Dec. 10 Recognized As Human Rights Day In Montgomery County

ROCKVILLE, MD — Dec. 10 has been declared International Human Rights Day in Montgomery County.

Leaders in Maryland's most populous jurisdiction made the announcement during a virtual council session on Tuesday.

"Montgomery County stands united with many others across the globe to affirm that every person is entitled to basic human rights," said County Executive Marc Elrich.

Human Rights Day is observed annually across the globe on Dec. 10. It celebrates the day in 1948 that the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights — which set out, "for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected," according to the UN.

Each year's Human Rights Day has a theme. This year's theme, "Recover Better - Stand Up for Human Rights," relates to the COVID-19 pandemic and reaffirms the importance of human rights in rebuilding a better and healthier tomorrow.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted long-standing and wide-ranging inequities in our own community and across the country," Council President Tom Hucker said. "On International Human Rights Day, we recommit ourselves to protecting and promoting the rights of vulnerable populations, particularly those who have been hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic."

Elrich and members of the Montgomery County Council are urging residents to do what they can to help out their neighbors and to tackle systematic discrimination and inequalities in their communities.

"We always have to remember this is not just an opportunity to look abroad and point out the things we see in the headlines and in the news — but to look within ourselves and within our communities and at things that ought to make us uncomfortable and ought to charge us with the energy to change those things that we have the ability to change," Elrich said.

Click here to learn more about International Human Rights Day.