Sumaira Quraishi – UAB Institute for Human Rights Blog

Diwrnod Gyda’r Urdd (A Day with the Urdd)

Image shows the Urdd delegation and the IHR team posing with a flag of Wales. — The Urdd and the IHR. Source: Institute for Human Rights.

by Sumaira Quraishi

On September 15th, 2023, the Institute for Human Rights (IHR) at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and the Urdd, a Welsh youth organization, spent an afternoon together exploring human rights initiatives in Birmingham and the history of the Civil Rights Movement.

Dr. Tina Kempin Reuter, Director of the IHR, made opening remarks welcoming the Urdd delegation to UAB and facilitated introductions between the Urdd and members of the IHR team. Dr. Reuter then spoke on how the IHR is raising awareness of and advocating for human rights by making safe spaces to have open dialogues and hosting human rights advocacy conferences. Ms. Siân Lewis, Chief Executive of the Urdd, explained that the Urdd is the largest youth organization in the world and has been active for over 100 years. The Urdd’s primary objective is spreading a peace and goodwill message, with the focus this year being on anti-racism. The Urdd also aims to share the Welsh language and culture with others while learning about other languages and cultures around the world. The Urdd distinguishes itself in its anti-racism efforts through its “Galw Nhw Allan” (“Call Them Out”) motto, which encapsulates the Urdd’s desire to take substantive action against racism. In a video shown at the event, student leaders from the Urdd are shown describing the need to dismantle systemic racism through education to show the beauty and unity people’s differences bring to our communities.

Two members of IHR led the group in a privilege walk, an activity that involves asking participants to line up side-by-side with their eyes closed and take a step forward if they agree with certain statements, or take a step back if they agree with others. Examples of the statements read included “Take a step back if someone in your immediate family is addicted to alcohol or drugs,” “Take a step forward if you see people with your skin color in your local government,” and “Take a step back if you have ever had to skip a meal or multiple meals due to your financial situation.” At the end of the exercise, every person of color from the group was at the back of the room, and every non-person of color from the group was in the middle or front of the room. This exercise was done to highlight the various advantages and obstacles faced by people around the world and fostered a great discussion about diversity and inclusion amongst the IHR and the Urdd.

At the beginning of the meeting, members of the IHR handed out pieces of numbered paper to everyone in the meeting room. People with even numbers received a leaf to pin to their chest and people with odd numbers received a ribbon. After the privilege walk, everyone was asked to find a seat at tables decorated with pumpkins if they drew an odd number or tables decorated with scarecrows if they drew an even number. A short video on Jane Elliott’s “Blue Eyes/Brown Eyes” experiment was shown where Ms. Elliott divided her class by eye color and favored blue-eyed children one day, and brown-eyed children the next, giving each favored group more praise and privileges over the other group. The class soon adopted hateful and derogatory views of the out-group, bullying members of the unfavored group which was distinguished by brown collars tied around their necks. To simulate this experiment, two members of the IHR went around telling people with leaves pinned to their chests to get second helpings of lunch and engaging members of that group in conversation. Contrastly, the two IHR members ignored people with ribbons pinned to their chests and neglected to mention that those with ribbons could go and get second helpings of the food being served. The experiment was revealed after lunch was finished, to the surprise of the room which had no idea the simulation was being carried out. A short discussion followed on how discrimination affects people in real life and the unique challenges faced by people daily due to discrimination.

A tour of the IHR office space followed lunch and the Urdd delegation kindly presented IHR with a flag of Wales, a Cardiff University dragon plush, and Cardiff University silk scarves. Thank you to the Urdd for the thoughtful gifts!

