The U.N. is a terribly misguided but wellintentioned organization at its best and a harmful obstacle to solving problems at worst.
The U.N. is an international body that passes non-binding resolutions, can’t guarantee its members – at least the big, important ones on the Security Council – doesn’t invade different sovereign nations and can stop neither wars nor genocide.
So what does it do?
Well, it can throw a heck of a conference from time to time.
In 2001, the U.N. held the first “World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and related intolerance” in Durban, South Africa. A well-meaning conference created to address serious issues devolved into a name-calling carnival.
Monday was the start of the second World Conference Against Racism in Geneva.
The U.S. like Canada, Israel and perhaps more nations, will not be there.
There are many people opposed to this move, but it’s a move I can definitely support. This is not to say that the U.S. has made it to the proverbial mountaintop of unity, understanding and brotherhood. It’s to say that attending this conference would not necessarily help us reach this mountaintop.
Critics of the conference are concerned, and rightly so, that it will once again become a stage for anti-Semitic diatribes instead of reaching it’s goals of ameliorating racism and discrimination internationally.
The first Durban conference was a mockery of concern about racism. Instead of focusing on the issue of discrimination around the world, such as, to name a few, the situation of the Roma in Europe, or Kurdish minorities, it focused on Israel as the root of all racism and intolerance in the world. Israel, the racist, intolerant, apartheid state. For the record, as an African-American woman especially, I make it a habit not to visit apartheid states. When I visited Israel I was surprised at the lack of segregated public areas that an apartheid state should have. I’d be more concerned as a minority in areas of our own country than in Israel.
The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is important and deserves attention. The plight of the people of Gaza is deplorable and should be addressed. And yes, in Israeli society there are issues regarding its Arab citizens. But Israel is far from an apartheid state. Furthermore, it’s not the only nation in the world that needs to improve.
Israel is not even the biggest issue for the U.S. this time around. Although, no doubt, the conference should be good for the usual false claims that Israel is a racist Zionist regime.
Wording in the declaration regarding religious defamation worries societies where free speech is valued over hurt feelings or challenged thoughts. The language attempts to protect religions instead of individuals. The concern is valid, especially in a post-9/11 world where ignorant and hateful people have confused Islamic fundamentalists with the majority of its peaceful, regular practitioners.
Acts of prejudice against individuals of all faiths or no faith must be denounced, but acts of dissent against a religious idea must be protected.
The ability to question and contradict ideas, even religious ones, must be upheld as a human right.
This second conference is supposed to discuss more fully the idea of religious defamation. However, I fear that it is meant less to protect individuals and more so to protect religious institutions and ideas.
People should be protected even at the expense of religion.
I don’t have much hope for an anti-racism and discrimination conference that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is giddy to attend.
Iran, according to a non-profit organization Committee to Protect Journalists, was the sixth-leading jailer of journalists. Individual freedoms must always be upheld over institutions’ rights to be secure, especially religion.
The freedom of expression always has done humanity more harm than good in the long run.
I hope this second conference on racism and the like will acknowledge the difference between legitimate criticism of actions and ideas and the necessity of protecting dissenting individuals around the world, regardless of their beliefs.
-Kayle Barnes is a professional writing senior.
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dwalker2006 3 years, 1 month ago
I can't put into words how relieved I was to see the delegates of 30 countries stand up and walk out during Ahmadinejad's speech. For someone very pessimistic about the future of humanity, it gave me a slight glimmer of hope.
The idea that the leader of Iran would be allowed to speak at a conference on racism, human rights, and tolerance is disgusting. All it does is erode the credibility of the UN and make that institution appear even more impotent, useless, and hollow than it already is.
I am very grateful to President Obama that my country was not represented at this circus.