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Home > About HRP : History

History

The Human Rights Program, in the College of Liberal Arts, is a hub of interdisciplinary research and program activities on human rights at the University. Housed in the Institute for Global Studies on the West Bank of campus, the Program provides academic, research, and internship opportunities in human rights for students at the University of Minnesota in order to prepare them as effective policy-makers and advocates of international human rights. To accomplish this goal, the Program teaches several courses in human rights for undergraduates and graduate students, including International Human Rights Law, Human Rights Advocacy and Theoretical Approaches to Human Rights. The Program administers a Graduate Minor in Human Rights which allows any graduate student at the University to gain special expertise in the study and application of human rights standards.

(Barbara Frey's Human Rights Internship class learns about the importance of theater and performing arts in the field of human rights from Meena Natarajan and Dipankar Mukherjee from Pangea World Theater)

The Human Rights Program has attracted great interest because of its hands-on pedagogical approach to human rights as a field of study and practice. Involving undergraduates and graduate students directly in human right project work offers them an invaluable opportunity to develop their knowledge and skill. The Program’s groundbreaking work on the Save Yar Campaign, related to inter-tribal child abduction in Southern Sudan, is an example of this impressive work students can accomplish under the guidance of faculty and expert consultants. The Program supports important academic opportunities for faculty and students, and raises funds to support fellowships, internships and program work. The Program hosts the “Scribes for Human Rights Fellowship,” supporting a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) student from the Creative Writing Program to work as a writer-in-residence in human rights. Each Scribe is supported to write a publishable work under the guidance of the Human Rights Program and the Creative Writing Program in the Department of English.

(Members from the Save Yar Campaign)

Besides these academic endeavors, the Human Rights Program links the University with advocacy and research organizations in Minnesota, the United States and the world. We sponsor policy seminars and conferences bringing together human rights professionals in the field with faculty, graduates and undergraduates from the University of Minnesota.

In 2007-008, the Human Rights Program was a key organizer for the first “Minnesota Human Rights Week,” bringing together international and national celebrities, business leaders and political officials, to shine a light on the extraordinary accomplishments of the many organizations working in our State to promote global human rights. The week took place September 30 to October 6, 2007. The week featured programs and presentations by dozens of Minnesota-based organizations, and increased the visibility and camaraderie of the community.

(Students Alisha Hilde and Margot Goodnow table for HRP at IWD 2009)

The Human Rights Program is the annual campus sponsor of International Women’s Day, the largest celebration of its kind in the United States. Inspired by the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995, our event celebrates the diversity of Minnesota women and seeks to increase understanding and tolerance in our community. It is an occasion to highlight advancements in women’s rights and equality, to encourage activism, and to educate participants about human rights issues that affect girls and women locally, nationally and internationally.

The celebration, which is free and open to the public, attracts between 500-700 participants. In addition to the keynote speaker, the day includes workshops on a wide variety of women’s human rights issues, dramatic and musical performances, and film screenings. Over 65 co-sponsoring local organizations provide resources for further activism through their display and information tables. Keynote speakers in recent years have included Zainab Salbi of Women for Women International, human rights activist Naomi Tutu, María José Alcalá of the United Nations Population Fund, Robin Morgan, and Fahima Vorgetts from Women for Afghan Women.

(Left to Right: Cheryl Thomas, Fahima Vorgetts, Barbara Frey, Fionnuala Ni Aolain )