A New Year’s Parable The massive Palace stood as a fortress alongside the River Seine. The edifice of power was built, stone upon stone, carrying an aura of ceaselessness as it rose high into the sky. Bronze statues of the gods held guard. Now the
and the Right to Have our Rights Respected: 71st Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights By David Gallup As we celebrate the 71st anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) on December 10th, let’s consider how awareness and implementation of our
“Being a part of a World Citizen Club helps students have a better understanding of the different issues our world faces today. They have a chance to come up with different solutions and ideas and learn from one another.” — Semawit, World Citizen Club MemberAs
Garry Davis said that world peace begins with each of us putting the earth first: “Because it is your world! You are the ‘center’ of it. It revolves around you! You were born to it. And willy-nilly, you are already in it; in fact on
Two moments in recent history have helped us to realize that there is one humanity and one earth: The first moment was when the bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II. These bombs confirmed that humans have the power to eradicate
On May 25, 1948, Garry Davis stepped out of the US Embassy in Paris after taking the Oath of Renunciation of citizenship. No longer a citizen of one exclusive nation, Garry claimed his status as a citizen of the world. Why would Garry Davis, a
The New Year provides an opportunity to reflect on time, which is a universal right. How time is celebrated and marked varies worldwide yet impacts all world citizens. Although many celebrate January 1st as the start of the new year, Chinese celebrate the new year
Unifying Human and Environmental Rights Why should we think beyond our humanness to a worldly, earth perspective? Does the earth have a right to exist independently from humans? Do animals, plants and even inanimate objects have rights? How should humans interact with the earth and
157 years after Thomas Paine wrote The Rights of Man, and after dropping bombs on cities as an air force pilot in WWII, Garry Davis voluntarily gave up his national citizenship and claimed world citizenship. In his autobiography, My Country is the World, he wrote,
How can nuclear weapons states, like the United States of America, legitimately demand that other states, like North Korea, cease their research and production of nuclear weapons, when they themselves continue to maintain and upgrade their own arsenals? Developing, producing and maintaining nuclear weapons are
