Our President and Secretary of State announced they have invited the United Nations Council of Human Rights to investigate the status of racism, the racial landscape of our country. [Imagine the drums, the ruffles and flourishes, the lightning in the background, and the sanctimonious smiles.]
My first reaction was, “Hmmm, seems a little odd. Who are these folks? Who serves on the UN Human Rights Council? What can they contribute?”
Who is the UN Human Rights Council, Big Red Car?
In accordance with paragraph 7 of the UN General Assembly Resolution 60/251, the Human Rights Council shall consist of 47 Member States — elected by secret ballot.
The distribution of members shall be as follows:
1. African States — 13
2. Asian – Pacific States — 13
3. East European States — 6
4. Latin American/Caribbean States — 8
5. Western European and Other States — 7
Each elected state serves for three years and can only serve for two consecutive terms.
Who are the current members, Big Red Car?
As of October 2020, the current members were:
African States — Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Nigeria, Senegal, Somalia, and Togo
Asia – Pacific States — Afghanistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Fiji, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, and Qatar
Eastern European States — Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Ukraine
Latin American, Caribbean States — Argentina, Bahamas, Chile, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay
Western European and Other States — Australia, Austria, Denmark, Italy, and Spain
As of the same time period, the following states are up for consideration for election:
African States — 4 vacancies — Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon, Malawi, and Senegal (all will be elected since there are only 4 vacancies)
Asia – Pacific States — 4 vacancies — China, Nepal, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Uzbekistan (all but one will be elected)
The exemplary Chinese experience with Taiwan, the Uyghers, and Hong Kong will inform them to be able to critique the state of the racial landscape in the United States, right?
Eastern European States — 2 vacant states — Russian Federation, Ukraine (both will be elected)
Latin American, Caribbean States — 3 vacancies — Bolivia, Cuba, and Mexico (all will be elected)
Western European and Other States — France, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Who is missing, you ask? The United States of America is missing.
Bottom line it, Big Red Car?
Why would anybody care what China, Russia, Cuba, and Gabon think about the status of the American racial landscape? Why?
This is one of those sugar high, feel good, virtue signaling, dopey moves that governments make — liberal governments, in particular — which will accomplish nothing. Absolutely nothing. It is a waste of time, effort, and money.
I don’t care one iota what this list of countries think about the American racial landscape. Do you?
This is our problem and we can solve it ourselves.
President Biden and Secretary of State Blinken, please pay attention to American interests. Thank you.
But, hey, what the Hell do I really know anyway? I’m just a Big Red Car.
HELP RECEIVED. (If you went to VMI, you know what this means. Thanks, Dick Hamlet, VMI ’70.)