The final event of the day was a screening of Four Little Girls directed by Spike Lee and a Q&A session with Michele Forman, Director of the Media Studies Program at UAB, who helped with the production of Four Little Girls. The film follows the events of the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham, Alabama, and includes interviews with the families of the children killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in 1963. In the Q&A session after the showing, Ms. Forman described how every aspect of the film needed to answer the question “How does it help us understand what happened to the girls that day?”. A particularly impactful statement from Ms. Forman when asked what the rationale for using post-mortem photographs of the four children killed in the bombing in the film was that the destruction and exploitation of the Black body are used too much in media, but it was needed in the film to show that we will not move on from this tragedy and will not forget “what racism comes to bear on the Black body.” Thank you to Michele Forman for facilitating an insightful discussion of the film and the Civil Rights Movement!

Image shows black and white photographs of Denise McNair, Addie Mae Collins, Carole Robertson, and Cynthia Wesley. — Victims of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. Source: Yahoo Images.

The IHR is grateful to have had the opportunity to connect with the Urdd and looks forward to future collaborations!

Watch the full Peace and Goodwill message video here.

Eugenics: How the Remnants of a Bygone Theory Threaten Personal Liberty Over a Century Later

by Sumaira Quraishi

Trigger warnings: rape, invasive medical procedures, and medical malpractice.

Often, the Supreme Court of the United States is seen as a paragon of the American legal system and the national values it strives to uphold. At least, it used to be. While trust in the sanctity of the Supreme Court has recently been broken over controversial political issues, the Supreme Court is no stranger to making unfavorable and borderline unconstitutional rulings in cases brought before the justices at the time. While this is to be expected, with the court switching from conservative to liberal-dominant every so often, some cases seem to concern unalienable human rights that have been denied by the court, as expected of a supposed higher authority that is ultimately, and always will be, a product of its time. In 1927, Carrie Buck learned just how fallible the highest court in the American legal system could be when infiltrated with an ideology eventually perpetuated by the Nazi party during World War I.

Image shows Jewish prisoners in their barracks at the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz. — Jewish prisoners at Auschwitz. Source: Yahoo Images.

The Birth of Eugenics

Surprisingly, and perhaps horrifyingly, eugenics was not the child of oppressive or violent regimes, but the culmination of centuries of scientific research and racism woven together and spread through communities worldwide during the early 20th century. Eugenics was a theory created to exterminate certain people who were not considered mentally fit, genetically clean, or conventionally attractive. The ones who decided the people that fit into these categories usually were ones in positions of power or influence in society: doctors, politicians, and scientists. Favored methods for perpetuating eugenics were forced sterilization, societal segregation, and social exclusion, all of which seem to be methods straight out of the time of slavery where eugenicists drew inspiration and justification for eugenics.

In the modern age, there is a laser-like focus on women’s rights to not have a child, and while this pursuit of maintaining women’s rights is justified, for many vulnerable men and women today the fight for the right to have a child is just as in need of attention. An old theory about the superiority of white, able-bodied people may seem like one to be thrown into the history books and mentioned alongside other conventionally shunned snippets of history in the modern discourse, however, eugenics never truly went away.

Eugenics Still Lingers

Overshadowing lives today as a phantom of the eugenics school of thought, a forgotten Supreme Court case in 1927 named Buck v. Bell led to the codification of sterilizing those deemed “feeble-minded” and genetically inferior by people in positions of power into law. Carrie Buck was a woman who resided in a mental institution and became pregnant after being raped, resulting in staff at the asylum taking acute notice of Buck. Doctors and directors at the asylum were firmly entrenched in the eugenics culture sweeping across America and firmly believed Buck should not be allowed to carry to term. These men took the stand that Buck should be forcibly sterilized to prevent her genes from being passed on, and the Supreme Court was in full agreement, with the justification for the ruling against Buck being that she had a history of mental illness back to one of her grandmothers and being sterilized would protect the goodness of society by keeping “feeble-minded” and “promiscuous” people from reproducing.

