NEW BEDFORD — As a champion for women’s rights, Dr. Susan H. Lee asks New Bedford to consider doing what it can to honor the spirit of a longstanding women’s treaty adopted by the United Nations and work to realize those rights locally.
Lee, president of the United States Women’s Caucus to the United Nations and Feminist Advocate for Women’s Rights, has attended the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women for 15 years and spoke about a treaty on human rights for women monitored by a committee in Geneva.
The New Bedford Human Rights Commission invited Lee to speak on the tenets of fairness, equity and respect at its Sixth Annual Human Rights Day Awards on Dec. 8 at the New Bedford Whaling Museum in advance of Human Rights Day on Dec. 10.
“These reports are all online, and they are fascinating to read if you want to find out about women in a country,” she said.
The women’s treaty, officially the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), originated at First UN Conference on Women in 1975 and was adopted by the UN General Assembly after it was completed in 1979.
While San Francisco was the first, she said 50 cities or counties in the US have passed a CEDAW ordinance or resolution affirming its principals and goals. She encouraged New Bedford to follow suit, starting with a gender analysis of city government, establishment of an oversight board, and funding.
“These UN treaties offer a structure to advance human rights by looking at what the treaties set forth as the goals and then having local groups work to realize those human rights on the local level,” she said. “That could lead to real changes on the ground, not only for women but also for men.”
About the women’s treaty
The 30 articles that set out women’s human rights cover legal rights, rights relative to trafficking, affirms political and citizenship rights, rights in education, employment rights including childcare and equal access healthcare, finance and rural development and marriage and family rights.
While 189 member states have signed it, Lee said the United States is one country of the seven in the UN that has not joined the women’s treaty. President Jimmy Carter signed it during his term, but it was not ratified by the Senate as is required to sign the treaty.
The others are Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Tonka, Palau and the The Holy See/The Vatican. She said even Palestine, identified by the UN as a state, and Israel have signed the treaty and have both submitted reports on the condition of women, and she has found shared concerns in those reports.
Lee, who retired as Episcopal minister from St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Fall River in 2021, led the community task force that organized Our Sisters' Place, a battered women's shelter in Fall River.
Presenting their annual awards
The Human Rights Commission presented attorney Deborah G. Roher, who specializes in consumer law, protecting litigants who are oftentimes are preyed upon and victimized with unfair and illegal practice with the Lifetime Achievement Human Rights Award for her.
She is one of the original founders of the Coalition for Social Justice, a grassroots organization founded in 1994 to bring together people affected by and concerned about poverty and advocate for economic opportunity.
PACE Executive Director Pam Kuechler was presented with the Human Rights Organization Award celebrating the new PACE Community Food Center at 477 Park St., in New Bedford, filling a need the community.
Paula Young, cofounder and president of Achieve Greatness, received the Human Rights Award To An Individual. Paula and Phil Young lost their son to Fentanyl at 33-year-old and have been advocates for educating on the dangers of the drug. Young said they were met with open arms when asking for help.
New Bedford High School junior Elliot Talley was presented the Human Rights Student Award for his many accomplishments, including holding a seat on the New Bedford School Committee and portrayal of Booker T. Washington at a mural unveiling. He will soon be appointed to the Governor’s Youth Advisory Council.
Standard-Times staff writer Kathryn Gallerani can be reached at kgallerani@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @kgallreporter. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Standard-Times today.
Most Popular
Comments / 0