“At the heart of a human rights view of society stands the concept of the person, a spiritual being set apart from the rest of creation with a capacity for thought, generosity, friendship and love...Without rights, human dignity is vulnerable to attack from both the organized powers of the state and the disorganized chaos into which human relationships deteriorate when the values of personhood no longer command our respect.”
Our Quote of the Week demonstrates the importance that Sargent Shriver placed on human rights. His powerful message about the sanctity of every human being is timely in a moment where basic protections and respect for people, particularly those considered to be different or “other,” are eroding day by day. Too often, those who are considered our opponents or those who are seen as weak or undesirable are being shunned or outright attacked.
In 1974, Sargent Shriver was invited to speak at a conference about human rights at the University of Notre Dame. He gave two powerful lectures, which you can see here and here. Our Quote of the Week comes from the first of these two lectures. In his speech, he weaves together human rights and other crucial concepts: civil rights, justice, and spirituality. He emphasizes the fact that respect for human rights must be universal and must be preserved both within our public institutions and in our private lives.
Whether in our homes, our communities, our workplaces, or in the halls of our government, let’s set the expectation that we must preserve the dignity and rights of every human being above all else -- and let us act in ways that support this expectation.
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