Fundamental Human Rights

Human Rights are interdependent, intersectional, inalienable rights that are the birthright of all human beings, regardless of geography, nationality or identity. If you were born a human being you have human rights by virtue of your birth. Human rights include economic rights, environmental rights, sexual rights, cultural rights, social rights, political rights, developmental rights and civil rights. One of the most important functions of any government is to ensure that human rights are respected and protected and to address human rights violations whether at the hands of state or non-state actors. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs), like Woodhull Sexual Freedom Alliance, are also critical players in the ongoing struggle to realize the full spectrum of human rights in the United States, just as NGOs in countries around the world.

The United States is a party to several important international human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Convention Against Torture (CAT), and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD). The United States is also a signatory to two foundational human rights declarations: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in the United Nations system and The American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man within the Inter-American human rights system. It is our responsibility as civil society to hold our government accountable to its human rights obligations when it falls short of them, and it is our responsibility as social justice organizations to protect, respect and promote the full spectrum of human rights here at home.

For more information on our work for sexual freedom rights, please see our issue pages:

• Sex Work
• Sexual Speech and Expression
• Sexual Health and Rights
• Integration of Sex and Religion
• Fundamental Human Rights
• LGBT Rights
• Civil Rights
• Reproductive Rights
• Sexuality Education

“If sexual freedom is securely established, other freedoms will invariably follow. A society that values the individual’s freedom of erotic expression will necessarily establish the conditions under which other human rights and civil liberties will be generated, established and protected.”

-Barnaby B. Barratt, excerpted from Why Sexual Freedom is a Fundamental Human Right, An Introduction to Woodhull Sexual Freedom Alliance’s State of Sexual Freedom Report

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