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Women's rights are human rights

April 12, 2024

"Women's rights are human rights" is a phrase used in the feminist movement. The phrase was first used in the 1980s and early 1990s. Its most prominent usage is as the name of a speech given by Hillary Rodham Clinton, the First Lady of the United States, on September 5, 1995, at the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing.[1] In this speech, she sought to closely link the notion of women's rights with that of human rights. In the speech, Clinton used the phrase within the longer, bidirectional refrain, "human rights are women's rights and women's rights are human rights."

First Lady of the United States Hillary Rodham Clinton during her speech in Beijing, China.

First uses edit

The idea, if not in those specific words, that "women's rights are human rights" was first expressed with different phrasing by the abolitionists and proto-feminists Sarah Moore Grimké and Angelina Grimké Weld in the late 1830s. In her series of Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, Sarah Moore Grimké writes, "Consequently I know nothing of man's rights, or woman's rights; human rights are all that I recognize".[2] A similar expression is used by her sister, Angelina Grimké Weld, in her speeches and personal letters. In a letter to her friend Jane Smith, she writes, "whatever is morally right for a man to do is morally right for a woman to do. I recognized no rights but human rights."[3]

The phrase "Women's rights are human rights" was used intermittently during the 1980s and first half of the 1990s, before Clinton's speech. Instances include in 1984, when The New York Times quoted the head of New York City's Human Rights Commission, Marcella Maxwell, using this phrase in conversation.[4] It was again used in 1985 by Cecilia Medina, a noted Chilean jurist, in a seminal paper on feminism.[5] The title of her work was 'Women's Rights as Human Rights: Latin American Countries and the Organization of American States (OAS).' In articulating the historic idea, Medina wrote, "As a logical consequence of the fact that women's rights are human rights, feminism, in theory, is a movement to achieve a democratic society, without which human rights may not be fully enjoyed."

Canadian politician Ed Broadbent, who was the head of the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development, used the phrase in an interview with the Calgary Herald in January 1993 when he stated, "If we believe as a society that women's rights are human rights, then it is time to stop discriminating against women in refugee policy."[6] The phrase was used by Laurel Fletcher during a 1993 international law symposium called Human Rights Violations Against Women, an edited version of which was published by Fletcher, Allyn Taylor and Joan Fitzpatrick in 1994.[7] Article 3 of Malaysian Charter on Human Rights, published in December 1994 by a number of non-governmental organizations, begins with the sentence "Women's Rights are Human Rights."[8][9][circular reference]

Clinton's speech edit

Audio file of Clinton declaring, "If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women's rights and women's rights are human rights, once and for all."
Footage of Clinton's speech in its entirety. At approximately the 14:45 mark, Clinton utters the famous line, "Women's rights are human rights"
 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Women's Rights Are Human Rights.

In planning to make her speech, the 47-year-old Clinton defied both internal administration pressure and external Chinese pressure to soften her remarks.[10][11] The U.S. State Department and the National Security Agency both tried to dissuade her on the grounds that it would irritate the Chinese.[12] While President Bill Clinton had seen the speech in advance, his aides had not, and White House Chief of Staff Thomas McLarty was under the impression that it would not say anything new or controversial.[12] Some human rights campaigners also objected to Clinton speaking in China, fearing it would legitimize that government, and a State Department condition was that Chinese human rights activist Harry Wu be released before she would appear, which he was.[12] Some vocal Catholic groups criticized the gathering as "anti-family" while some ideological conservatives said that Clinton was clearly going to push a "radical feminist agenda" while there.[12]

Cecilia Medina was part of the United Nations Human Rights Committee in 1995 and so may have influenced the speech.[citation needed]

Once it happened on September 5, 1995, Clinton's speech was delivered in a large hall at the conference.[12] In it, she argued against practices abusing women around the world and in China itself.[13] Targeting governments and organizations as well as individual females, she stated her belief that the issues facing women and girls are often either ignored or "silenced" and thus go unresolved.[14] Elements brought up in the speech include dowry deaths and China's one-child policy.[13]

Clinton declared "that it is no longer acceptable to discuss women's rights as separate from human rights".[13] Delegates from over 180 countries heard her say:

"If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women's rights and women's rights are human rights, once and for all."[10]

She followed this by saying, "As long as discrimination and inequities remain so commonplace everywhere in the world, as long as girls and women are valued less, fed less, fed last, overworked, underpaid, not schooled, subjected to violence in and outside their homes—the potential of the human family to create a peaceful, prosperous world will not be realized."[10] A number of the women delegates at the conference pounded on tables and cheered as she spoke.[10]

