The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, established in 1948 by United Nations, begins with weaving together all people into one human race - a reminder that no matter our melanin count or blood type, cultural or religious preference, zip code or language, a human being is a human being. It includes the following articles that are particularly pertinent to note:
- Article 3: "Everyone has the right to life, liberty and the security of person." - Article 4: "No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms." - Article 5: "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment." - Article 26.2. "Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups..." Today in 1941, Franklin D. Roosevelt gave his Four Freedoms speech, which directly impacted portions of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. These freedoms are: 1) freedom of speech and expression, 2) freedom of religion, 3) freedom from want, and 4) freedom from fear. The freedom from fear. And yet, even with the end of the American Civil War, African Americans and other minority groups were often harassed or intimidated by those that sought to control their actions and hinder their equality of rights, which had been newly established by The United States of America's Constitution. For example, the Freedmen's Bureau Records report cases in 1868 (nos. 36 and 38) of an African American woman, Celina Jackson, who witnessed the burning of the US flag at an official's Shenandoah County office in his absence by a white mob. She was assaulted; and yet the Civil Authorities did nothing to protect her or her rights. The freedom from fear. And yet, even in 2020 - the same year George Floyd was murdered - one of our own Shenandoah County residents was assaulted on his own property by a white mob, called 911, and then was himself arrested because he brandished a firearm he legally owned in order to dissuade the trespassers from further abuse. Even though the police later apologized and the case was dropped, the harm had been done. That arrest placed a message in our community that required action. That death in our country placed a message in our community that required action. And it is all related to FDR's freedom from fear. The freedoms of equality that Thomas Jackson, Robert Lee, and Turner Ashby fought against by canceling their citizenship to The United States of America and instead placing their allegiance into The Confederate States of America, whose message of economic exploitation of other human beings was quite clearly pronounced and embedded into their Constitution. The required action was taken when two public schools that still bore the names of Confederate leaders were renamed from Stonewall Jackson to Mountain View High School and from Ashby-Lee to Honey Run Elementary School. This action was done to create freedom from fear. Our county continues to brandish fear as a weapon and that is not right. I implore you to consider the message that would be made in reverting to the previous school names - know all the history, not just the Lost Cause Narrative. Our children deserve freedom from fear. They deserve the right to life, liberty, and security of person. They deserve freedom from cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment. They deserve freedom from slavery. They deserve understanding, tolerance, and friendships. And yet if we really stop and think about it, the previous school names did not insinuate these rights at all.
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7/26/2024 05:31:34 am
I wanted to express my gratitude for your insightful and engaging article. Your writing is clear and easy to follow, and I appreciated the way you presented your ideas in a thoughtful and organized manner. Your analysis was both thought-provoking and well-researched, and I enjoyed the real-life examples you used to illustrate your points. Your article has provided me with a fresh perspective on the subject matter and has inspired me to think more deeply about this topic.
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7/26/2024 06:07:45 am
]Thank you! I'm glad you found my article helpful and thought-provoking. To find more content like it, try looking for publications or writers that cover topics you're interested in, and consider exploring books and academic journals. Thanks for your feedback!
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authorSENK is an artist and writer in the Shenandoah Valley. The blog, 52 Weeks, is an ethical contemplation on the importance of choosing public school names that are not divisive within a community. Each post is based on over eight years of research by the author. 52 Weeks is a compassionate appeal to community and school board members to not revert to the names of Confederate leaders for Shenandoah County, Va, public schools. PostsGround Zero
52 / Remembering & Moving On 51 / Integration & Teachers 50 / In Our Own Community 49 / S J H S 48 / Not One Positive Step 47 / Maintaining Public Peace 46 / Brown v. Board 45 / Rebuilding a Pro-Confederate South 44 / An Out-of-area Education 43 / Where's the 'Common Sense Consideration'? 42 / Education Without Heart 41 / Self-Preservation 40 / Free Public Schools 39 / The Mask of Defiance 38 / The Golden Door of Freedom 37 / Prejudicial to our Race 36 / Are We Compassionate? 35 / Community 34 / Need for Radical Change 33 / Bitter Prejudice 32 / Fear of 'Negro Equality' 31 / Rachel, Lashed to Death 30 / The Whim of the Court: A Look at Jacob, Stacy, Lett; March & Peter; Jeffrey & Peter 29 / Ben, Tom, Ned, Clary, & two men from the furnace 28 / The Loss of Fortune 27 / James Scott, A Free Man 26 / The Unremembered, The Unheard 25 / The American Cause 24 / Tithables for the County & Parish 23 / Satisfactory Proof of Being Free 22 / Building Community Takes Trust 21 / Jacob's Case 20 / Whose Control? 19 / Racial Classifications 18 / The Cost of Freedom in 1840 17 / Sale of Children 16 / Bequeathal of Future Increase 15 / The First Annual 14 / From a Descendant of a CSA Soldier 13 / True Americanism 12 / Slavery. A Hot Topic. 11 / Real Character 10 / Real Apologies 9 / Freedom from Fear 8 / 250 Years 7 / The Courage of Christ 6 / Whose Narratives? 5 / The 13th Amendment 4 / Symbolic Act of Justice 3 / Giving Thanks 2 / Confederate Congress 1 / Veteran's Day |