Not only is Buck v. Bell an appalling ruling that trod on the constitutional rights of Buck, but it also opened the door for forced sterilization procedures to continue without secrecy and, chillingly, has never been overturned. An old legal case from the 1920s may seem like something to be stored away in textbooks and forgotten, yet, eugenics practices in the form of forced sterilizations are happening today

In California between 2006 and 2010, almost 150 women in two different prisons were given hysterectomies without their consent or legal documentation authorized by the state, with 100 suspected cases of sterilization dating back to 1997 uncovered as well. Furthermore, in 2017 a Tennessee judge offered to reduce prison sentences by 30 days for any inmate who signed up to receive a birth control implant or a vasectomy. The latest case of eugenics rearing its head in American practices was in 2020 when it was revealed that hysterectomies were being performed illegally on women in the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers. These cases are not the only ones concerning the continued use of forced sterilizations to prevent incarcerated or institutionalized individuals from having the right to choose to have a child, with many more subject to the archaic practice who have yet to have their story told. These practices are considered morally reprehensible by the general public but can trace their roots to eugenic procedures approved by the Supreme Court in a case that was challenged but never overturned, and some laws approving the use of sterilizations are still in existence in states such as Virginia.

Image shows an empty cell area of a prison. — Prison. Source: Yahoo Images.

What Can Be Done

Fighting a system that has failed a large portion of the American population, and pushing for a Supreme Court ruling to be overturned when the nation’s political climate seems fit to burst with elections on the horizon can seem incredibly intimidating. These thoughts are not unfounded, but what government bodies forget is that their power comes from their people and constituents. Harmful practices can be challenged with public favor and fervor. Staying informed on what influences modern atrocities like Buck v. Bell and knowing that the majority of the population supports upholding the 14th Amendment protecting civil liberties keeps people motivated to improve the lives of their fellow Americans. Leaving Buck v. Bell as a precedent in U.S. law allows for unprotected groups of individuals who are incarcerated or institutionalized to be at heightened risk of human rights abuse, and while forced sterilization is morally reprehensible, the law does not currently outline sterilization as illegal since the Supreme Court ruling remains standing. Reaching out to local or state politicians is an option for those who want to appeal hurtful laws, and a less intimidating option is to join advocacy groups whose views align with your own.

For more information on another situation involving eugenic practices ruining the lives of nonincarcerated individuals, the case of a fertility doctor who artificially inseminated dozens of his clients with his sperm and remains free from jail can be found here.

The Viral Intersection of Sex Trafficking and #SaveTheChildren

by Sumaira Quraishi

The first images that come to mind when you hear the words “human trafficking” usually include ones from popular media where the victims, typically young and wealthy individuals, are miraculously saved soon after they go missing by well-connected family members in action-packed scenes. Often, the savior is glamorized, and the victim is portrayed as an Icarus-like figure who flew too close to the sun and fell to their demise by being prideful and overexcited. This representation of human trafficking victims is wholly inaccurate in that anyone of any race, gender, ethnicity, or socioeconomic background can end up being trafficked against their will and a quick rescue is challenging to come by.

What is Human Trafficking and Why Should You Care

According to the United States Department of Homeland security, “human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act.” The act of being trafficked is complex, with many illicit systems in place to ensure trafficked people remain shackled, silent, and subservient. Although there are many misconceptions about the process of trafficking a human being such as the thought that people are kidnapped against their will and always take opportunities to escape when presented with one, these beliefs are not based in fact. Victims are sometimes coerced by human traffickers or slave traders through violent actions, manipulative tactics, false pretenses, and fake relationships. These situations leave individuals feeling trapped with their captors and they may not feel like anyone can help them. Unlike the romanticized portrayals of rescues from drug dens and slave auctions found in movies, the struggles of people who have had their liberty forcibly taken away are not so easy to resolve by arresting one key individual who runs an entire illegal enterprise, thereby leaving a collapsing system from the top-down.

The violation of a person’s right to liberty and the trauma they face while in forced labor or sex trafficking environments are not the only dangers of human trafficking. The United States Department of State outlines multiple ways human trafficking harms not just those who are trafficked, but the nation as a whole in the following ways: human trafficking is a national security risk, it interferes with global markets, and it funnels currency into the hands of criminals. The perception of human trafficking being something that is not the general population’s problem until and unless it comes knocking on your doorstep leaves you vulnerable to manipulation, just like the millions who were manipulated into believing a QAnon trafficking conspiracy theory in July of 2020.

Image shows the flag of conspiracy theorist group QAnon flying in the wind in front of a building. — QAnon at Virginia 2nd Amendment Rally (2020 Jan). Source: Anthony Crider, Creative Commons.

Misinformation and Misunderstandings

A distorted view of human trafficking and the lack of knowledge about how people are controlled by human traffickers led to social media outcry from people around the world when #SaveTheChildren began trending in early July of 2022. Internet users on all platforms from Facebook to Reddit to Instagram and Twitter began rallying against Wayfair for allegedly allowing human traffickers to sell kidnapped children disguised as cabinet and pillow listings on the Wayfair website. To start, the entire affair was part of a conspiracy theory perpetuated by the QAnon conspiracy group that was made viral via an internet user who tweeted a screenshot of expensive storage cabinets with non-generic female names like “Alyvia Storage Cabinet” under the pseudonym Amazing Polly in June of 2020. Polly’s tweet was then circulated by QAnon, of which she is a member, and soon gained traction outside of the far-right political group, trending on social media platforms the following month after the initial tweet was posted.

On the surface, rapid dissemination of information about a supposed human trafficking front is a good thing, however, in this case, the trafficking front allegation turned out to be false on all counts, but by the time the investigation was over, misinformation had been flooding the timelines of millions of people for days. People rallied against Wayfair and demanded justice for the children whose names appeared on listings, leading to an upset of many lives overnight since some of the “missing” children had been at home recovering for months, or years, leaving them living in fear as they watched their personal information circulating online. In this case, well-intentioned public outcry overtaxed Polaris, the nonprofit in charge of the National Human Trafficking Hotline that connects victims of human trafficking to support resources in America, and made it difficult for the organization to help real victims in need.

Trending stories that go through the social media cycle and lose coverage once they are deemed unmarketable make it hard to trust what you see online, especially if delivered by what you believe are reliable sources and individuals. Knowing what to believe and when to be skeptical is essential to protect yourself from having the wool pulled over your eyes, making you lose sight of any hidden agendas that may be pushed through viral stories. In actuality, the children in the Wayfair listings had their names chosen by an algorithm to differentiate industrial products, and a glitch led to surges in the prices of some pillows.

Spotting A Fake Story

While it is disheartening to not have the truth of the Wayfair matter broadcasted as far and wide as misinformation about the case was, leaving many people still believing in a lie, there are almost 25 million victims of human trafficking in the world at any given moment who have been ripped away from any possibility of normal life and may never escape their new, harrowing situation. Traffickers profit from this exploitation of individuals, whether it be sex trafficking, forced labor, or the sale of people to others. Human trafficking may seem like an issue so far out of sight to the everyday person living comfortably in a wealthy country, but the reality is human trafficking could be happening to anyone anywhere in the world. Human traffickers don’t solely target subpopulations shunned by traditional politics, and everyone should remain aware of this danger. The lives of the children whose pictures were circulated around the world during the Wayfair scandal had their lives overturned by well-meaning people who didn’t look closely enough at facts and ended up buying into fiction, taking away dozens of people’s sense of safety and leaving them vulnerable to harm.

Image shows a black-and-white photograph of a press conference with people sitting around a circular table. — Press Conference on Declaration of Human Rights. Source: United Nations Photo, Creative Commons.

It can seem hopeless to think about how you could help a victim of human trafficking who might seem out of reach, but what we can learn from the Wayfair event is to keep in mind that you should always look for facts and not take frenzy-inducing headlines at face value. Remaining questioning until presented with concrete evidence will help limit the spread of misinformation and save resources from being wasted on fake breaking news stories.

If you want more information on how human rights are defined and protected, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was created at a United Nations assembly in 1948 to outline globally recognized rights and is a great starting point on the topic.