CHILD RIGHTS & YOU!!!
I am a CHILD…
And so am I…..
And so is anyone below the age of 18
You could be…
*A girl or a boy * A small baby or a
teen
* Rich or poor * A Hindu or a Muslim,
etc
* Born to a businessman or a famous
actor
* Black skinned, or white or brown all
over
* Needing special things - like a
wheelchair, or hearing aids
If you are below 18
* In any situation that’s
you are a child,
completely different from
everyone else
as important as any
IT DOESN’T MATTER!
other child
Let’s see if you can spot all the
children in these pictures….
Did you know that
children have rights?
YES, CHILDREN HAVE RIGHTS!!
Many groups of children and adults from all over
the world discussed what children’s concerns are.
Then the United Nations came up with a list of
rights
For all children
all over the world
in 1989.
Can you tell which of these are
RIGHTs and which are not?
In each pair choose the one that is a RIGHTFood OR Ice Creams
To be protected from ever getting a cold OR to be
protected from ever getting kidnapped
Personal computer OR Education
To share my opinions
OR to do whatever I want
How did you know?
Because as a child, you instinctively know that RIGHTS are…
•
Universal- everyone has the same rights- all need food,
education etc
•
Intrinsic- rights belong to you, they are inside of you, no
matter what circumstances you are in- whether you live in an
apartment or a house or in a hut, you have the same rights.
•
Essential- no one can/should have to do without rights. Our
rights help us live full lives.
• Interrelated to each other- e.g. right to food is related to
education. The more educated you are the better your
chances of earning enough to always have plenty of food.
•
Linked to responsibilities- adults are responsible for
giving children our rights- our parents, neighbors,
relatives, society, government, etc
So, what are your rights?
SURVIVAL
PROTECTION
DEVELOPMENT
PARTICIPATION
All children have the right to
SURVIVAL
• To live
• Get good health care
• Get good food regularly
• Have a name- your own
identity
• To have a nationality belong to a country
that will care for you
All children have the right to
PROTECTION
• To have a family that will protect you
• To be safe from every harm- physical
or mental
• To have your own privacy
All children have the right to
DEVELOPMENT
• to education
• rest and leisure
• recreation
All children have the right to
PARTICIPATION
• To express yourself freely
• To choose your own set of beliefs
• To know about things related to your life
• To be a member of associations
• To enjoy your own culture
Here
girl
Hereisisa astory
storyabout
that a
about
her
awho
girldoes
who not
doesget
notallget
her
rights…
rights…
Hi! I am Asma from Mumbai,
India, and this is my story…
• I am 8 years old
• I live with my parents, 2 sisters, 1 brother and my
grandma- that’s 7 of us!
• We live altogether in a small hut next to the
railway station
• My father sweeps the streets and my
mother cleans people’s homes.
I have never been to school
This is my story…
• There’s a court near my home- and everyday I see
the lady lawyers looking all busy and important
• They must have gone to school for sure! Even to
college I think!
Sometimes I dream I’ll be a lawyer too and
make sure no one comes to destroy my home.
This is my story…
• My parents work hard to earn a living, but they
still can’t afford to send us all to school even
though they really want to send me to school
• So I stay home to take care of the house and
my baby sisters.
• My younger brother goes to school…but he
might have to stop soon.
• My uncle has got him a job at a tea stall..
My brother doesn’t want to leave school.
This is my story…
I have big dreams for myself and my
family and i know that many people all
over the world want to help us get
our rights.
Is Asma’s story similar to yours?
Even though Asma’s life is very different, you
still have a lot in common with her…
YOU are all children
YOU were all born equal
YOU have rights – as children
CAN YOU NOW TELL ME WHAT YOUR RIGHTS
ARE?
In India there are many children who do
not get their rights
Asma is just one example…
• Half of India’s children do not get sufficient
food to eat.
• Half of India’s children who are old enough to,
do not go to school.
• There are millions of children in India who
are forced to go to work instead of school.
So what does CRY America do
to help these children…?
Child Rights And You,
America Inc.
Building a Community of
people who care about the
Rights of children
What Does CRY America Do ?
Child Rights
Organizations
Children who are
In Need- trained to
like Asma help children
get what is
rightfully
theirs
&
YOU
You- who share your
concern, time, money
and skills
The CRY America Approach
Getting people together to help
children like Asma to get all their
rights - today and tomorrow, for as
long as it takes.
CRY America achievements…thus far
• Raised $ 540,000 in 2004, its first year as a
501c3 organization
• Impacted the lives of 35,322 children in India
last year
• Thanks to the active support of over 4000
donors and 500 volunteers across the US
Who makes our work possible?
People around the world including children like you…
•
15 year old Sohum Misra developed www.mumbaikids.org as a school
project. The website provides information about Mumbai-based
NGOs that are working for underprivileged children (CRY is one of
them).
•
The kids of a school in Santacruz, Mumbai called the CRY Cubs,
spread awareness on the 4 rights of a child through a skit and put
up a stall displaying information on the rights at their annual school
exhibition. Some of them wore self made badges saying “life is
short, childhood is shorter, act now!” and stationed themselves at
other stalls or mingled with the crowd
• To mark Anti-Child Labor Day (30th April) the children of
Mahadevi Birla Girls High Secondary School, Kolkata,
participated in a Collage Competition that highlighted the
plight of 110 million child laborers in India.
Who makes our work possible?
People around the world including children like you…
• Pooja Khanna and her fellow students from MiRtH, an
independent student organization in the US, made Christmas
and New Year cards for children in CRY America supported
projects in India.
• Anushree Majumdar, an 11th standard student, visited CRY,
to get a feel of how a social organization works. Once in, she
felt she could not leave without doing something for the
children. She worked tirelessly for our event BOL
JAMOORE, finding sponsors for banners and posters, and
bringing in the Delhi Group, Best of Campus, to perform free
of cost.
Would you like to make a difference to the
lives of children who need our support…
Then take the CRY pledge-
I am a child.
I believe all children should be able to enjoy the
rights promised to us by our leaders- the rights to
survival, protection, development and participation.
I pledge to do whatever I can, in my own way, to fight so
that all children can have a great childhood.
And because many other children like me will also do
the same,
WE WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
Striving together…
“What I can do, I must.”
- Rippan Kapur
1944 – 1994
Founder, CRY
Thank You
www.america.cry.org