Each year on Human Rights Day December 10, we commemorate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the first example of a set of fundamental and indivisible human rights that apply to all people, everywhere.

Unfortunately, 75 years later, human rights violations persist around the world, and violence and conflict remain a reality for millions of people. Suffering and inhumane conditions continue in occupied Palestinian territories, Ukraine, Sudan, Afghanistan, in Indigenous communities in this country, and many regions across the globe.  

Human Rights Day must be a call for action – to continue fighting for dignity and equality for all in the face of conflict, the sharp rise in racism, discrimination and violence, and growing inequalities. 

Canada must call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza 

As the death toll continues to mount in Gaza, PSAC continues to call for an immediate cease-fire and push Canada to take a stronger role in ending the occupation of Palestine. PSAC also donated $50,000 for urgently needed humanitarian aid in Gaza, but a permanent and lasting ceasefire is desperately needed in the face of inhumane violence. 

Canadians want a ceasefire. A petition to the House of Commons received more than a quarter million signatures from Canadians across the country, the most in Parliament’s history. 

The labour movement is rooted in the defence of human rights and solidarity with workers everywhere. Unions and workers hold power, and we need to leverage it to demand the end of armed conflict and suffering of innocent civilians and children around the world. 

PSAC stands firmly against antisemitism and Islamophobia 

Sometimes, the hardest thing we can do is listen to an opinion or idea that we disagree with. To imagine what life is like for someone else isn’t easy; we need time, energy, and intention. 
 
In the face of violence perpetuated against Jewish and Muslim communities around the world and across this country, our collective call to action is to work to practice empathy and listen to views that differ from our own. No one deserves to live in fear.  

If we do not find ways to bridge the gaps in our own understanding, fear and hatred will persist. 

How you can get involved 

• Gaza on the Brink: Ceasefire now! Send a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly by Independent Jewish Voices to push for a ceasefire.  
• Join the Ceasefire Now pan-Canadian Day of Action on December 17. 
• Read and share the call from Palestinian workers to workers everywhere.  
• Join Labour 4 Palestine, a network of labour activists working to deepen solidarity with Palestinian workers (in English only). 
• Help uncover the truth of Le Estcwicwéy̓. Call on the federal government to step up the search of former residential school sites. 
• Learn how to support and advocate for workers with disabilities.  
• Build skills to support safe communities and workplaces for non-binary and trans people. 
• Learn more about the PSAC Anti-Racism Action Plan and our work to dismantle the legacies of white supremacy, slavery, and unchecked racism in our workplaces and in our union.