civic equality Archives

The global scourge of gender-based violence

By Noelani Kirschner The World Health Organization estimates that one in three women have experienced or will experience gender-based violence (GBV) during their lifetimes. Since the pandemic started, 38% of women have personally experienced online violence and 85% of women know someone who has been targeted for online violence, a study by the Economist Intelligence Unit found. GBV prevention and response ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 21 November, 2022 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: civic equality, Gender-Based Violence, WHO, women's empowerment

Muslims are finding success in American society

American Muslims are advancing in U.S. society and are more likely than other members of the population to open a business or work full time, according to a new survey. Of all the groups surveyed by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), American Muslims are also the most likely to hold an optimistic ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 20 September, 2022 | Topics: News | Tags: American Muslims, business success, civic equality, freedom of religion

Biden honors 17 Americans with Medal of Freedom

By Mark Trainer President Biden awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom , the country’s highest civilian honor, to 17 Americans. The recipients represent diverse accomplishments across a variety of fields. Presidential Medal of Freedom honorees have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values or security of the United States. Americans at their best, Biden said during the July 7 White House ceremony, “ensure ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 11 July, 2022 | Topics: Art & Culture, Culture, Education, Gender Issues, Health Issues, History, Human Rights, Key Officials, News | Tags: arts, civic equality, female leaders, presidency, President Biden, sports, U.S. history

Why is the International Religious Freedom Report important?

Religious freedom is a universal human right. The United States is committed to defending and supporting it. In many countries around the world, people are persecuted and imprisoned for their religious beliefs. That is why the State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report is so important. The annual report comprehensively reviews the status of religious freedom in nearly ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 1 June, 2022 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: civic equality, freedom of religion

Ending gender-based online violence

The digital world holds great promise to amplify the voices of women, girls and LGBTQI+ individuals. But it also has given rise to new forms of gender-based abuse and harassment. Gender-based online violence is a human rights issue that must be tackled on a global stage, according to a coalition of governments, international organizations and ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 26 April, 2022 | Topics: Gender Issues, History, Human Rights, News | Tags: civic equality, female leaders, international cooperation, LGBTI, women's empowerment

Uyghur authors detail abuses in their homeland

When Gulbahar Haitiwaji returned to Xinjiang, China, in November 2016 after a decade in France, she stepped into a nightmare. She had been summoned back by her employer, purportedly to complete her retirement paperwork. Instead, local authorities arrested Haitiwaji and sent her to an internment camp. Her story is not unique — since 2017, the ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 22 February, 2022 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: China, civic equality, female leaders, freedom of religion, Uyghurs

Ending violence against women: A human rights imperative

By Lenore T. Adkins The world recognizes the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on November 25, a day to heighten awareness about the physical, psychological and emotional harm women face worldwide. The U.S. Department of State sees tackling violence against women as a human rights imperative. Violence threatens women’s and girls’ safety, and it sets barriers to their potential for prosperity or filling leadership ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 22 November, 2021 | Topics: Gender Issues, History, Human Rights, News | Tags: civic equality, female leaders, Gender-Based Violence, human trafficking, women's empowerment

Six remarkable women honored posthumously

By Lenore T. Adkins The National Women’s Hall of Fame has inducted six trailblazing Black women into its unique sisterhood, recognizing their contributions at the Seneca Falls, New York, birthplace of the American women’s rights movement. Its new Virtual Induction Series celebrates underrepresented women of achievement. It does this by posthumously recognizing marginalized women who were overlooked during their lifetimes or died before ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 1 March, 2021 | Topics: Art & Culture, History, Human Rights, Key Officials, News | Tags: African Americans, arts, civic equality, female leaders, women's empowerment

How the Amistad helped America live up to its ideals

By Lenore T. Adkins In 1839, the Amistad cargo schooner sailed from Havana to Puerto Principe, Cuba, with 53 Africans bound for a life of slavery on the island. But while aboard the schooner, the Africans fought for their freedom. Their battle gained them a reprieve. And soon, American abolitionists would take up their fight in U.S. courts. The Africans ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 12 January, 2021 | Topics: History, Human Rights, Key Documents, News | Tags: civic equality, human trafficking, U.S. history, U.S. judicial system

Six remarkable women honored posthumously

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 31 December, 2020 | Topics: Gender Issues, History, Human Rights, Key Officials, News | Tags: African Americans, arts, civic equality, female leaders, women's empowerment

What does January 1 signify in Lincoln’s legacy?