China's citizenry was not allowed to attend the speech, and it was blacked out on Chinese radio and television.[13]

The speech received prominent media attention at the time.[15] NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw said, "In her own way, she made a direct hit on the Chinese," while that network's correspondent Andrea Mitchell said it was "highly unusual" for a U.S. first lady to engage in this kind of significant diplomatic activity.[15] The New York Times said that Clinton spoke "more forcefully on human rights than any American dignitary has on Chinese soil."[13]

Legacy edit

The speech is considered to be influential in the women's rights movement. Specifically, it became a key moment in the empowerment of women, and years later women around the world would recite Clinton's key phrases.[16]

The speech was listed as number 35 in American Rhetoric's Top 100 Speeches of the 20th Century (listed by rank).[17]

In 2011, Clinton took a similar position on LGBT rights in a speech to the United Nations on International Human Rights Day, declaring "gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights."[18]

In 2013, following Clinton's time as U.S. Secretary of State, Clinton led a review at the Clinton Global Initiative of how women's rights have changed since her 1995 speech.[19] It concluded that progress had been made for girls in education and for women and girls in healthcare but that females around the world still suffered due to lack of political rights and security vulnerabilities.[12] In Clinton's words: "It's a glass-half-filled kind of scenario."[12]

On the twentieth anniversary of the speech in 2015, there were more retrospectives on it.[12] Not everyone was enamored with it: publicly visible lawyer Bruce Fein said: "She made one statement in Beijing that wasn't very profound — that women are human beings."[12]

The speech and phrase became a focal point of Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.[12] The campaign sold T-shirts stating "women's rights are human rights" at her campaign store, in reference to her speech.[20] The campaign also sold a bag that featured the full phrase "Human rights are women's rights and women's rights are human rights"; on the bag it was shown in six languages.[21] As well, the campaign sold a Tory Burch T-shirt featuring the phrase "women's rights are human rights..." in capital letters.[22] The campaign also created photo references and displays of items necessary for five Halloween costumes, including "'Women's rights are human rights' Hillary".[23][24]

In Jennifer Lopez's 2016 music video for her song "Ain't Your Mama", a sample of Clinton giving part of her speech can be heard, specifically, "Human rights are women's rights, and women's rights are human rights, once and for all."[25][26]

In 2017, for International Women's Day, Madonna released a short film titled Her-Story; it ends with the message "Women's rights are human rights."[27]

As evidenced by physician Leslie Regan in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, the phrase remains relevant in political discourse in the 2010s, specifically with regards to the discussion of policy regarding women's sexual health and reproductive rights.[28]

