Schedule and zoom registration
Using global human rights to strengthen anti-racism organizing and resist ongoing retrenchment of democracy and human rights National Human Rights Cities/ Human Rights on the Hill July 19-21, 2022 Co-Sponsor & Host: Thurgood Marshall Civil Rights Center, Howard University School of Law, Washington DC
SCHEDULE
Tuesday, July 19, 2022 Opening reception 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM EDT
Enjoy Article 24 Event: Join the US Human Rights Cities Movement at The Mission Dupont Circle: 1606 20th Street NW, Washington, DC, 20009
Location: Brick Room/ light snacks will be provided
Wednesday July 20 All times are Eastern time zone/U.S.
Location: Thurgood Marshall Civil Rights Center, Howard University School of Law, 2900 Van Ness Street, N.W. Room 107, Notre Dame Hall, Washington, D.C. 20009
9:00 AM Welcome Thurgood Marshall Civil Rights Center Workshop overview: Human Rights Cities & the UN: Opportunities for Changemakers
- Billi Wilkerson, Managing Director, Thurgood Marshall Civil Rights Center, Howard University School of Law
9:15 AM: Human Rights Cities: Research, Resources & Resources
- Maggie Austen, Suffolk Law School
10:00 AM Cities as Human Rights Catalysts for Local & Global Change
- Kamelia Kemileva, Co-Director, Programmes & Administration -Geneva Cities Hub
11:00 AM PANEL: Human Rights Cities: Connecting racial, reproductive, and environmental justice advocacy with global human rights opportunities (SDGs, UPR, CERD, CEDAW, etc.)
- Human rights advocates from different communities will share lessons and models for using global institutions and processes to advance human rights in communities around the U.S. How can international institutions provide leverage that can help us overcome the vast challenges in the U.S. legal system—particularly following recent decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court?
1:30 PM How can the CERD Process be a tool to fight Environmental Racism?
- Daniel E. Gogal, Senior Environmental Protection Specialist, Tribal and Indigenous Peoples Program Manager; International Human Rights Agreements - EPA Staff Lead; Interagency Interfaith Collaboration for Vulnerable Communities; & Coordinator, Office of Environmental Justice, USEPA Community Support and Engagement Staff
2:30 p.m. Mobilizing International Human Rights Instruments: The UN CERD Review of the United States: Making Global Human Rights Local
- Leon W. Russell, Chairman, NAACP National Board of Directors
3:30 PM PANEL & Discussion: Bringing the CERD Review Home: Strategies for local follow-up and movement-building —part 1
- Participants will learn more about the politics of CERD and related treaty reviews and how we can best use these to advance human rights in local communities. Activists who were involved in preparing reviews as part of the 2022 CERD review of the U.S. will share lessons from their work, including models for other communities and ideas for engaging local communities in follow-up work to strengthen the compliance with CERD across all levels of government.
Thursday July 21
8:30 Arrive at venue (in person folks)
9:00 AM European Human Rights Cities: Fundamental Rights Framework
- Hans Sakkers (zoom) Utrecht
10:00 AM Reparations & Human Rights
- Dreisen Heath, Racial Justice Researcher & Advocate – US Program | Human Rights Watch
11:00 AM How can the review of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) be Mobilized by Civil Society to Shape Public Policy?
- Marie Joseph, Human Rights Officer and Secretary of the Human Rights Committee Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Section Human Rights Treaties Branch, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
12:30 PM Lunch break
1:30 p.m. U.S. CERD preparations to date
- Desirée M. Cormier Smith, Special Representative for Racial Equity and Justice (SRREJ), U.S. Department of State
2:30 pm. Introducing the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent
- Billi Wilkerson, Managing Director, Thurgood Marshall Civil Rights Center, Howard University School of Law
- Justin Hansford, Executive Director, Thurgood Marshall Civil Rights Center, Howard University School of Law & Representative to the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent
3:15 p.m. Bringing the CERD Review Home: Strategies for local follow-up and movement-building-part 2 Participants will learn more about the politics of CERD and related treaty reviews and how we can best use these to advance human rights in local communities. Activists who were involved in preparing reviews as part of the 2022 CERD review of the U.S. will share lessons from their work, including models for other communities and ideas for engaging local communities in follow-up work to strengthen the compliance with CERD across all levels of government. How can the new Permanent Forum of People of African Descent help support and advance the work of CERD? How can our movements help strengthen this Forum and vice-versa?
- Hnin Khaing, Interim Director, District of Columbia Office of Human Rights
