(New York) – The Empire State Building will turn a vivid blue in honor of Human Rights Watch on December 10, 2012, which marks the annual day to celebrate human rights. The Empire State Building decided to light the building to recognize Human Rights Watch’s 34 years of fighting to promote and protect human rights around the world.
“We’re thrilled New Yorkers will see their landmark building turn blue for Human Rights Watch,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “We hope it will remind people how important it is to defend human rights for everyone, at home and abroad.”
Human Rights Watch works in more than 90 countries worldwide to investigate and expose human rights violations and then press for policy change to end such abuses. By focusing international attention where human rights are violated, Human Rights Watch gives voice to the oppressed and holds oppressors to account for their crimes. Human Rights Watch’s rigorous, neutral investigations and strategic, targeted advocacy build intense pressure for action and raise the cost of human rights abuse. For more than 30 years, Human Rights Watch has worked tenaciously to lay the legal and moral groundwork for deep-rooted change and has fought to bring greater justice and security to people around the world.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted on December 10, 1948, sets out a broad range of rights and freedoms guaranteed to all people around the globe without distinction. In recognition of these rights, the world celebrates Human Rights Day on this day, an opportunity to highlight a specific issue and advocate for the enjoyment of human rights by all people. The focus this year is on making the voices of all – women, youth, minorities, people with disabilities, indigenous people, the poor and marginalized – to be heard in public life and be included in political decision-making.
