Reports from the Inaugural session of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent. Thursday January 19, 6:30PM (EST)/3:30PM (Pacific) (Click here to register)
In December 2022 the United Nations launched the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent (UNPFPAD) as part of the International Decade on People of African Descent (2015-2024). The PFPAD will develop a global Declaration on the Rights of People of African Descent and define steps to improve the lived experiences of African descended people around the world through improved implementation of international commitments to end racism and all forms of discrimination. Delegate Justin Hansford calls this Forum a potential “instrument of liberation” that requires grassroots communities to “dream big” and engage with this global process to find creative and concrete ways to address ongoing harms of colonialism, genocide, and slavery. Over 900 civil society representatives attended the first PFPAD meeting in Geneva, which generated promising ideas for transformative change. Advocates who attended PFPAD will share their observations and offer ideas for how this new body can be a tool for building local and national movements to end white supremacy and advance racial justice. (Click here to register)
Panelists: Lisa Borden, Senior Policy Counsel, International Advocacy and Policy, Southern Poverty Law Center; Charkera Ervin, Howard University School of Law/ Movement Lawyering Clinic; Efia Nwangaza, SNCC Veteran, Civil/Human Rights Attorney, Director Malcolm X Center for Self Determination; Tiffany Williams Roberts, Director of Public Policy Unit, Southern Center for Human Rights; Gretchen Rohr, US-Liaison and Global Strategic Litigation Officer, Open Society Justice Initiative
Co-sponsors: U.S. Human Rights Cities Alliance, Southern Center for Human Rights, Southern Poverty Law Center, Ubuntu Institute for Community Development, Pittsburgh Human Rights City Alliance, Global Studies Center & Center for African Studies-University of Pittsburgh
hreusa.org 