January 10, 2026

We are staring down a fire hose of evil. The very moral fabric of our nation is being torn apart. And we struggle to hold fast to the values of who we are and where we stand. Renee Nicole Good is the latest victim of this horror. It seems clear she won’t be the last.

Throughout history people have had the courage and integrity to align themselves with justice and human rights. The courage and integrity to create codes of conscience. The Brehon Laws guided the Irish people with a foundation of knowing that everyone has honor. This nation’s founding documents declare life and liberty to be among our inalienable rights. And I’m reminded of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that was created and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. A reminder of what’s possible. A light of hope in these dark times.

I invite you to spend time with this document and this declaration. That it will be a light of hope for all of us. Although the document includes thirty articles, I will spend time with only some of them. Strong and powerful language especially relevant to this time. Strong and powerful language crafted and adopted by forty-eight member nations. While eight other nations abstained, none voted against it.

Let’s begin with the preamble.

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and
inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation
of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted
in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind,
and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy
freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear
and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration
of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse,
as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression,
that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development
of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter
reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity
and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women
and have determined to promote social progress and
better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve,
in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of
universal respect for and observance of human rights
and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms
is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, therefore,
The General Assembly,
Proclaims this Universal Declaration of Human Rights
as a common standard of achievement
for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual
and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind,
shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect
for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures,
national and international, to secure their universal
and effective recognition and observance, both among
the peoples of Member States themselves and among
the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

May we find comfort in these words and the resolve of so many to make this manifest in the world. May we find the courage to stay the course for humanity.

Blessings,
Judith