By Lauren Monsen The Emancipation Proclamation is arguably one of the most important documents in the history of the United States. Abraham Lincoln himself stated that he considered it to be his greatest legacy. “I never in my life, felt more certain that I was doing right than I do in signing this paper,” he said. “If my name ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 30 December, 2020 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: African Americans, civic equality, civil society, U.S. history

Ending violence against women: A human rights imperative

The world recognizes the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on November 25, a day to heighten awareness about the physical, psychological and emotional harm women face worldwide. The U.S. Department of State sees tackling violence against women as a human rights imperative. Violence threatens women’s and girls’ safety, and it sets ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 24 November, 2020 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: civic equality, female leaders, Gender-Based Violence, human trafficking, women's empowerment

Nations urge China to end human rights abuses

The Chinese Communist Party’s human rights violations are drawing international outcry. Dozens of countries demand the CCP end its mass internment of Uyghurs and other abuses. In an October 6 joint statement to the United Nations , 39 countries fault the CCP’s increasing number of “gross human rights violations” against ethnic and religious minorities in Xinjiang province and the regime’s authoritarian behavior in ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 29 October, 2020 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: China, civic equality, cultural preservation, freedom of religion, United Nations

Strict U.S. Army rules allow for religious freedom

As the U.S. military becomes more diverse, its rules and regulations are expanding to reflect the United States’ commitment to religious freedom. Kanwar Singh, a devout Sikh, sought to enlist in the U.S. Army in 2014. In keeping with his religious faith, he wanted to maintain a beard and wear a turban. At the time, ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 28 October, 2020 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: civic equality, freedom of religion, Sikh Americans

Core U.S. values echo in Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), ratified in 1948, for the first time articulated the rights and freedoms to which every person is entitled. Influenced by the core values at the heart of the U.S. Constitution, the UDHR affirmed “the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 24 September, 2020 | Topics: History, Human Rights, Key Officials, News | Tags: civic equality, international cooperation, Secretary Pompeo, U.S. history, United Nations

5 ways the U.S. supports literacy around the world

The late Barbara Bush, wife of former U.S. President George H.W. Bush, once said , “If we don’t give everyone the ability to simply read and write, then we aren’t giving everyone an equal chance to succeed.” The American people, U.S. businesses and organizations share Mrs. Bush’s sentiment and work in myriad ways to help the 750 ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 6 September, 2020 | Topics: Education, Human Rights, News | Tags: civic equality, development assistance, girls' education, learning tools

Cuba’s ‘outrageous’ bid to join the U.N. Human Rights Council

In spite of its dismal record on human rights, Cuba’s government is seeking a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council for the 2021–2023 term. “It’s outrageous that the Human Rights Council would offer to seat Cuba, a brutal dictatorship that traffics its own doctors under the guise of humanitarian missions,” Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo said on August ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 1 September, 2020 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: civic equality, Cuba, freedom of assembly, freedom of expression, press freedom, United Nations

From civil rights activist to member of Congress: Remembering John Lewis (July 20)

From civil rights activist to member of Congress: Remembering John Lewis (July 20) Civil rights hero and U.S. Representative John Lewis died July 17 at the age of 80. He had been battling pancreatic cancer since he received the diagnosis in December. The son of Alabama sharecroppers, Lewis was a central figure in the U.S. civil ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 20 July, 2020 | Topics: History, Human Rights, News | Tags: African Americans, civic equality, Congress, Martin Luther King Jr., social activism, U.S. history

NASA names a building for a pioneering African American (July 8)

NASA names a building for a pioneering African American (July 8) NASA has renamed its Washington headquarters to honor Mary W. Jackson, the first female African American engineer to work for the agency. Jackson was among four African American women recently awarded Congressional Gold Medals for their contributions to early space flight. Jackson and her colleagues were also ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 8 July, 2020 | Topics: Education, History, Human Rights, Key Officials, News, Science & Tech | Tags: African Americans, civic equality, engineering, NASA, women in the workforce

America’s free press offers diverse views on protests (June 29)

America’s free press offers diverse views on protests (June 29) The right to a free press is one of America’s most cherished liberties, fostering a wide-ranging discussion among citizens. When demonstrators in U.S. cities protested the May 25 death of George Floyd and other instances of police officers’ use of excessive force, America’s editors ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 29 June, 2020 | Topics: News | Tags: civic equality, civil society, freedom of assembly, freedom of expression, press freedom

U.S. officials answer calls for police reform (June 17)

U.S. officials answer calls for police reform (June 17) State and local officials in the United States are responding to citizens’ calls for more law-enforcement accountability. By design, U.S. law enforcement is responsive to American citizens. There are more than 17,000 city, county, state and federal police agencies in the United States, each with ...

By U.S. Embassy Tbilisi | 17 June, 2020 | Topics: News | Tags: civic equality, good governance, policing

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