The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights Essay

Today, more than ever, Article five of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is of upmost importance. Everyday there is a national story of individuals being harmed, or killed due to their race. Most recently, the mass murder that took place in Charleston South Carolina, where nine individuals were murdered in hopes of fueling a race riot. Another common news story centering on the violation of article five are the numerous reports of alleged police brutality related to race. Police brutality is define as, “A civil rights violation that occurs when a police officer acts with excessive force by using an amount of force with regards to a civilian that is more than necessary. Excessive force by law enforcement officers is a violation.
Article Five, of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states, “No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.” This article is important as it ensures all individuals are treated equally in a just manner regardless of their race or position in society. Eleanor Roosevelt introduced article Five in 1948 however, in 1966 the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966) added to the UDHR definition the sentence, “In particular, no one shall be subject without his free consent to medical and scientific experimentation.” This is a clear reference to the medical experiments on prisoners carried out by the Hitler regime. The 1984 UN Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman…