The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

Remarks of Wade Henderson at the UN World Conference Against Racism

Speech by Wade Henderson at the UN World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa on September 5, 2001.

Good morning, Ladies and Gentleman. I'm Wade Henderson, Executive Director of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights. The Leadership Conference is the United States oldest, largest and most diverse coalition of civil and human rights organizations, with over 180 national organizations working together to overcome the barriers of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.

Today, I am joined by several representatives of Leadership Conference member organizations who will share with me the responsibility of expressing the views of our coalition about a number of recent events which have taken place here in Durban. We will address the recent decisions of the United States government as well as the critical issues which have been lost in the increasingly heated rhetoric surrounding the WCAR; and, finally, the problems associated with the language and adoption of the NGO Declaration and Programme of Action.

Joining me on the dais today are Karen Narasaki, Executive Director of the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium; JoAnn Chase, a consultant with the Native American Rights Fund and Executive Director of the National Network of Grantmakers; Dr. William Spriggs, Director of the Office of Equality and Opportunity of the National Urban League; Michael Posner, Executive Director of the Lawyers' Committee for Human Rights and, finally, Marisa Demeo, Washington Regional Council for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

I would also like to take a moment to acknowledge some of our distinguished colleagues who are with us today for this important event. We are joined by Reva Price from the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, and Dr. Yvonne Scruggs Leftwich of the Black Leadership Forum.

Let me say at the outset that the Leadership Conference strongly believes that the World Conference presents an important and unique opportunity to enhance the global dialogue and understanding about the best ways to eliminate racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance which confront nations around the world. This discrimination continues to blight the human condition and remains an obstacle in our struggle for justice, equal opportunity, and meaningful human development.

Second, it is terribly disappointing -- but not surprising -- that the Bush Administration has made several decisions in recent days that have prevented our government from substantively engaging in the World Conference Against Racism. These decisions have limited the United States' ability to substantially impact the dialogue on global racism taking place here in Durban as well as to influence, in any profound manner, the drafting of the World Conference Declaration and Programme of Action -- documents which will prove to be significant human rights instruments. These cynical and short-sighted decisions represent a tragic abdication of our government's international responsibilities and, in the end, do not well serve the United States' national interests.

Additionally, we believe that vigorous and open debate best serves democratic principles; but we regret that serious and legitimate human rights issues in the Middle East have been obscured by fervent rhetorical attacks that generate more heat than light. We believe that an important principle under U.N. rules is that no single state should be singled out for special criticism while, at the same time, no state should be exempt from the examination of human rights taking place within their own borders. Unfortunately, polarized debate and disruptive actions which have characterized the events of the last week have distracted from vital discussions on numerous other important World Conference issues that are on the table here in Durban.

Finally, the Leadership Conference believes that while much of the language in the NGO Declaration and Programme of Action represents a significant advance for human rights, some of the language is very problematic and the process by which it was adopted was tremendously flawed. Procedural irregularities that went unresolved in the NGO proceedings, coupled with an unfair process, produced a result that we can neither accept nor condone. In fact, the process was so compromised that Barbara Arnwine, Executive Director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a member of our delegation, and the representative of the Americas on the NGO Drafting Committee -- chose to resign from her drafting duties and made a public record of her objection to the document in a letter which has been distributed today.

My colleagues are here with me to expand on these issues and to share with us their views on the weeks' recent events.