Thursday, June 21, 2018
17:00-18:00
Room XXV
Palais des Nations
Geneva, Switzerland
Despite being one of the world’s wealthiest countries, the United States has 40 million people living in poverty, including 13.3 million children. Recent policies advanced since the election of President Donald Trump appear to be deliberately designed to remove basic protections from the poorest people and exacerbate existing inequality.
This side event will discuss the findings and conclusions of the recent report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, Philip Alston, following his official visit to the United States in December 2017. Speakers will discuss the criminalization of poverty; the ways in which persistent racial, ethnic and gender discrimination contribute to poverty; the lack of basic social protections for the poorest Americans, including American Indians living on reservations and Puerto Ricans; and environmental pollution in poor rural communities.
Panelists:
- Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights
- Natasha Lycia Ora Bannan, Associate Counsel, LatinoJustice PRLDF
- Catherine Flowers, Rural Development Manager, Equal Justice Initiative; Founder and Executive Director, Alabama Center for Rural Enterprise
- Jandi Craig, White Mountain Apache, Continental Network of Indigenous Women of the Americas
- Rosa Martha Zarate, Alianza de ex Braceros del Norte (1942-1964)
- Chrisfino Kenyatta Leal, Business Development Strategist, The Last Mile
Moderator: Jennifer Turner, Principal Human Rights Researcher, ACLU Human Rights Program
This event is co-sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union and the U.S. Human Rights Network. A livestream of the event will be available at https://www.facebook.com/ushrnetwork/.