The Universal Declaration of Human Rights has been around since 1948 and stands for the basic human rights everyone should have. It is an important part of the world's history because, without it, a normal day on earth in 2018 might have looked much different. The UDHR consists of 30 articles, each with its own direct statement. Articles 14 and 3 state the ‘right to life, liberty and security of person,’ (article 3) as well as the right to ‘seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution, This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations’ (article 14). As part of the UDHR these statements are not supposed to be violated, but when issues arise, are these articles ignored and dishonored?

For years people have gone through horror to come to the US and live the ‘American Dream.’ Specifically the process through the US/Mexico border. Immigrants try to come into the US, border patrol attacks them, separates them from whomever they may or may not have been with, and so on. The mass groups of immigrants coming into the US from Mexico looking for work have been handled brutally and in violation of the UDHR. Children stripped away from their families, put into vile holding cells, all because they wanted a chance at a new life. Death from unnecessary steps to ensure the border stays secure and private has repeated too often.  The border has been a main topic in news very frequently in recent years. When Donald Trump was elected president of the US, he introduced a new way of stopping people from entering the US through the southern US border: a wall. After being president for nearly two years, he has not yet started to build the wall. However, he has taken other strides to “improve” the security along the border. For example, he has enforced a violent security system that often goes to extreme measures to make sure no one enters the US. Some think this system to be incriminating and unnecessary.

This is such an important thing to remember in history because it shows an example of what not to do in our future. Humans in the US have stated for years “All men are created equal,” does that not mean that if one person should be able to step foot on the soil of another country others should be able to as well? History has been repeated more than once in ways it never should’ve, and we need to change that. Separating families is not okay; death due to trying to enter another country is not okay; taking away a person's basic human rights is not okay; none of it should happen again.

I think that these rights I have talked about have been offered to Americans frequently while this issue has been going on. We’ve been told that race doesn’t change anything, that where you’re from doesn’t change anything, that what you believe in doesn’t change anything, but clearly the people who are supposed to abide by that the most are the ones who don’t seem to listen. It’s not fair, not to our country, and not to the people who only want to live an “American Dream.” Think of most people in America, in Chicago, middle-class up who are able to come home to a safe place at night, who have the option of what they’re going to do the next day, then think about the people who don’t, the ones that risk their lives to migrate to a safer place for them and their family.

The UDHR has been violated a countless amount of times. It is currently being violated right now at the US/Mexico border. There is a line, a point at where its gone to far and too many people have stepped over it, including our president. Some say the issue is getting better. Bills have been passed so that families can no longer be separated, but is that enough? Taking into consideration the UDHR, ask yourself, is what the US is doing to stop migrants from entering the country right? If you ever get the chance, don’t think twice to help someone, for it might be small but it can change lives, a chain reaction.