AMERICA HAS NO MORAL RIGHT TO LECTURE THE REST OF THE WORLD ON HUMAN RIGHTS

United States of America On 4^th July 1776 gained its independence from the British. On that day a declaration of independence was signed by 12 states and later the state of  New York on 19^th  July. The declaration of independence contained among many arguably the most memorable declaration in the history of the  human rights agenda and I quote, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are edwoed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, Liberty and pursuit of happiness”.  For many, America is a perfect example of a state that has championed the human rights agenda both in practice and advocacy. Hence a belief that America has earned the moral right to spearhead the human rights agenda. An argument that is in my opinion is unfounded, and marred with hypocrisy, misguided and egocentric traits. If there is any country in the world today that should “lecture”  the rest about human rights, that country is not to be  America. It has no moral right to do so.  

Even after independence and the signing of the declaration of  Independence  USA changed nothing about racial segregation, women’s rights and recognition of the black race. In particular the question of equality, the notion that all are created equal. Until 1967, marriage between different races was prohibited by law, supported by  anti-miscegenation laws, or miscegenation laws, which laws enforced segregation. They prohibited  marriage and intimate relationships between different race and  criminalized interracial marriages. These laws had been introduced in 17^th century and remained in force even after independence. These were  later reinforced by the Racial Integrity Act of 1924, which prohibited marriage between people classified as "white" and people classified as "colored”. It was not until   1967, in the supreme court case of  Loving v. Virginia, that anti-miscegenation laws were held to be unconstitutional. This was exactly 191 years after independence, approximately 2 centuries after the signing of the declaration of independence.

Blacks in America were denied the right to vote even after the signing of the declaration of independence,  it was not until 1869 that an effort was made by congress where congress banned restrictions on the basis of race and color when it came to voting rights, an amendment that was adopted on March 30, 1870. Note that this was 94 years after the declaration of independence. However these amendments were never effected as states incorporated laws that acted as obstacles for the realization of this right, that included poll taxes and discriminatory literacy tests from which whites were exempted from what they termed as “grandfather clauses”. These laws effectively disenfranchised the black people in America. So in reality blacks in America were not accorded the right to vote. After close to two centuries in 1965, “The Voting Rights Act, was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on August 6, 1965, that overcame legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote under the 15th Amendment (1870) to the Constitution of the United States”. This was the actual amiable move that empowered blacks to vote in America. It took America 189 years to grant black people a right to vote that had been protected by the declaration of human rights signed approximately two centuries ago.

 Women in America were never accorded same rights with men, when it came to voting even after the declaration of independence  .  Attempts by women movements to participate in the 1872  elections with the hope that the Supreme court would enforce their “unalienable Rights” hit a dead end when the “Supreme Court” ruled against the suffragists. In 1890 a  the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) was formed to further the fight for women’s voting rights. In 1916 Alice Paul started the National Woman's Party (NWP), a militant pressure group with the mission of having the passage of a national suffrage amendment. It had over 200 of its supports arrested with many others going on hunger strike. “After a hard-fought series of votes in the U.S. Congress and in state legislatures, the Nineteenth Amendment became part of the U.S. Constitution on August 20, 1920 which in effect accorded women the right to vote.  It states that; "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex."

 That was exactly  144 years after the declaration of independence that stated “ that all men are created equal”.

So why should America not learn from its own history and let countries go through the metamorphosis of the realization of human rights. If it took America close to two centuries to provide for what I would call basic rights as argued above, America should give the world breathing space, allow countries to develop internal desires for change of laws, give chance to nations to debate their futures and draw compromises based on their own considerations.

The whole notion of “America is Angelic ” is unfounded, unqualified and marred with hypocrisy, and misguided by egocentric traits. Nations should be left to craft their destinies and not to be compelled to copy a paste from a “world leader with dirty hands”.

Article Written by

Mweisgwa Onesmus

 

THE CHRISTIAN IDENTITY.

A lesson the Uganda can learn from UCU

U

ganda Christian University prides in maintaining a Christian Identity. Founded on the principles of the Church and with Christian values at the heart of its operations, the University has gone a notch higher in an attempt to maintain this identity by introducing a Christian element in its education curriculum and also in the way institution is run as a whole. 

 However this has not gone without criticism, given the University’s history as a theological college, many argue that after being made a university in 1997, perhaps that transition would include an identity that reflects a sort of new transformation or rather the start of a new page, but rather the theological college now turned into  a University maintained its former identity. This came with mixed reactions with a considerable majority or rather minority depending on how you choose to see it regarding UCU as a predominant conservative Christian University. A view that has left an impression within the minds of potential would be entrants into the Campus ponder widely about the option!

The facts on the ground however depict the direct opposite, as the perception is a misconception.  The university has in a unique way embraced the diversity that comes with the inflow of students from various backgrounds, tribes, religions, nationality and culture. There is no doubt as to the harmony enjoyed within the confines of the institution, a true reflection of an integrated community while in a unique way maintaining the Christian identity.

The central key in the debate is as to whether its stands to be logical for the University to maintain a Christian identity given this diversity.

My line of argument would lie best in support of maintaining the Christian identity, and this is not because I subscribe to the Christian faith but rather because am a great believer in remaining true to the principles and founding instruments of the University. The University of Cambridge prides in having maintained its traditions that traces back to 1209. Most critics have gone ahead to call it the traditional  school of Europe yet it stands to be among the most reputable Universities in the world. The state of Israel regardless of a history of turmoil has thrived because of the entrenched commitment to maintain the Jewish identity, its military and political strength is a pillar in the middle East, a force any world leader has to reckon with.  Its contribution to world politics and the world’s history in general would be immaterial had the Jewish identity been neglected or discarded.

The infamous Hitler of Germany opened war against the world because at the time he was convinced that the German identity was being threaten, the German economy was predominantly run by Jews at the time and given the outcomes of World war one that had left Germany reduced to ashes, Hitler rallied the entire world to revive the German pride. Regardless of the fateful outcomes, Germany as a state has fought hard to maintain the German pride, and as a result, Germany has gained its position in the world as the biggest economy in Europe and the epicenter center of European politics. This has all been made possible because of the energies the Germans invest in rubber stamping their identity; the German pride.

So the question of identity is at the heart of any serious institution, government  and state for that matter, it becomes an under laying ideology, a unifying factor for a common cause. Regardless of this fact however, a tolerant environment should be at play that accommodates a diversity of ideas, and cultures and one that seeks to harmonize the differences and direct them to a common cause. The desire to maintain an identity should nonetheless not threaten the existence of divergent ideologies, beliefs and convictions. A balance has to be struck.

It’s in this spirit that I quote Hattiloo Theatre, in these words that;

“All individuals must feel free to explore the uniqueness of their culture and identity while developing understandings of the cultural diversity that exists in the world around them. Denying cultural expression means limiting the expression of unique perspectives on life and the transmission of knowledge from generation to generation”.

UCU has done a tremendous job of maintaining its Christian identity and remaining true to its founding principle at the same time providing an enabling ground for integration, cultural tolerance and harmonization. Therefore UCU poses to be the perfect example of a fully integrated society with an identity jealously guarded yet at the same time embracing diversity. Uganda as a state would learn a lot from this perfect example because diversity is a blessing and never a curse and  what unites us is greater than what divides us.

For God and my country

For the love of UCU.

[The article; The Christian Identity is written by Mwesigwa Onesmus a student of Law at Uganda Christian University, an ardent debater and a social and political analyst.