UN Human Rights Commissioner urges countries to confront systemic racism News
995645 / Pixabay
UN Human Rights Commissioner urges countries to confront systemic racism

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet called on countries to confront the legacies of slavery and colonialism on Wednesday.

In a statement following an urgent meeting of the UN Council on Human Rights, Bachelet called on countries to extend reforms beyond law enforcement and encompass every aspect of society. The statement singled out the US, which has made some US allies uncomfortable.

However, protests in the U.S. have sparked the current global conversation over systemic racism, which may have caused Bachelet to single out the US. Further, African countries have urged the council to have Bachelet and UN human rights experts investigate police brutality and systemic racism in the US. Since President Trump withdrew the US from the council, it is uncertain whether such investigations would even be possible.

In her statement, Bachelet stated that countries need to make formal apologies and reparations, among other things, to make amends for centuries of violence and discrimination.

THIS DAY @ LAW

US signed peace treaty with Germany ending World War I

On August 25, 1921, the United States, which never ratified the Versailles Treaty ending World War I, finally signed its own peace treaties with Germany, Austria and Hungary.

Former East Germany leader convicted of manslaughter for Berlin Wall policy

On August 25, 1997, Egon Krenz, the former of East Germany was convicted of manslaughter for promulgating a policy of shooting any East Germans who attempted to cross the Berlin Wall. Krenz was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison, of which he served four before being released into retirement from political life.