References edit

  1. ^ Fester, Gertrude (1994). "Women's Rights Are Human Rights". Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity. 20 (20): 76–79. doi:10.2307/4065874. JSTOR 4065874.
  2. ^ Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, and the Condition of Woman. Addressed to Mary S. Parker. Boston: Isaac Knapp, 1838. Reprinted by Forgotten Books, 2012.
  3. ^ The Grimke Sisters, Sarah and Angelina Grimke: the First American Women Advocates of Abolition and Woman's Rights. Washington, DC, Lee and Shepard, 1885. Reprint by Greenwood Press, 1969. Reprint by Hard Press, 2014, p.109.
  4. ^ Lawson, Carol (June 1, 1984). "A Fighter for Rights". The New York Times.
  5. ^ Díaz-Diocaretz, Myriam; Zavala, Iris M. (January 1, 1985). Women, Feminist Identity, and Society in the 1980s: Selected Papers. John Benjamins Publishing. ISBN 0915027518 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ "Gender-related Refugee Claims". Government of Canada Publications. March 1994.
  7. ^ Fletcher, Laurel; Taylor, Allyn; Fitzpatrick, Joan (1994). "Human Rights Violations Against Women". Whittier Law Review. 15 (319). Retrieved January 21, 2017.
  8. ^ "Malaysian Charter on Human Rights". Malaysian NGOs. 1994. Retrieved January 21, 2017.
  9. ^ Malaysian Charter on Human Rights#Malaysian Charter on Human Rights
  10. ^ a b c d Lemmon, Gayle Tzemach (March 6, 2011). "The Hillary Doctrine". Newsweek.
  11. ^ Healy, Patrick (December 26, 2007). "The Résumé Factor: Those 8 Years as First Lady". The New York Times.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Chozick, Amy (September 5, 2015). "Hillary Clinton' Beijing Speech on Women Resonates 20 Years Later". The New York Times.
  13. ^ a b c d e Tyler, Patrick (September 6, 1995). "Hillary Clinton, In China, Details Abuse of Women". The New York Times.
  14. ^ Clinton, Hillary Rodham (1996). "Women's Rights Are Human Rights". Women's Studies Quarterly. 24 (1/2): 98–101. JSTOR 40004518.
  15. ^ a b "Flashback: First Lady Hillary Clinton in China". BETSY FISCHER MARTIN and GRACE LAMB-ATKINSON. NBC News. March 20, 2014.
  16. ^ Hudson, Valerie M.; Leidl, Patricia (2015). The Hillary Doctrine: Sex & American Foreign Policy. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 7–8. ISBN 978-0-231-16492-4.
  17. ^ Michael E. Eidenmuller (February 13, 2009). "Top 100 Speeches of the 20th Century by Rank". American Rhetoric. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  18. ^ Capehart, Jonathan (December 11, 2011). "Clinton's Geneva accord: 'Gay rights are human rights'". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
  19. ^ Rucker, Philip (September 25, 2013). "Hillary Clinton to lead review of progress for women since 1995 Beijing conference". The Washington Post.
  20. ^ Apparel. "The Trailblazer Tee | Shop | Hillary for America Shop". Shop.hillaryclinton.com. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  21. ^ Accessories. "Statement Bag | The Shop". Shop.hillaryclinton.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  22. ^ "Tory Burch Tee | The Shop". Shop.hillaryclinton.com. June 23, 2016. Retrieved August 6, 2016.
  23. ^ Singer, Paul (January 21, 2015). "Hillary Clinton campaign sanctions official Halloween costume ideas |". USA Today. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  24. ^ "Texts from Hillary and 4 other DIY Hillary Clinton costumes for Halloween | The Feed | Hillary for America". Hillaryclinton.com. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  25. ^ Gostin, Nicki (May 6, 2016). "Jennifer Lopez samples Hillary Clinton speech in new music video". New York Daily News.
  26. ^ "Hillary Rodham Clinton – United Nations 4th World Conference Speech" American Rhetoric .
  27. ^ Legaspi, Althea (March 8, 2017). . Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 11, 2017. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  28. ^ Regan, Lesley (2017). "Integrating Human Rights and Women's Health. Competencies for Practice". The Journal of Sexual Medicine. 14 (5): e221–e222. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2017.04.162.

External links edit

  • Video and transcript of speech
  • Elle magazine on story behind the speech
  • "20 Minutes That Changed the World" - essay by U.S. attendee to conference

