Annual High-level Mainstreaming Panel
Delegation of the United States of America
Human Rights Council – 52nd Session
Statement by Ambassador Michèle Taylor
Thank you, Mr. High Commissioner.
This year we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 30th anniversary of the Vienna Declaration and Program of Action. it remains as important as ever to ensure we meaningfully involve youth in all their diversity in decision-making across the UN.
As the 2022 Progress Report by Youth2030 noted, youth face profound challenges: global conflicts, climate change, persistent inequalities, limited access to quality education, unemployment, and public health crises like HIV/AIDS and Covid-19.
Today’s youth recognize the urgency of these issues to the next generations, raise their voices, and call on the world to do more.
Young people are pressing for more collective action to address climate change. It is youth who challenge us to commit to rooting out systemic racism in our communities. And it is youth whose activism and courage are fighting to bring us closer to equality for transgender and gender non-conforming people in the United States and globally.
While young people are at the forefront of change, we have sadly seen limitations on their freedoms of expression, of movement, of peaceful assembly, and of association in many countries around the world.
The world’s youth are the future, and the future for all of us relies on their inclusion, empowerment, and leadership.
How can we better ensure the meaningful participation of marginalized youth populations in UN decision making, including LGBTQI+ youth, youth with disabilities, young women and girl in all their diversity, and young migrants and refugees?
I thank you.