DECLARATION FROM THE YOUTH CAUCUS
OF THE REGIONALWORLD CONFERENCE AGAINST RACISM, XENOPHOBIA, INTOLERANCE AND
DISCRIMINATION
PREAMBLE
1. Considering that young people, particularly those of Indigenous Peoples and African descent, have been discriminated against, excluded from and marginalized in the decision making processes, resulting in limiting theirfull and active participation politically, economically, socially and culturally;
2. Identifying that youth representation has traditionally been marginalized by government delegations to regional and international conferences by having youth or young people that do not represent the views, aspirations or struggles of the young people of the Nation-state;
3. Realizing that many young people, throughout the Americas donot have access to information about the United Nations World Youth Forum, as witnessed by the Youth Caucus of the Conference of Citizens Against Racism,Xenophobia, Intolerance and Discrimination;
4. Realizing that there is no method for young people of theSouth, particularly those peoples of Indigenous and African descent, to effectively participate in or be part of the selection process for delegates to the World Youth Forum, as a result, having no effective voice in the process of the Forum;
5. Strongly affirming the Youth Caucus extreme disappointment in the scheduling of the World Youth Forum, which will make it difficult, if not prohibitive, for young people to attend both the Forum and the UN WorldConference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance;
6. Considering that there is no forum for young people around the world to come together to discuss and formulate solutions around racism,xenophobia, intolerance and discrimination;
DECLARATION
1. We call for a World Youth Consultation to be held in Durbin,South Africa, one day prior NGO World Forum, sponsored and financed by the HighCommissioner on Human Rights and UN Member States, to be an official part of the UN World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance. The design,process and outcomes should involve the participation of young people.
2. We call for the states of the North to financially supportdelegations of young people in need from the South to participate in the full planning process and attend the Youth Consultation of the World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance.
3. We call for an equitable method in selecting a representativegroup of young people, with particular attention to Indigenous peoples, peopleof African descendant, oppressed nationalities within a state, migrants,immigrants, women, people with disabilities, lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender persons and people with HIV/AIDS, to participate in YouthDelegations to the UN World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination,Xenophobia and Related Intolerance through a criteria that was developed by theYouth Caucus of the Americas.
4. We urge the UN to provide institutional, financial and otherrelated resources support for the development of a worldwide youth network to be developed during both the World Youth Forum and the UN World ConferenceAgainst Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance.
5. We recommend the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the World Conference Secretariat to include a specific item of issues of young people and to include it also on the agenda of the NGO World Forum and integrate it into the agenda of the World Conference Against Racism.
6. We urge the states of the Americas to heighten the awareness and disseminate the information of the existence and the work of the WorldYouth Forum.
7. We call for member states to financially support young peoplecommitted to youth issues in their states residence to participate in the planning and implementation of the World Youth Forum.
8. We urge UN member states to give a guarantee of inclusion of disadvantaged and excluded youth, particularly Indigenous peoples, people of African descendant, oppressed nationalities within a state, migrants, immigrants, women, people with disabilities, lesbians, gays, bisexuals,transgender persons and people with HIV/AIDS in the World Youth Forum process.
9. We recommend that the Youth Caucus of the Regional Conferenceof the Americas be given the ability to participate in the decision-makingprocess of the World Youth Forum
10. We call for the World Conference in Racism to enable and encourage young people to develop processes and activities which provide opportunities for a wide cross-section of people in our societies to demonstrate their commitment to racial harmony and reject all forms of racial discrimination
11. We demand the UN and member nations to address the above enumerated issues, by providing the following corrective actions within thoseissues:
1)Legal Measures
a. Criminal Justice
-The elimination of all laws and practices by law enforcement which criminalize youth, including racial profiling.
-Encouragethe funding of community programs, employment, and cultural centers, instead of funding the prison industry andstricter law enforcement targeted towards young people
b. Rights -Callfor the design, unilateral acceptance and ratification of a Universal -RightsDeclaration of Youth by all member states and its active implementation
c. Youth Legislation
-Ensurethat there are laws that protect youth in their daily lives, from their livesat home, to their lives in the workplace
2) Education
a. Young people do not have access to technology.
-Provide universal access through the public sector to technology, specifically access to the Internet and corresponding training to use the Internet effectively
b. Young Indigenous peoples, young people of oppressed nationalities within a state, young migrants and immigrants, young Africandescendants and young women do not have access to quality education or higherlevels of education
-Providea concrete mechanism for all youth to have access to quality education
c. Mis-education of young people on the real histories of peoples of the world
-Consult with UNESCO in order to completely revise educational texts for their histories and descriptions of traditionally oppressed peoples of the world
d. People do not have access to education in their own language
-Callfor all members states to provide quality education to young people in the mother languages of the young people
3) Xenophobia and Discrimination
a. Because Indigenous peoples, people of African descendant,oppressed nationalities within a state, migrants, immigrants, women, people with disabilities, lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender persons and people with HIV/AIDS are different, they are discriminated against
-To encourage dialog and sensitivity sessions for both government and civil society to encourage understanding of youth of color facing discrimination from other areas
b. Youth are unable to gain access to quality employment
-Insist that the private sector to provide safe and humane conditions for all workers,with special attention given to young workers to allow for them to be employedand receive a quality education
4) Globalization
a. Lack of Intellectual Property Rights/traditional medicines denied to young people
-Insist that multinational corporations no longer be allowed to patent the resources(e.g., environmental, cultural) of Indigenous peoples and African descendant peoples or be able to refuse access by Indigenous peoples to their tradition always of life
b. Youth having to work for multinational corporations in orderto help families survive
-Insist that multinational corporations that employ young people provide for safe and humane work conditions at fair wages which will allow them to provide a meaningful income to their families
-Insist that all multinational corporations be prohibited from Indigenous land and territories
c. Sexual tourism and exploitation of the cultural values of Indigenous peoples, African descendants, migrants and immigrants and women are negative forms of commercialism and intersectional forms of gender, race, classand age discrimination.
-Suggest that states adopt more effective to stop sex trafficking and the exploitationof youth labor. -Emphasizing the investigation of the role of globalization in the growth of economies based on sex trafficking and exploitation of youth labor.
5) Health
-Youth do not have access to adequate healthcare,especially in regards to preventative measures, education, and treatment forHIV/AIDS as well as STDs.
-Toprovide free universal healthcare to all young people, regardless of healthproblems they face.
-Toprotect the reproductive and sexual rights of youth.
6) Military Violence
-Military violence affects young people in a drasticway, particularly, Indigenous young people, young people of African descent andyoung people of Vieques
Wecall on the UN to suport the right for youth to live free of violence
