Every year on February 20, people commemorate the World Day of Social Justice. The main objective of the celebration of the World Day of Social Justice is to raise awareness about social injustice and to bring together diverse communities from all over the world in an effort to eradicate poverty, gender, physical discrimination, illiteracy and religious discrimination. and create a society that is socially integrated.
World Day of Social Justice is marked to promote social justice and break down barriers based on gender, age, colour, ethnicity, religion, culture or disability. Read this article to know everything about it.
World Day of Social Justice 2023: Theme
This year’s theme is “Overcoming Barriers and Unlocking Opportunities for Social Justice”, which focuses on the suggestions made in the Common Agenda to promote international cooperation and restore public confidence in government. As a result, the 2023 World Day of Social Justice offers an opportunity to foster discussion with Member States, youth, social partners, civil society organisations, UN agencies and other stakeholders on the next steps that must be taken to strengthen the social contract that has been shattered by escalating inequality, armed conflicts, and the weakness of the institutions that supposedly protect workers’ rights.
Despite these various challenges, there are numerous opportunities to build a social justice coalition and increase investment in decent jobs, with an emphasis on green, digital and care economies, as well as youth.
World Day of Social Justice: History
The General Assembly declared February 20 as the World Day of Social Justice on November 26, 2007, beginning with the sixty-third session of the General Assembly.
The ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization was unanimously adopted by the International Labor Organization on June 10, 2008. Since the ILO Constitution in 1919, the International Labor Conference has adopted three major declarations of principles and policies.
World Day of Social Justice 2023: Here are some inspirational quotes on social justice and freedom
“Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob, and degrade them, neither person nor property will be safe.” –frederick douglas
Until justice runs like water and justice like an impetuous torrent. – Martin Luther King Jr.
“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there should never be a time when we stop protesting.” – Elie Wiesel
Sometimes the only way to get justice is to take it yourself. – Leigh Bardugo
Justice and power must come together so that what is just is powerful and what is powerful is just. – Blaise Pascual
The only justice is to follow the sincere intuition of the soul, angry or meek. Anger is fair and pity is fair, but judgment is never fair. – DH Lawrence
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”Martin Luther King Jr.
“Justice? – You get justice in the other world. In this one, you have the law.” –William Gaddis
“Social justice cannot be achieved through violence. Violence kills what it purports to create.” –Pope Juan Pablo II
“Until the great mass of people are filled with a sense of responsibility for the welfare of others, social justice can never be achieved.” –Helen Keller
“Courage is worthless if it is not accompanied by justice; however, if all men were just, there would be no need for courage.” – Agesilaus II
“The lack of investment in civil justice is directly related to the increase in criminal disorder. The more people feel that there is injustice, the more it becomes part of their psyche.” –William Joseph
“The social justice challenge is to evoke a sense of community that we need to make our nation a better place, just as we make it a safer place.” –marian wright edelman
A global coalition for social justice
Poverty and inequalities within and between countries are increasing in many parts of the world. The economic and social crises of recent years have been exacerbated by the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters due to the acceleration of climate change, geopolitical tensions and armed conflicts.
Beyond the human tragedies associated with them and their impact on the world of work, these crises have highlighted the linkages and dependencies of economies and societies around the world and have demonstrated the crucial need for concerted action to respond. to them, globally, regionally and nationally. levels
This has occurred in the context of important changes such as, among others, growing disruptions in economies linked to globalization and technology, major demographic transformations, growing migratory flows and prolonged situations of fragility. The world of work has not been spared from these upheavals.
The perceived lack of satisfactory responses to these multiple challenges and changes has led in many countries to growing discontent and mistrust of established institutions and actors in public life.
Faced with this complex situation, the multilateral system has also struggled to adapt to a changing environment and to provide concrete and coordinated responses to many of the world’s most pressing challenges. The growing gap between international commitments and concrete achievements has weakened multilateral action and its credibility, leading to open criticism and disengagement.
More than ever, it is urgent that the multilateral system deliver and contribute to providing solutions to people’s daily problems, and that it do so in a more efficient and coherent way.
This sense of urgency has been shared by many, including the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General who, in his report “Our Common Agenda”, warned against the current growing divide and called for a more inclusive and networked multilateralism, returning to embrace global solidarity and the renewal of the social contract between governments and their peoples and within societies, anchored in a comprehensive approach to human rights.
Social justice makes societies and economies work better and reduces poverty, inequalities and social tensions. It plays an important role in achieving more inclusive and sustainable socio-economic development paths and is key to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda), especially at a time when the achievement of those targets remain far away.
It is more important than ever that the multilateral system come together around a set of shared values and objectives and identify the means to respond to the aspirations and needs of the peoples. Therefore, social justice has to become one of the cornerstones of the renewed multilateralism that is required; a meeting goal but also an important instrument for a more efficient multilateral system, ensuring coherence in a variety of policy areas.
