By Priscila Costa Porcidônio and Maria Marques
Talking about human rights is to rescue one's own history of humanity's struggles. They did not fall from the sky, nor did they appear ready in offices. On the contrary, they were forged step by step, in the heat of resistances against violence, extreme inequality, exploitation, and the denial of freedom.
For centuries, entire populations have been marginalized and deprived of dignity due to their origin, skin color, gender, religion, or social class. It took the world to witness indescribable atrocities, reaching their peaks in the conflicts of the 20th century, for the international community to establish, through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), an unnegotiable civilizing pact: all people are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
However, we know that the proclamation of a law does not guarantee, in and of itself, its effectiveness in real life.
In Brazil, this history of struggles takes on even more dramatic contours. We bear the open wounds of over three centuries of enslavement — which structure our socio-economic inequalities to this day — and the marks of censorship and the withdrawal of rights left by the military dictatorship. The Constitution of 1988 represented a democratic breath and a milestone in the guarantee of social rights, but everyday reality continues to show us that the fight is far from over.
Today, we are experiencing a resurgence of violence, racism, religious intolerance, inequalities, and machismo. Indigenous peoples, the Black population, migrants, LGBTQIAPN+ people, people with disabilities, and other historically marginalized groups continue to be targets of rights denial.
Added to this, the spread of hate speech and "fake news" on social media directly threatens the democratic fabric, hindering dialogue and the construction of truth.
So, how to face this so complex a reality?
The response necessarily goes through Human Rights Education (HRE). A truly committed education on this topic does not limit itself to conveying content; it is a tool for social intervention. It teaches how to question injustices, resolve conflicts non-violently, and actively value diversity.
Learning and breathing Human Rights in educational spaces is not just accumulating readings, but going through a deep deconstruction of how we perceive the classroom and society.
We increasingly understand that educational action is, by nature, a political act. Being an educator means embracing the responsibility of not turning a blind eye to vulnerabilities that cross the school's walls and making welcome, active listening, and sensitivity the first steps towards ensuring the dignity of our students.
Driven by this urgent need to educate for shared life, the Brazilian Network for Human Rights Education - Coordination Minas Gerais (ReBEDH-MG) maintains its commitment and acts in this space. Strengthening the study, debate, and pedagogical practices focused on human rights is our path to breaking historical cycles of exclusion that often repeat across generations.
Human rights cannot be treated as mere abstract ideas; they need to take shape in public policies, in schools, at work, and in our daily interactions.
Educating for human rights is, above all, a permanent commitment to transformation. It is to fight for a society where dignity is not a privilege of a few, but a living reality for all.
Priscila Costa PorcidônioShe is a Pedagogy undergraduate student at FaE UEMG and a scholar with a focus on the Publications Group of ReBEDH-MG. Email:[email protected]
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Maria MarquesShe is a doctor in Science, a servant of the Federal Institute of Education of the Triangulo Mineiro (IFTM) and the coordinator of the Publications Group of the Brazilian Network of Human Rights Education (ReBEDH-MG). E-mail:[email protected]
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Read other human rights articles in the Human Rights Education in FocuscolumnThis is a news article, the authors' view does not necessarily represent the newspaper's editorial line.
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This is an opinion piece, the authors' perspective may not necessarily reflect the newspaper's editorial stance.