1. Youth Advocate Program International
The United Nations
Convention
on the
Rights of the Child
Youth Advocate Program International
4000 Albermarle St. NW, Suite 401
Washington DC, 10016, USA

2. Convention on the Rights of the Child
What do you know?
What is a human right?
Who is considered a child?
What rights do you think you should have as a child?
Do children all over the world have their rights protected?
Have your rights ever been violated? How did you feel?
Who makes international laws? Who enforces them?
Have you ever heard of the CRC?
Source: RUGMARK Foundation

3. Convention on the Rights of the Child
Basic Facts
Children’s rights are violated throughout the world every day…
1 in every 6 children around the world are engaged in child labor.
An estimated 2 million children worldwide exploited through prostitution or pornography each year.
300,000 children around the world are actively participating in more than 19 armed conflicts.
Source: UNICEF -
Source: ECPAT. “Testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs.” March 7, (April 1, 2004).
Source: Child Soldiers Global Report

4. Convention on the Rights of the Child
Basic Facts
An estimated 25 million children and adolescents are currently uprooted from their homes; they make up nearly half of the refugee population worldwide.
There are approximately 150 million street children worldwide between the ages of 3 and 18. About 40% of these children are homeless, which is an unprecedented number in history.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child
recognizes each one of these practices as a violation of human rights, and obliges each government to work toward eliminating these practices within their own nation and throughout the world.
Source:

5. Convention on the Rights of the Child
Why Do We Have International Laws?
To establish and support the international system.
To provide legal rules to resolve multi-national disputes.
To help maintain peace internationally.

6. Convention on the Rights of the Child
What is a Convention?
A convention is a specific type of international law. It is an agreement or compact, especially among nations, usually created within an international organization such as the United Nations.
Countries must..
Sign
Ratify
Monitor and Enforce the treaty

7. Convention on the Rights of the Child
What is the Convention on the Rights of the Child?
The CRC is a treaty that lays out the rights of children and the standards to which all governments must aspire in order to promote these rights.

8. Convention on the Rights of the Child
Basics of the CRC
The best interests of the child are always the primary consideration.
A child should be protected against all forms of discrimination and punishment.
A child has the right to survival and development.
A child should be protected from abuse and neglect.
A child has the right to education, housing, healthcare, and all forms of mental and physical well-being.

9. Convention on the Rights of the Child
What are your rights?
Name and Nationality
Freedom of Expression
Freedom of Association
Education
Leisure, Recreation, and Cultural Activities

10. Convention on the Rights of the Child
Additional Protections Under the CRC
Child Labor
Drug Abuse
Sexual Exploitation
Sale, Trafficking and Abduction
Torture and Deprivation of Liberty
Armed Conflicts

11. Convention on the Rights of the Child
Enforcing the CRC
1. Countries sign the CRC.
2. Countries ratify the CRC.
3. Countries rights widely known.
4. Committee on the Rights of the Child.
5. Committee reviews reports submitted by States Parties two years after ratification, and every 5 years thereafter.
6. States Parties make rights widely known.
7. Committee proposes special studies etc. to be undertaken in the countries.
8. All countries help each other implement the Convention.

12. Convention on the Rights of the Child
The CRC and the USA
Why hasn’t the United States ratified the CRC?
The US is not in compliance with the treaty.
Fear of infringement on states’ rights.
Fear of interference in parental child rearing.

13. Convention on the Rights of the Child
The CRC and the USA
What if the USA ratified the CRC?
Greater priority of children’s rights in the United States and the world
Quality education and healthcare guaranteed
Influence the children’s rights in other countries
What has happened?
In 1995 Madeline Albright signed the CRC on behalf of President Clinton
We still need to approve the CRC State Department and Senate approval, and a presidential signature

14. Convention on the Rights of the Child
Recap and Discussion
What rights does the CRC provide children?
How important do you think it is for the government to protect specifically the rights of its children?
What have you learned about your own rights?
Are there any rights that you think should be added to the CRC?
If so many countries have signed the CRC, why are children’s rights still being violated?
If you were in the United Nations, what would be your most important goal for children’s rights?

15. Convention on the Rights of the Child
What Can You Do?
Educate yourself about the CRC.
Contact local, state, and national politicians
Write letters asking them to ratify the CRC.
Talk to your parents about the CRC.
Educate the adults in your life!
Advocate for awareness of the CRC.
Begin a social awareness/ human
rights club.

16. Convention on the Rights of the Child
For More Information
Full Text of the CRC
Campaign for the US Ratification of the CRC
UNICEF
UN High Commission on Human Rights
Amnesty International
Youth Advocate Program International