Crazy Fox Marketing Specialists

When I told my 8 year old daughter that May 15, 2008 is a day that Bloggers Unite for Human Rights, she was surprised.  “What do you mean human rights?” she asked.  And so I explained as best I could that all people should have basic human rights.  “Like what?” she asked me, to which I listed some of the basic rights she takes for granted… things like the right to an education and the right to free speech. 

She remained puzzled.  Why, she wonders, do we set aside a day to recognize human rights?  Why do we have laws that guarantee human rights?  It’s just a given isn’t it?  She “gets” the need to have Animal’s Rights legislated because animals can’t speak out or protect themselves.  She doesn’t understand that some people aren’t empowered to speak out or to protect themselves, and for that I am truly grateful.

When I told my 8 year old that it wasn’t long ago that women and children were considered the property of their husband and father and that black people were kept as slaves, she was horrified.  This child was completely taken aback when earlier in the school year, she was exposed to a novel about the holocaust, and our conversation brought the memory of that horror back for her. 

This is a child who has had the luxury of taking her basic human rights for granted.  It pains me to shatter her innocence with these true stories of human suffering.  I didn’t have the heart to tell her that there are women and children in our very neighborhoods today who are abused.  That reality can wait.  She will never get this time in her life back.  I want it to last as long as possible.

It pleases me greatly that my children, and the children they play with, don’t care about racial differences.  Sure the recognize that not all people are the same color, but they are shocked to learn that blacks were not really even considered human, or that the native people of our country were banned to their reservations.  They see nothing spectacular about a black man or a woman having the potential to become President of the United States.  They are suprised to learn that has never happened in the history of the US before, and that Canada only had one female leader for a very short time.

In my community, children of all races interact and play together on the playground as equals.  They are interested in learning about each other’s cultures with no thoughts or feelings or superiority.  To me, that speaks volumes about the future. 

I am proud to unite with my fellow bloggers in support of human rights around the globe.