Wylie's a rewarding human rights weekend

Last weekend, our group drove through rolling hills and grazing sheep pastures for about an hour until we reached Goedgedacht, an olive farm and retreat, for a human rights training weekend with Africa Unite.  I loved the farm, and especially loved their mission— to grow peace, develop a path out of poverty, and help rural children.    

Our program was unique because it allowed us to stay, interact, and learn with young adults from all over Africa— South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Angola, and more.  We lived together, ate together, and shared the experience of the weekend with one another.  I loved the special community centered around human rights and respect that we created together, and also valued the different perspectives each individual brought to the training.

Bringing out the Human Rights major and scholar in me, I really enjoyed learning and revisiting human rights theory and documents.  Some of the topics we discussed included the definition of a Human Right, the different categories of protected rights, the definition of a refugee and asylum seeker, the ways to stand up for human rights, background on major HR documents such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), and the importance of a human right education.  It was especially cool to learn about human rights within the context of South African legislation and enumerated rights.  Learning about Human Rights in the United States, a country which has both a poor human rights legacy and promotion, is very different from learning about HR in a country where it is part of the public school curriculum.  Indeed, South Africa has one of the most progressive and human rights conscious constitution in the world.  However, aspects of the training reminded me that simply constitutionalizing human rights norms doesn’t make them realized (although it certainly helps.)

Another aspect of the training that I really enjoyed were group simulated activities, where each group represented a country in order to explore human rights issues.  Our country was Cote D’Ivoire, and I found it both challenging and rewarding to limit myself to the perspective of that nation.  I also found it challenging to confront idealism, and realize that outcomes aren’t always fair or equal. 

Wylie at the conclusion of the Human Rights for Social Cohesion Weekend Training.

My weekend with Africa Unite was extremely rewarding, and I’m thankful for the learning experience of being in a diverse community to dissect real human rights issues.