HUMAN RIGHTS MONTH ENSURES FAIR TREATMENT FOR THOSE IN RECOVERY

When you are looking for treatment for substance misuse, you may experience different emotions. You may feel judged and ashamed for your behavior and your ways of thinking. It may be overwhelming when you are seeking treatment and you must have that discussion with your family and friends about this daunting subject on recovery. With so much going on, you may even forget that you have basic human rights. December marks the start of Universal Human Rights Month. Every human, no matter what shape or size or their appearance or identity, has basic human rights that are granted to them. These are rights that you have- not privileges. Human Rights Month serves as a reminder  and reassurance that ALL humans have rights that are granted to them, and these rights do not have to be earned. 

Political leader and philanthropist Nelson Mandela once stated, “To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.” This empowering quote conveys how no human should be subject to cruel and inhumane behavior on the basis of their ideologies and thoughts. An environment with a negative stigma of substance misuse can hurt the self-esteem of a person going through recovery or for someone who misuse substances which can lead to and create a negative environment which will affect the recovery and the basic rights that humans deserve. 

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a watershed moment in human rights history. The Declaration was drafted by representatives from all regions of the world with various legal and cultural backgrounds, and it was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (General Assembly resolution 217 A) as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and nations. 

For the first time, it lays forth universally recognized fundamental human rights, and it has been translated into over 500 languages. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is widely credited for inspiring and paving the way for the approval of more than seventy human rights treaties, which are now in force on a permanent basis at global and regional levels (all containing references to it in their preambles). There are 30 articles that the UDHR contains. Below are some of the articles that pertain to rights humans have on the road to recovery:

Article 1: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 5: No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 19 Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Encoding the Articles of the Declaration of Human Rights

Article 1 of the UDHR emphasizes the golden rule, treat others the way you like to be treated. It is essential to understand that there must be mutual respect. It would not be ethical for someone to poke fun at a group or individual for substance misuse as we all do not know what challenges these people had to face when they started to misuse substances. It means to not judge a book by its cover because everyone has their own story to share.Therefore, it is essential to treat others the way you like to be treated. When examining article 5 it means nobody should indulge in inhumane punishments for the actions someone has committed. These inhumane punishments in the end do not teach the person from right or wrong and will only make matters worse. Article 19 reminds us that humans have the ability to make their own decisions on the basis of opinion and expression. If someone does not want to seek treatment, it is their right they have for freedom of opinion of thought and expression. There are ways to ensure those who do not want to seek treatment that they remain safe and healthy through harm reduction approaches. 

With the UDHR, showing human dignity is at the center of the core. Human Rights Day provides a perfect message to always have care for other humans which includes those who use substances. Making sure that individuals are free from discrimiation and making sure human lives are protected is the basis of what human dignity is. Reducing the stigma related to substance use will help individuals who are struggling to be treated with the dignity they deserve. When a human is negatively stigmatized for their recovery or for their substance use, bullying occurs and is a mental health issue that can lead to many other negative behaviors and will make matters worse.