ANSO/PSYC/WOMN 2000 & HRTS 2086:

Women

and

Global Human Rights

Ravensbruck, July, 2000

Discussions of human rights often fail to acknowledge the unique concerns of women around the globe particularly as they relate to the subordination of and injustices against women. Yet clearly, women's rights are human rights concerns. Violence against women and girls is the most pervasive violation of human rights in the world today. Discrimination against women and girls is an important basic cause of malnutrition. The very high rates of child malnutrition and low birth weight throughout much of South Asia are linked to such factors as women's poor access to education and their low levels of participation in paid employment, compared with other regions. Women comprise 70% of the world's poor. Eighty percent of the world's refugees are women and children. And as stated by Her Excellency Mary Robinson, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, "Bonded labour and the traffic in women and children have become our modern day versions of slavery." More than 1 million children, mostly girls, are forced into prostitution every year. In this course, we will examine the issue of women's rights within the context of global human rights. Additionally, we will be developing a web site resource for others concerned about and interested in becoming more actively involved in combating women's human rights violations around the globe.

Course Information:

For more information about Women and Global Human Rights go to http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/wandghrwebpage.html

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