April 12, 2024
women, rights, human, rights, phrase, used, feminist, movement, phrase, first, used, 1980s, early, 1990s, most, prominent, usage, name, speech, given, hillary, rodham, clinton, first, lady, united, states, september, 1995, united, nations, fourth, world, confe. Women s rights are human rights is a phrase used in the feminist movement The phrase was first used in the 1980s and early 1990s Its most prominent usage is as the name of a speech given by Hillary Rodham Clinton the First Lady of the United States on September 5 1995 at the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing 1 In this speech she sought to closely link the notion of women s rights with that of human rights In the speech Clinton used the phrase within the longer bidirectional refrain human rights are women s rights and women s rights are human rights First Lady of the United States Hillary Rodham Clinton during her speech in Beijing China Contents 1 First uses 2 Clinton s speech 3 Legacy 4 References 5 External linksFirst uses editThe idea if not in those specific words that women s rights are human rights was first expressed with different phrasing by the abolitionists and proto feminists Sarah Moore Grimke and Angelina Grimke Weld in the late 1830s In her series of Letters on the Equality of the Sexes Sarah Moore Grimke writes Consequently I know nothing of man s rights or woman s rights human rights are all that I recognize 2 A similar expression is used by her sister Angelina Grimke Weld in her speeches and personal letters In a letter to her friend Jane Smith she writes whatever is morally right for a man to do is morally right for a woman to do I recognized no rights but human rights 3 The phrase Women s rights are human rights was used intermittently during the 1980s and first half of the 1990s before Clinton s speech Instances include in 1984 when The New York Times quoted the head of New York City s Human Rights Commission Marcella Maxwell using this phrase in conversation 4 It was again used in 1985 by Cecilia Medina a noted Chilean jurist in a seminal paper on feminism 5 The title of her work was Women s Rights as Human Rights Latin American Countries and the Organization of American States OAS In articulating the historic idea Medina wrote As a logical consequence of the fact that women s rights are human rights feminism in theory is a movement to achieve a democratic society without which human rights may not be fully enjoyed Canadian politician Ed Broadbent who was the head of the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development used the phrase in an interview with the Calgary Herald in January 1993 when he stated If we believe as a society that women s rights are human rights then it is time to stop discriminating against women in refugee policy 6 The phrase was used by Laurel Fletcher during a 1993 international law symposium called Human Rights Violations Against Women an edited version of which was published by Fletcher Allyn Taylor and Joan Fitzpatrick in 1994 7 Article 3 of Malaysian Charter on Human Rights published in December 1994 by a number of non governmental organizations begins with the sentence Women s Rights are Human Rights 8 9 circular reference Clinton s speech edit source source Audio file of Clinton declaring If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference let it be that human rights are women s rights and women s rights are human rights once and for all source source source source source source Footage of Clinton s speech in its entirety At approximately the 14 45 mark Clinton utters the famous line Women s rights are human rights nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Women s Rights Are Human Rights In planning to make her speech the 47 year old Clinton defied both internal administration pressure and external Chinese pressure to soften her remarks 10 11 The U S State Department and the National Security Agency both tried to dissuade her on the grounds that it would irritate the Chinese 12 While President Bill Clinton had seen the speech in advance his aides had not and White House Chief of Staff Thomas McLarty was under the impression that it would not say anything new or controversial 12 Some human rights campaigners also objected to Clinton speaking in China fearing it would legitimize that government and a State Department condition was that Chinese human rights activist Harry Wu be released before she would appear which he was 12 Some vocal Catholic groups criticized the gathering as anti family while some ideological conservatives said that Clinton was clearly going to push a radical feminist agenda while there 12 Cecilia Medina was part of the United Nations Human Rights Committee in 1995 and so may have influenced the speech citation needed Once it happened on September 5 1995 Clinton s speech was delivered in a large hall at the conference 12 In it she argued against practices abusing women around the world and in China itself 13 Targeting governments and organizations as well as individual females she stated her belief that the issues facing women and girls are often either ignored or silenced and thus go unresolved 14 Elements brought up in the speech include dowry deaths and China s one child policy 13 Clinton declared that it is no longer acceptable to discuss women s rights as separate from human rights 13 Delegates from over 180 countries heard her say If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference let it be that human rights are women s rights and women s rights are human rights once and for all 10 She followed this by saying As long as discrimination and inequities remain so commonplace everywhere in the world as long as girls and women are valued less fed less fed last overworked underpaid not schooled subjected to violence in and outside their homes the potential of the human family to create a peaceful prosperous world will not be realized 10 A number of the women delegates at the conference pounded on tables and cheered as she spoke 10 China s citizenry was not allowed to attend the speech and it was blacked out on Chinese radio and television 13 The speech received prominent media attention at the time 15 NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw said In her own way she made a direct hit on the Chinese while that network s correspondent Andrea Mitchell said it was highly unusual for a U S first lady to engage in this