NAACP Supports U.S. Participation in the U.N. Human Rights Council

WHEREAS, on February 16, 1946, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights was created to strengthen, promote and protect human rights around the globe; and to address situations of human rights violations and make recommendations on them; and  

WHEREAS, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ("NAACP") has been long involved in the United Nations efforts to protect human rights worldwide since its inception; and 

WHEREAS, in 1947, on behalf of the NAACP, W.E.B DuBois organized the preparation of a 155 page petition,   "An Appeal to the World," documenting the history of racism in America, which was presented to the United Nations. The NAACP petition was debated for two days at a meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, of the Drafting Committee of the United Nations Human Rights Commission; and  

WHEREAS, in 1968 NAACP Executive Director Roy Wilkins was designated Chairman of the US delegation to the International Conference on Human Rights, which met in Tehran, Iran under the auspices of the United Nations. Mr. Wilkins presented the American position on human rights to the Convention; and 

WHEREAS, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, founded on February 16, 1946 became the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), on March 15, 2006 comprised of 47 nations; and  

WHEREAS, since the inception of the UNHRC, the council has been involved in strengthening its capacity to promote and protect human rights worldwide and be more responsive to the needs of victims of human rights violations; and  

WHEREAS, the UNHRC investigates allegations of breaches of human rights in UN member states, and addresses important thematic human rights issues such as freedom of association and assembly, freedom of expression, freedom of belief and religion, women's rights, LGBT rights, and the rights of racial and ethnic minorities; and 

WHEREAS, the United States became a member of the UNHRC in 2009 under the Obama Administration; and  

WHEREAS, on June 19, 2018, the United States, under the Trump Administration resigned from the UNHRC, stating that the organization was not worthy of its name; and  

WHEREAS, the actions of the Trump Administration will remove the United States from the forefront of human rights protection across the globe. 

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the NAACP opposes the decision of the Trump Administration on June 19, 2018, to withdraw from the UNHRC and to reverse the progress we as a nation have made in protecting the human rights of all people; and 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the NAACP, as an NGO and frequent representative of civil society urges the Trump Administration to return to the negotiations of the council in order to better advocate for human rights throughout the globe; and 

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that NAACP units and members become educated on the work of the UNHRC and urge the Administration to return to the United Nations Human Rights Council, as a member-nation in good standing.