Human Rights in the News: August 2021
/Welcome to the August 2021 edition of Human Rights in the News, Woven Teaching’s monthly collection of important human rights stories from around the world.
Trees in Muir Woods (Credit: Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)
Muir Woods park staff annotates own signs with historical corrections for racism, misogyny
Ashley Harrell | SF Gate | August 26, 2021
The U.S. National Park Service has recently made some updates to the signage at Muir Woods in California. “The alterations to the sign also include yellow sticky notes posted on the timeline and offering information about the original, indigenous managers of the forest as well as the role of women in the creation of Muir Woods. Facts about the existence and impacts of racism are also sticky-noted.” Learn more >
A small child wearing a blue collared shirt and a mask. They are holding the hand of an adult (Credit: Go Nakamura/Reuters)
The U.S. Education Department is investigating five states over their mask mandate bans
Erica L. Green | New York Times | August 30, 2021
The U.S. Department of Education is investigating Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah over their prohibitions against indoor masking at public schools. These prohibitions “may run afoul of civil rights laws protecting students with disabilities, federal officials announced Monday.” Learn more >
Men in Afghanistan listening to an out-of-frame UN worker (Credit: IOM/Mohammed Muse)
UN rights chief condemns Afghanistan abuses as Taliban advance continues
UN News | August 10, 2021
Even prior to the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul, the High Commissioner for Human Rights said in a statement that there was “fear and dread” across Afghanistan, which had driven people to flee their homes. Women have been flogged and killed in areas overrun by the extremists, while journalists and human rights defenders had also been attacked and killed, Ms. Bachelet said. Learn more >
Photos of people who have become victims of enforced disappearances in Bangladesh
Bangladesh: Officials Linked to Hundreds of ‘Disappearances’
Human Rights Watch | August 30, 2021
“The Bangladesh government has repeatedly denied involvement in hundreds of enforced disappearances of activists, critics, and opposition members, and has taken no steps to investigate them,” say several human rights organizations. Learn more >
Shona women in Kenya, dressed in lavender, hold up certificates of citizenship. People of the Shona ethnic group in Kenya have been considered stateless for decades (Credit: Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images)
Belarus repression and the Taliban advance: human rights this fortnight – in pictures
Sarah Johnson, compiled by Eric Hilaire | The Guardian | August 14, 2021
Check out this stunning collection of photos from around the world. View the pictures >
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