Guest Speaker: Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton addressed a packed room in Gaston Hall on the topic of Human Rights this Thursday, October 13th. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton provided an overview of the Obama administration’s Human Rights Agenda.
Clinton began by addressing the Georgetown community saying, “Thank you for training the next generation of civil rights advocates.”
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She explained the new Human Rights Agenda saying that it must begin with accountability. Each country must be responsible for the condition of human rights in their country. In that vein, the United States will be seeking to lead by example in many ways, including for the first time reporting numbers on human trafficking that occurs within its borders.
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Clinton said “By holding ourselves accountable, we reinforce our moral authority to demand that all governments adhere to obligations under international law – among them not to torture, arbitrarily detain and persecute dissenters or engage in political killings.”
She also stressed the importance of partnering with organizations that share the common goal of promoting human rights. Clinton also explained that the approach to remedying injustice in relation to human rights must be a pragmatic one. She urged students to reject the idea that there is no solution for some of the issues the world faces.
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Clinton explained that real progress for human rights would require people to move beyond their traditional approaches to finding solutions.Â
Sources:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/georgetownuniversity/page38/