kind of significant diplomatic activity 15 The New York Times said that Clinton spoke more forcefully on human rights than any American dignitary has on Chinese soil 13 Legacy editThe speech is considered to be influential in the women s rights movement Specifically it became a key moment in the empowerment of women and years later women around the world would recite Clinton s key phrases 16 The speech was listed as number 35 in American Rhetoric s Top 100 Speeches of the 20th Century listed by rank 17 In 2011 Clinton took a similar position on LGBT rights in a speech to the United Nations on International Human Rights Day declaring gay rights are human rights and human rights are gay rights 18 In 2013 following Clinton s time as U S Secretary of State Clinton led a review at the Clinton Global Initiative of how women s rights have changed since her 1995 speech 19 It concluded that progress had been made for girls in education and for women and girls in healthcare but that females around the world still suffered due to lack of political rights and security vulnerabilities 12 In Clinton s words It s a glass half filled kind of scenario 12 On the twentieth anniversary of the speech in 2015 there were more retrospectives on it 12 Not everyone was enamored with it publicly visible lawyer Bruce Fein said She made one statement in Beijing that wasn t very profound that women are human beings 12 The speech and phrase became a focal point of Clinton s 2016 presidential campaign 12 The campaign sold T shirts stating women s rights are human rights at her campaign store in reference to her speech 20 The campaign also sold a bag that featured the full phrase Human rights are women s rights and women s rights are human rights on the bag it was shown in six languages 21 As well the campaign sold a Tory Burch T shirt featuring the phrase women s rights are human rights in capital letters 22 The campaign also created photo references and displays of items necessary for five Halloween costumes including Women s rights are human rights Hillary 23 24 In Jennifer Lopez s 2016 music video for her song Ain t Your Mama a sample of Clinton giving part of her speech can be heard specifically Human rights are women s rights and women s rights are human rights once and for all 25 26 In 2017 for International Women s Day Madonna released a short film titled Her Story it ends with the message Women s rights are human rights 27 As evidenced by physician Leslie Regan in The Journal of Sexual Medicine the phrase remains relevant in political discourse in the 2010s specifically with regards to the discussion of policy regarding women s sexual health and reproductive rights 28 References edit Fester Gertrude 1994 Women s Rights Are Human Rights Agenda Empowering Women for Gender Equity 20 20 76 79 doi 10 2307 4065874 JSTOR 4065874 Letters on the Equality of the Sexes and the Condition of Woman Addressed to Mary S Parker Boston Isaac Knapp 1838 Reprinted by Forgotten Books 2012 The Grimke Sisters Sarah and Angelina Grimke the First American Women Advocates of Abolition and Woman s Rights Washington DC Lee and Shepard 1885 Reprint by Greenwood Press 1969 Reprint by Hard Press 2014 p 109 Lawson Carol June 1 1984 A Fighter for Rights The New York Times Diaz Diocaretz Myriam Zavala Iris M January 1 1985 Women Feminist Identity and Society in the 1980s Selected Papers John Benjamins Publishing ISBN 0915027518 via Google Books Gender related Refugee Claims Government of Canada Publications March 1994 Fletcher Laurel Taylor Allyn Fitzpatrick Joan 1994 Human Rights Violations Against Women Whittier Law Review 15 319 Retrieved January 21 2017 Malaysian Charter on Human Rights Malaysian NGOs 1994 Retrieved January 21 2017 Malaysian Charter on Human Rights Malaysian Charter on Human Rights a b c d Lemmon Gayle Tzemach March 6 2011 The Hillary Doctrine Newsweek Healy Patrick December 26 2007 The Resume Factor Those 8 Years as First Lady The New York Times a b c d e f g h i j Chozick Amy September 5 2015 Hillary Clinton Beijing Speech on Women Resonates 20 Years Later The New York Times a b c d e Tyler Patrick September 6 1995 Hillary Clinton In China Details Abuse of Women The New York Times Clinton Hillary Rodham 1996 Women s Rights Are Human Rights Women s Studies Quarterly 24 1 2 98 101 JSTOR 40004518 a b Flashback First Lady Hillary Clinton in China BETSY FISCHER MARTIN and GRACE LAMB ATKINSON NBC News March 20 2014 Hudson Valerie M Leidl Patricia 2015 The Hillary Doctrine Sex amp American Foreign Policy New York Columbia University Press pp 7 8 ISBN 978 0 231 16492 4 Michael E Eidenmuller February 13 2009 Top 100 Speeches of the 20th Century by Rank American Rhetoric Retrieved October 27 2015 Capehart Jonathan December 11 2011 Clinton s Geneva accord Gay rights are human rights The Washington Post Retrieved August 12 2016 Rucker Philip September 25 2013 Hillary Clinton to lead review of progress for women since 1995 Beijing conference The Washington Post Apparel The Trailblazer Tee Shop Hillary for America Shop Shop hillaryclinton com Retrieved May 28 2015 Accessories Statement Bag The Shop Shop hillaryclinton com Retrieved September 19 2015 Tory Burch Tee The Shop Shop hillaryclinton com June 23 2016 Retrieved August 6 2016 Singer Paul January 21 2015 Hillary Clinton campaign sanctions official Halloween costume ideas USA Today Retrieved October 27 2015 Texts from Hillary and 4 other DIY Hillary Clinton costumes for Halloween The Feed Hillary for America Hillaryclinton com Retrieved October 27 2015 Gostin Nicki May 6 2016 Jennifer Lopez samples Hillary Clinton speech in new music video New York Daily News Hillary Rodham Clinton United Nations 4th World Conference Speech American Rhetoric Legaspi Althea March 8 2017 See Madonna s Stylish International Women s Day Short Film Rolling Stone Archived from the original on March 11 2017 Retrieved March 16 2017 Regan Lesley 2017 Integrating Human Rights and Women s Health Competencies for Practice The Journal of Sexual Medicine 14 5 e221 e222 doi 10 1016 j jsxm 2017 04 162 External links editVideo and transcript of speech Elle magazine on story behind the speech 20 Minutes That Changed the World essay by U S attendee to conference Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Women 27s rights are human rights amp oldid 1171593606, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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