International Human Rights Day is December 10th and celebrates the day the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights back in 1948. The NWT Human Rights Commission celebrates this day every year.
The Commission works to promote equality and human rights and to prevent discrimination under the NWT Human Rights Act. This law applies to everyone in the NWT. To promote human rights the Commission is hoping to create a culture of kindness in the North. One of the ways the Commission works toward this goal is through our Stories for Peace project.
The Stories for Peace project helps people understand human rights by providing books, movies, comics, and games to community groups and libraries. Stories can help us learn about different cultures, people, and experiences. A good story lets us experience a different life than our own, and also helps us discover what we have in common with other people.
It is important for people to be able to read books and stories about different people, events, and points of view. Psychologists David Comer Kidd and Emanuele Castano proved that literary fiction can improve empathy by helping people understand how other people think and feel. Providing books and movies that boost our understanding of human rights is one way the Commission works to build a culture of kindness.
If you would like to know more about the Stories for Peace project or would like books for your community group or library, please email the NWT Human Rights Commission at info@nwthumanrights.ca.
-- Marcus Jackson, Human Rights Officer
