world is unaware of the existence of a Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Declaration was drafted after the atrocities of WWII and was the first global declaration of rights to which all human beings are inherently endowed. Its 30 articles have since served as the basis for numerous human rights treaties and laws. This is a beautiful video rendition of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the Human Rights Action Center. 

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Created by Seth Brau, Produced by Amy Poncher, Music by Rumspringa courtesy Cantora Records

PREAMBLE

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

***

Read the articles within the Universal of Human Rights, and learn more about Article 19 in particular, the article that stresses the universal right to communicate without barriers.

MEDIA ROOTS- John Dau is one of Sudan’s Lost Boys, a group of more than 20,000 boys who escaped the genocide during the Sudanese Civil War, where 2.5 million Southern Sudanese were killed and millions of others were displaced. John gives Media Roots a moving account of his escape, his life growing up in the refugee camps, his experience coming to America for the first time and his work with the John Dau Foundation, where he established the first comprehensive & sustainable community medical clinic in his home village of Duk Payuel.

 Interview with John Dau conducted, produced and edited by Abby Martin 

Trailer for National Geographic’s award winning documentary called ‘God Grew Tired of Us’, based on John Dau’s story. Check out more about the film at http://www.godgrewtiredofus.com/

Learn more about the John Dau Foundation and how to help at http://johndaufoundation.org/

MEDIA ROOTS- This is a disturbing story that exemplifies the throw-away mentality propagated by so many institutions on the planet. It’s something that isn’t thought about often, but the garbage being produced by humans on the planet is also affecting space.

Aside from the fact that there are two swirling trash islands in both the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, there is now a ring of trash consisting mostly of minute fragments and debris from exploded satellites surrounding the planet that is so dense, experts are saying it is already a detriment to space exploration. Unfortunately, because of the shortsightedness of many, there is no clear plan on how this debris will be cleared or prevented from causing fatal destruction in future space ventures.

Abby

***

BBC– A report by the National Research Council says the debris could cause fatal leaks in spaceships or destroy valuable satellites.

It calls for international regulations to limit the junk and more research into the possible use of launching large magnetic nets or giant umbrellas.

The debris includes clouds of minuscule fragments, old boosters and satellites.

Some computer models show the amount of orbital rubbish “has reached a tipping point, with enough currently in orbit to continually collide and create even more debris, raising the risk of spacecraft failures,” the research council said in a statement on Thursday.

Situation ‘critical’

Hopes of limiting the amount of space junk in orbit suffered two major setbacks in recent years.

In 2007, China conducted an anti-satellite weapon test which destroyed a decommissioned weather satellite, smashing the object into 150,000 pieces larger than 1cm.

Two years later, two satellites – one defunct and one active – crashed in orbit, creating even more debris.

“Those two single events doubled the amount of fragments in Earth orbit and completely wiped out what we had done in the last 25 years,” said Donald Kessler, who led the research.

The International Space Station must occasionally dodge some of the junk, which flies around the Earth at speeds of up to 17,500 mph (28,164 km/h).

In June, some debris narrowly missed the space station, forcing its six crew to go to their escape capsules and prepare for an emergency evacuation back to Earth.

The situation is critical, said Mr Kessler, a retired Nasa scientist, because colliding debris creates even more of the junk.

“We’ve lost control of the environment,” he said.

Read more about Space Junk At Tipping Point, Says Report

© 2011 British Brodcasting Company

Photo by Flickr user inter-

MEDIA ROOTS- An extremely harrowing aspect of the Fukushima meltdown is the amount of radiation that has been expelled and will continue to be released into the atmosphere as a result. A recent report from the Japanese government states that the amount of radioactive caesium-137 released by the disaster is so far equivalent to that of 168 Hiroshima nuclear bombs, and that 34 different locations around Fukushima already exceed the radiation standards of inhabitability used for the Chernobyl disaster. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) states the following about caesium-137:

“External exposure to large amounts of Cs-137 can cause burns, acute radiation sickness, and even death. Exposure to Cs-137 can increase the risk for cancer because of exposure to high-energy gamma radiation. Internal exposure to Cs-137, through ingestion or inhalation, allows the radioactive material to be distributed in the soft tissues, especially muscle tissue, exposing these tissues to the beta particles and gamma radiation and increasing cancer risk.”

As scary as this seems, it’s important to put it into perspective. There is nothing much we can do about what is going on in Japan right now, but there are things we can do to reduce the risk of over exposure to our bodies by continuing to be healthy and conscious consumers.

Abby

***

AFP– The amount of caesium-137 released since the three reactors were crippled by the March 11 quake and tsunami has been estimated at 15,000 tera becquerels, the Tokyo Shimbun reported, quoting a government calculation.

That compares with the 89 tera becquerels released by “Little Boy”, the uranium bomb the United States dropped on the western Japanese city in the final days of World War II, the report said.

The estimate was submitted by Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s cabinet to a lower house committee on promotion of technology and innovation, the daily said.

The government, however, argued that the comparison was not valid.

While the Hiroshima bomb claimed most of its victims in the intense heatwave of a mid-air nuclear explosion and the highly radioactive fallout from its mushroom cloud, no such nuclear explosions hit Fukushima.

There, the radiation has seeped from molten fuel inside reactors damaged by hydrogen explosions.

“An atomic bomb is designed to enable mass-killing and mass-destruction by causing blast waves and heat rays and releasing neutron radiation,” the Tokyo Shimbun daily quoted a government official as saying. “It is not rational to make a simple comparison only based on the amount of isotopes released.”

Read more about Fukushima Caesium Leaks ‘Equal 168 Hiroshimas’

© 2011 Agence France Presse

Photo by Flickr user RINKRATZ

MEDIA ROOTS- This is a perfect example of how a NYC community organized to tackle drug related crime by working on preventative methods instead of reactionary ones. The NYC West Side Crime Prevention Program just closed after 30 years of opertion, because members of the community began to take an active role in solving the region’s drug related crime epidemic.

Abby

***

WEST SIDE SPIRIT– It’s not every day that the end of a venerable and productive organization is cause for community celebration, but the closing of the West Side Crime Prevention Program last week, after 30 years in operation, marked a victory for the Upper West Side and its residents.

Formed in 1980 in response to the dangerous conditions on the streets, the program began working with local schools, businesses and NYPD precincts to combat the rampant street crime and drug use—crack cocaine was a major problem at the time—in the area.

“In 1980, the West Side was like a wild west show, and kids were constantly being mugged. It just was not a safe place,” said Mort Berkowitz, president of WSCPP. “A kid leaving school with a nice pair of sneakers, a new jacket, could be set upon.”

“It was truly a golden age of community organizing,” said long-time executive director Majorie Cohen. “It was necessary. Things were bad. The SRO across the street from where I was raising my kids [on West 92nd Street] had four drug-related homicides within six months.”

She and other community members began working with the District Attorney’s office, criminal justice agencies, community boards and the NYPD. They cleaned up a particularly bad block of 107th Street that was notorious for drug dealing by holding outdoor summer camps there with the police. Soon they realized that they could also work to prevent crime, not just clean up after it.

Read the full article about The End of Crime?

© 2011 West Side Spirit

Photo by Flickr user Garagendrachen