nearly one in three children in NYC live in poverty
- CSS NY

Our Work:

Advocacy and Organizing — Through collaborations with community based, social service, advocacy, and grassroots organizations, HRP facilitates the use of international human rights mechanisms with which to hold the government accountable to protecting human rights. HRP organizes domestic groups to engage in different UN mechanisms including shadow reporting, meeting with special rapporteurs, UN conferences, and treaty ratification. HRP also works with groups on how to implement human rights treaties at the local, state and national levels.

Trainings and Public Education — HRP offers educational materials, workshops, trainings and technical assistance to facilitate the use of the human rights framework in advancing social justice and good governance. The HRP website is also a resource for educational materials and resources on human rights. HRP also establishes other venues to foster public education and dialogue on human rights norms. HRP’s public education programs include supporting the realization of human rights through good governance and enhanced civic participation.

Documentation & Monitoring — HRP coordinates human rights monitoring efforts that document and expose human rights violations in the provision of government services. We also partner with advocacy organizations to develop human rights documentation projects that fit their advocacy goals. Based on our findings, we publish information to progressively impact public opinion and social policy.

Other Services — HRP serves as a resource for groups and individuals who need information or referrals on remedying human rights violations.

Advocacy and Organizing Projects include:

The New York City Human Rights Initiative — HRP is the lead coordinating organization of the New York City Human Rights Initiative (NYCHRI), a citywide coalition of over 100 community-based organizations, service providers, advocacy groups, policymakers, labor unions and human rights activists and educators working to strengthen the use of human rights standards in tackling systemic problems of inequality in New York City. NYCHRI is currently working on a ground-breaking legislation entitled the Human Rights in Government Operations Audit Law (or Human Rights GOAL) that draws from human rights principles of non-discrimination, participation, accountability and transparency, as well as from the two key international treaties addressing gender and race discrimination -- CEDAW (the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women) and CERD (the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination), to provide a foundation for ensuring comprehensive protection against, and pro-active measures to prevent, all forms of unlawful discrimination. Human Rights GOAL would facilitate better public participation in the formulation of government policies and more transparency in policymaking.

CERD Implementation Project — HRP is working on the local implementation of CERD, one of the few human rights treaties that the United States government has ratified. HRP recently coordinated a collaborative effort to write a NYC Shadow Report on race disparities for submission to the UN CERD committee. The report, Race Realities in NYC, covers issues ranging from education to criminal justice.

Durban Review Conference Organizing Project — HRP is organizing an effort to urge the State Department to engage the United States as a full participant in the Durban Review process, as well as to facilitate participation of domestic racial justice and human rights advocates in the process. The Durban Review Conference 2009 is a follow up to the 2001 World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance (WCAR) in Durban, South Africa. The main objective of Durban Review Conference is to assess implementation of the Durban Declaration and Program of Action, which was adopted by consensus at the WCAR and is the most important framework for combating racism and racial discrimination. Please note that the United States Government is boycotting the process leading up to the Durban Review Conference, and has not yet determined whether it will participate in the Durban Review Conference. This is a continuation of the United States withdrawal from WCAR in 2001 when they cited the amount of time that some participants spent condemning Israel’s treatment of the Palestinian people as the reason for the walk out. Please download and circulate HRP's factsheet on the Durban Review Conference.

Local Implementation of Human Rights Project — HRP is working in collaboration with groups across the country to facilitate the implementation of international human rights treaties locally and nationally. HRP coordinates national calls to share strategies on local implementation efforts across the country.

Links to the United Nations — HRP works to connect groups to UN mechanisms. For example, HRP recently coordinated a visit by the UN Special Rapporteur on Racism to meet with over 70 groups in NYC. HRP also holds workshops at the UN.

Trainings and Public Education Projects include:

HRP offers a range of trainings during the year. To learn more about our trainings, please visit the Trainings page on this website.

HRP Workshops and Trainings — HRP offers a range of trainings at the local and national level to introduce participants to human rights and tools to help them in their own advocacy. HRP workshop and trainings include: 1) Introduction to Human Rights, 2) CERD Shadow Reporting and Implementation, 3) Human Rights Advocacy, 4) Local Implementation of Human Rights Treaties, and 5) Human Rights Documentation.

Upcoming trainings for 2008:

No upcoming trainings currently listed. Please check back.

Click here to see the schedule of past trainings for 2007-2008.

*NEW* Human Rights Council Watch — The Human Rights Project is launching a new tool that will help New Yorkers hold elected officials accountable to their constituents. The tool will allow New Yorkers to review the level of priority that Council Members have given to the basic needs and human rights of the communities they represent. This tool will help New Yorkers determine whether the members of the City Council have indeed held up the principles of human rights. .

We need your help!

As a first step to initiating this project, we would like to get a general picture of how the average New Yorker views the City Council. We have developed a general survey (9 multiple choice questions) that will provide us with some information on the experience and knowledge New Yorkers have on the City Council. We need your help in filling out and disseminating this survey. Please fill out and circulate the following survey by August 30th.
We are looking for stories of different experiences that constituents have hard with their Council Members. If you have a story to share, please contact us at councilwatch at hrpujc.org!

*NEW* Human Rights Movie Nights — HRP recently launched its "Monthly Human Rights Movie Night" project in an effort to increase public awareness about human rights through film. The topics for the monthly screening are selected based on relevant dates on the United Nations annual calendar.

Upcoming screenings for 2008:

July 24th — Celebrating the International Day of Indigenous Peoples.

August 28th — TBA

Click here to see a list of the past screenings.

Documentation and Monitoring Projects include:

*NEW* Monitoring Dignity Project — HRP is currently working on a video advocacy project to document human rights violations perpetrated by the city government.

Past Documentation Projects include:

Race Realities in NYC (opens as a PDF document)

Hunger is no Accident (opens as a PDF document)

Other Services include:

*NEW* Resource Bank and Warm line — HRP will be launching a resource bank and phone service to serve as a referral system for individuals who have suffered human rights violations.

Past Projects, Events and Trainings:

Click here to see a list of our past projects, events and trainings.