Youth for Human Rights National Peace Day Art Contest Winners Announced

Human rights art reflects the issues of 2020 – riots and protest and the need for love and justice.

WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, UNITED STATES, September 30, 2020 /EINPresswire.com/ — As protests were seen across the nation on a variety of issues, youth and adults saw a need to express the values of human rights in the form of art to help celebrate International Day of Peace in the third week in September 2020.

“What are human rights and why do they matter?” was the theme for this year’s Youth for Human Rights Washington, DC, National Human Rights Art Contest.

The winning entries reflected the use of art to emphasize the fact that human rights are vital, necessary, and must be protected for the sake of all.

This year, youth and adults around the country have experienced the rise of tensions in communities across the country, either firsthand or in the media. Many have focused expressions of outrage against violations of human rights in their artwork.

Based on the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) as the global standard of human rights, the National Human Rights Art Contest culminated in a virtual pop-up exhibit on the International Day of Peace on September 21st. This pop-up exhibit can be viewed until October 26th.

There are two artist age group categories for the National Human Rights Art Contest: Adults (age 18 and up) and Youth (age 17 or younger). In each category a first place prize of a $100 gift certificate and a second place prize of a $50 gift certificate was awarded.

Youth for Human Rights advocate and youth judge Tiana Crawford, 19 years old, was moved to see how people put the Articles of the UDHR into art form, saying, “We often express ourselves in words but to put the concepts of human rights into an art form brings each right to view even more vividly. It was an honor to be a judge this year and I look forward to our contest in 2021 to see the moving expressions regarding the truth about human rights. We look forward to this contest spreading even more throughout our communities.”

In 2018 Youth for Human Rights Washington, DC, (YHRDC) began its annual tradition by holding a Peace Day Pop-Up Art Exhibit in honor of International Day of Peace on September 21st at the Founding Church of Scientology in Washington, DC.

Each year, artwork by youth and adults forwarding the importance of human rights has been displayed, along with a video display on each of the 30 articles of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Due to the current global scene with COVID-19 and the inability to hold in-person events, YHRDC decided to take a different route this year by hosting the art contest online. Talented artists from across the nation have submitted art which showcases of one or more of the human rights listed in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The Peace Day Pop-Up Art Exhibit, whether in-person or online, helps young artists express their human rights and highlights how communities can employ these rights to promote unity and respect for all of humanity.

To learn more about human rights go to https://www.youthforhumanrights.org

For a documentary on Youth for Human Rights and its founder, go to https://www.scientology.tv/series/voices-for-humanity/mary-shuttleworth.html

Online course:
https://www.youthforhumanrights.org/course/

Materials: https://www.youthforhumanrights.org/download/

About Youth for Human Rights:

Youth for Human Rights International (YHRI) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to teach youth about human rights, specifically the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and to inspire them to become valuable advocates for tolerance and peace. YHRI advocates for human rights both in the classroom and in nontraditional educational settings such as through art series, concerts and other interactive community events, including regional and international human rights summits which bring youth together from across whole sectors of the world. Their most recent campaign has included #KnowYour30 with the deliberate purpose of increasing awareness of the 30 human rights every person has – and how they are a part of everyday life.

Beth Akiyama
Youth for Human Rights International – National Office
+1 202-667-6404
email us here