Racial Discrimination Treaty
And How To Use It in the United States

In 1994 the United States ratified the United Nations human rights treaty, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. The Convention defines racial discrimination broadly as "any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, color, descent, or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life." In part, the Convention requires countries to

• Condemn racial discrimination and to pursue by all appropriate means and without delay a policy to eliminate racial discrimination;
• Condemn all propaganda and organizations which are based on ideas or theories of superiority of one race;
• Guarantee the rights of everyone without distinction as to race, color, or national or ethnic origin, to all civil and political rights and to all economic, social and cultural rights, in particular the right to housing; the right to public health, medical care, social security and social services; and the right to education and training.

Under this treaty the United States has committed itself to preparing accurate and comprehensive reports on racial discrimination in the United States. These reports are to be presented to and reviewed by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination of the United Nations on a periodic basis. Thc first such report was due November 20, 1995. It has not yet been filed. The second U.S. report was due November 20, 1997. It has not yet been filed.

The Committee has established general guidelines for the preparation of the reports. The first part is to provide general background information, specifically

• the status of racial discrimination in the country, including statistics based on ethnicity and national origin
• the policy and legal framework of eliminating racial discrimination in domestic law, and relevant information on the demographic composition of the population.

In the past the Committee has sought information on

• life expectancy, infant mortality, and
• the social and economic standing of minority groups.

In the second part of the report the Committee is particularly interested in

• barriers to the implementation of the substantive provisions of the Convention,
• measures taken to review governmental policies, on both the national and local levels, which may inhibit implementation of the Convention, and
• measures taken to train, encourage and promote an integrationist multiracial society.

Professors, scholars, and non-governmental organizations have an opportunity to make major contributions to the reporting process. Pres. Clinton, on Dec. 10, 1998, directed the new Interagency Working Group to complete the preparation of the official U.S. report. The Working Group says it welcomes information. The Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination will receive the written concerns from non-governmental organizations.

The power of the reporting process and of the dialog with the U.N. Committee is not to be underestimated in the protection and promotion of human rights. The Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial discrimination has said, "The reporting system is the most decisive element in the monitoring process with which the Committee is charged, and it is the principal means by which pressure is brought to bear upon States parties to fulfill the substantive obligation to eliminate racial discrimination in all its forms. The latent nature of racial discrimination, its persistence and its susceptibility to sudden flare ups and accentuation make it imperative that monitoring should be rigorous...." (CERD, March 1984).

The United Nations has been concerned with the increasing racial intolerance, discrimination and hate around the world, and in particular in Europe and the United States. In 1993 a Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance was appointed by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. The Special Rapporteur, Mr. Maurice Glele-Ahanhanzo, made two trips to the United States in 1994 and 1995 and has prepared summary reports on racial discrimination in this country.

The scope of the Special Rapporteur's mission was broad, covering not only civil and political rights, but economic and social rights. His investigations into racial and ethnic intolerance covered African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, Asians, Arabs, and Jews. It is important to note that the Special Rapporteur's sources of information included not only various agencies and departments in the Federal, state and local governments, but non- governmental organizations including the American Civil Liberties Union, Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute, the Carter Center, the Center for Democratic Renewal, the African American Human Rights Foundation, the National Black Police Association, the World Council of Churches "Racism is a Violation of Human Rights" Campaign, The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, and the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

In a preliminary report the Special Rapporteur found that " racism and racial discrimination persist in American Society, even if not as a result of deliberate policy on the part of the United States Government." (E/CN.4/1995/78/Add.l). Further, the Special Rapporteur found "sociological inertia, structural obstacles and individual resistance hindering the emergence of an integrated society based on the equal dignity of the members of the American nation and willing to accept ethnic and cultural pluralism. Vested interest, competing influences and the power struggle between the various political and social components of American Society also provide opportunities for residual racism and racial discrimination to linger on."

The Special Rapporteur presented twelve substantive recommendations to the United States, including the Revitalization of affirmative action programs, the recognition of the "indissoluble link" between civil and political rights and economic, social and cultural rights, equal funding for education, education of the media regarding the propagation of stereotypes, and human rights education in particular for law-enforcement personnel.

The United States is now on notice that the United Nations is concerned about the increasing racial intolerance in this country. Professors, scholars, and non-governmental organizations can use the momentum from the Special Rapporteur's investigations and reports to urge the United States to go beyond acknowledgement of racial discrimination and take more vigorous steps toward its eradication through the use of the United Nations reporting procedures.

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