Christians prepare for fourth Global White Band Day

-10/10/06

Churches and Christian ai


Christians prepare for fourth Global White Band Day

-10/10/06

Churches and Christian aid agencies amongst others are gearing up for next weeks ‘World Poverty Day’ – the culmination of a Global Month of Action.

The month has seen the reintroduction of the symbol of the White Band, used in last year’s MakePovertyHistory campaign.

In the UK, eight million people wore a white band, more than half a million people sent a white band email to Tony Blair, and around the country local groups and activists wrapped buildings in giant white bands or formed human white bands.

The new Global Month of Action has seen millions of people in over a hundred countries unite again under the banner of the white band, standing up against poverty and renewing the calls for trade justice, debt cancellation and more and better aid.

The Month culminates on 17 October, with the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, in a Global White Band Day.

The day has been chosen for a special reason. Thirty-nine years after the International Declaration of Human Rights was signed at the Trocadero Plaza in Paris, 100,000 people from all backgrounds came together on 17 October 1987 to affirm that extreme poverty was one of the worst violations of these rights. They were responding to a call by Joseph Wresinski, a man who had himself experienced extreme poverty, and who realised that one of the harshest impacts of poverty was the humiliation it inflicted. This humiliation renders people invisible and without voice. His experience showed him that in order to eradicate poverty, people from all backgrounds must come together to fight against it.

Joseph Wresinski, founder of International Movement ATD said: “wherever human beings are condemned to live in extreme poverty, human rights are violated. To come together to ensure that these rights be respected is our solemn duty.” These words were enshrined in a stone laid to commemorate the victims of extreme poverty, and almost twenty years later still serve as a reminder to us all of our common responsibility.

17 October came to be known as the ëWorld Day to Overcome Extreme Povertyí, and has since become a rallying point for many. It remains, say campaigners, an all too rare opportunity for people living in poverty to speak up for themselves and for others. A special place for them is reserved during the day and their testimonies are a chance for others to hear of their daily efforts in the fight for a better future for themselves and their families.

In 1992, the UN General Assembly declared 17 October the ëInternational Day for the Eradication of Povertyí and the first official UN commemoration was organised in 1993. The following year, a replica of the original Paris stone was laid in the UN Gardens in New York – a gift by the French Government on behalf of those living in poverty. Since then, the stone has remained the focal point for the UNís commemoration of the Day. Each year, the UN Mission staff and NGOs organise the event, sharing a commitment to giving priority to the most excluded. This commitment enables people living in poverty to speak of their experiences, their hopes, and their efforts to fight against poverty – a message seldom heard by those who make decisions at the highest level.

The International Day is commemorated around the world in different ways. Countries as diverse as Rwanda, Peru and the UK celebrate the day in a way that is relevant and unique to their different cultures. The way of marking the day is rooted in the desires and needs of the community.

In a 2005 UN review of the impact of 17 October, one civil society respondent said: “People living in poverty are burdened by society’s vision of them as failures. The day reinstates them in a positive light, with pride and dignity, and creates profound changes in the image they have of themselves”.


Christians prepare for fourth Global White Band Day

-10/10/06

Churches and Christian aid agencies amongst others are gearing up for next weeks ‘World Poverty Day’ – the culmination of a Global Month of Action.

The month has seen the reintroduction of the symbol of the White Band, used in last year’s MakePovertyHistory campaign.

In the UK, eight million people wore a white band, more than half a million people sent a white band email to Tony Blair, and around the country local groups and activists wrapped buildings in giant white bands or formed human white bands.

The new Global Month of Action has seen millions of people in over a hundred countries unite again under the banner of the white band, standing up against poverty and renewing the calls for trade justice, debt cancellation and more and better aid.

The Month culminates on 17 October, with the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, in a Global White Band Day.

The day has been chosen for a special reason. Thirty-nine years after the International Declaration of Human Rights was signed at the Trocadero Plaza in Paris, 100,000 people from all backgrounds came together on 17 October 1987 to affirm that extreme poverty was one of the worst violations of these rights. They were responding to a call by Joseph Wresinski, a man who had himself experienced extreme poverty, and who realised that one of the harshest impacts of poverty was the humiliation it inflicted. This humiliation renders people invisible and without voice. His experience showed him that in order to eradicate poverty, people from all backgrounds must come together to fight against it.

Joseph Wresinski, founder of International Movement ATD said: “wherever human beings are condemned to live in extreme poverty, human rights are violated. To come together to ensure that these rights be respected is our solemn duty.” These words were enshrined in a stone laid to commemorate the victims of extreme poverty, and almost twenty years later still serve as a reminder to us all of our common responsibility.

17 October came to be known as the ëWorld Day to Overcome Extreme Povertyí, and has since become a rallying point for many. It remains, say campaigners, an all too rare opportunity for people living in poverty to speak up for themselves and for others. A special place for them is reserved during the day and their testimonies are a chance for others to hear of their daily efforts in the fight for a better future for themselves and their families.

In 1992, the UN General Assembly declared 17 October the ëInternational Day for the Eradication of Povertyí and the first official UN commemoration was organised in 1993. The following year, a replica of the original Paris stone was laid in the UN Gardens in New York – a gift by the French Government on behalf of those living in poverty. Since then, the stone has remained the focal point for the UNís commemoration of the Day. Each year, the UN Mission staff and NGOs organise the event, sharing a commitment to giving priority to the most excluded. This commitment enables people living in poverty to speak of their experiences, their hopes, and their efforts to fight against poverty – a message seldom heard by those who make decisions at the highest level.

The International Day is commemorated around the world in different ways. Countries as diverse as Rwanda, Peru and the UK celebrate the day in a way that is relevant and unique to their different cultures. The way of marking the day is rooted in the desires and needs of the community.

In a 2005 UN review of the impact of 17 October, one civil society respondent said: “People living in poverty are burdened by society’s vision of them as failures. The day reinstates them in a positive light, with pride and dignity, and creates profound changes in the image they have of themselves”.