Human Rights in the News: April 2021

Curated by Nikki Bambauer

Welcome to the April 2021 edition of Human Rights in the News, Woven Teaching’s monthly collection of important human rights stories from around the world.

A worker wearing a face mask and yellow safety vest works with large cardboard boxes with labels reading “COVAX” (Credit: Reuters)

Coronavirus: WHO chief criticises 'shocking' global vaccine divide
BBC News  |  April 10, 2021

According to the World Health Organization, nearly 1 in 4 residents of wealthy countries have been vaccinated. For poor countries, however, the rate of vaccination is closer to 1 in 500. Learn more >

A young person speaks into a megaphone. A person behind them holds a sign which reads “No más violencia sexual” [“No more sexual violence”] (Credit: Amnistía Internacional Perú)

Americas: Guaranteeing the right to comprehensive sexuality education saves lives
Amnesty International  |  April 26, 2021

Human rights NGO Amnesty International (AI), in partnership with civil society organizations in Latin America and the Caribbean, recently launched its ESIgualdad campaign. The campaign focuses on comprehensive sex education for young people. Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at AI, stated that, “Comprehensive sexuality education is a fundamental tool for the defence of human rights. There is strong evidence that it can contribute substantially to addressing a wide range of structural problems that have plagued our societies for decades.” Learn more >

President Joe Biden stares off into the distance with a determined look on his face (Credit: Evan Vucci/AP)

Biden Calls Slaughter Of Armenians A Genocide, Posing Test For U.S. Ties With Turkey
Alana Wise  |  NPR  |  April 24, 2021

On April 24, Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, President Joe Biden referred to the Ottoman-era atrocities against the Armenians as “genocide.” He is the first sitting U.S. president to do so. Learn more >

A person wearing a hoodie and reflective safety vest speaks to someone in a vehicle at a drive-in vaccination site (Credit: Cate Dingley/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Outpacing The U.S., Hard-Hit Navajo Nation Has Vaccinated More Than Half Of Adults
Rachel Treisman | NPR | April 26, 2021

COVID-19 disproportionately affected the Native American population in the U.S.; at one point last year, the Navajo Nation had one of the highest rates of infection in the country. By the end of April 2021, however, it leads the country in vaccination rates – nearly 90 percent of its adult population has received at least one dose of the vaccine. Learn more >

A girl holds munitions debris in a Yemeni displaced persons camp (Credit: Nabil Alawzari/AFP/Getty)

Yemen, Myanmar and George Floyd: human rights this fortnight in pictures
Compiled by Eric Hilaire | The Guardian | April 24, 2021

Check out this stunning collection of photos from around the world. View the pictures >

Have a topic you’d like to see us include? Leave us a comment and let us know!