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Let's Talk Human Rights

Fall 2022 student events elevate sensitive human rights issues at UD

By Allie O’Gorman, Ahmi Moore, Aila Carr-Chellman, Erin Grealis and Sarah Naughton

Last semester student interns at the Human Rights Center planned, facilitated, presented at and attended events on campus. Read some of their reflections and insights taken from events on reproductive justice, Indigenous Peoples’ rights and invisible disabilities.

Dobbs Decision Teach In

September 19, 2022, began the conversation about reproductive justice and the post-Roe world in our Catholic community. Over the course of 6 hours, the Human Rights Center and partners discussed varying aspects of the overturning of Roe v Wade on reproductive justice specifically and on American society as a whole. This discussion came after the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, which ruled that abortion access is not a constitutional right, and access is left up to the states. The Dobbs decision was issued on June 24th, 2022, and has since sparked back and forth legal rulings on questions of abortion and significantly harmed people in need of reproductive care.

After this decision, states have begun enforcing stricter bans on abortion care and ruling out exceptions for the life of the mother, rape, or incest. Unstable laws in certain states have left state legislatures, healthcare professionals, and those in need of reproductive services scrambling and without options. The decision opens up a broader question of the right to bodily autonomy and treatment of women as second-class citizens. From the many topics that were explored in the Teach-In, we took away the following key points:

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Trends in abortion services and the public response throughout history: we learned that use of abortion peaked in the 1990s, in a post-Roe period, and has been steadily declining over the past 30 years because of better reproductive healthcare, access to more effective contraception (eg. IUDs), increased legal restrictions, declining annual birthrates and lifetime fertility among other reasons. Historically, most abortions were socially acceptable as long as they took place before “quickening” - when a pregnant person starts to feel their baby’s movement in the womb, which was how, without medical advances, pregnancy was determined in the past. The reproductive justice movement has been led by women of color who brought light to the intersectional issues they face and how inaccessibility to reproductive care affects women differently based on race, social-economic status and other factors. 

Traditions of the right to life and bodily autonomy in Abrahamic religions: Catholic and Christian faiths explore questions about the start of personhood, and how to determine the consciousness of a fetus. Is consciousness to think, to sense, to feel, to do things, to love? In Judaism, there are hugely varied ideas about reproductive justice.

Global implications: In Latin America, societies are struggling with gender politics and oftentimes healthcare; issues like divorce, femicide, infanticide, kidnapping, and healthcare. Marae Verde, or Green Wave is a women's advocacy group that has used the United States precedent to advocate a legal right to abortion, while there is also an opposing Pro Vida or Pro-Life movement, advocating against the right to choose. The trends indicate a relationship between  open access and advocacy for reproductive rights and lower rates of abortion, implying governments that disenfranchise reproductive rights are both authoritarian and regressive. In Africa, the Protocol established by the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa; specifically, the Matrupol Protocol, Article 14, aims to protect women’s reproductive rights. Even so, many African countries in their practice of penal court justice systems have very strict regulations on abortion. Many advocates practice conscientious objection. In a broader perspective, the denial of bodily autonomy can be seen as an indicator of anti-democratic policies and promotion of further anti-democratic policies. A local example is Mehafi’s anti-abortion protests and illegal actions, an organization based out of Dayton, which was given to demonstrate this extreme right-wing “democratic backsliding” and attitudes. Revoking the right to an abortion means the personal realm of life is becoming more political.

The Supreme Court decision has real consequences for the social and health realities of many women and families in the U.S. It is particularly important to open the conversation on our Catholic campus in order to support students in their understanding of reproductive justice and the world.

Indigenous Peoples Day Events

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On October 11, 2022, the Human Rights Center in partnership with El Orgullo Latino organized two events to raise awareness of. Indigenous Peoples’ Day and the issues facing Indigenous Peoples internationally and in the U.S and screen the documentary, “When Two Worlds Collide,” followed by a discussion on the subject of the Quechua people in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest. Indigenous People’s Day acknowledges the history and contributions of Indigenous American society and culture, even while they continue to be subjected to modern American systems. The Day is celebrated on the same day as Columbus Day, as a statement about the changing narrative of history and visibility for the annihilation of Indigenous society by Christopher Columbus and subsequent colonizers. 

The concept of indigenous erasure is the social and systemic elimination of the presence of Indigenous People and their history, culture, and politics. Examples of erasure include the westernization of Indigenous Peoples through education curriculums that incriminate traditional practices and the lack of political protection for land rights. The systems of oppression in contemporary Latin America include militarization, forced displacement and dispossession of land, and the ghettoization or forced inadequate health and living conditions. Due to the COVID-19 public health crisis, a significant number of Indigenous People died as a result of inadequate living conditions provided by Latin American governments. 

“When Two Worlds Collide,” is an award-winning film about Indigenous environmental activists that takes on the large businesses and the governments that are destroying the Amazon Rainforest. According to Variety, the film “offers a vivid, if unabashedly, partisan depiction of the clash between indigenous Peruvian minorities and government interests bent on ‘opening up’ protected tribal lands to multinational-corporation mining, drilling, and clear-cutting. That conflict flared into contentious, highly publicized strikes and violence in 2009, which are depicted here in alarmingly immediate on-the-ground footage shot by participants on both sides.” 

The screening of this film led to an engaging conversation on Indigenous issues and how they should be handled by the states or Indigenous advocacy groups. Some people were jarred by the way the system was poised against both the Amazon rainforest and Indigenous People; others had thoughts and ideas about the presence of civil disobedience for Indigenous advocacy. 

The conversations on Indigenous Peoples were enlightening as there has been little engagement on this topic on campus on this particular day.

Invisible Disabilities Event

In the U.S., sixty-one (61) million adults live with a disability – meaning one in four Americans have some type of disability. This event aimed to bring personal experiences, from staff to students sharing their invisible disabilities with the audience, and inform about important normative frameworks. Professors from the Department of Religious Studies, which also administers the disabilities studies minor at UD, came to speak at the event. Dr. Jana Bennett discussed her experience as someone who is hard of hearing, and took  students through a long  list of different conditions and disabilities, to critically think about which conditions, such as a broken leg, differ from disabilities, such as ADHD. From hearing loss and blindness to pregnancy and addiction, students recognized that anyone may have an invisible condition that one would never know about without speaking directly about it. As a community, we can only begin to move past stigmas attached to (invisible) disabilities if we address them. 

By exploring the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act, one can identify the efforts of the US government to make the world more accessible for those with disabilities and protect Americans from discrimination in academic, professional, and social settings. Dr. Meghan Henning discussed the stigmas around invisible disabilities and the terminology used including ‘non-apparent’ to ‘hidden’ disabilities. She shared her experiences with ADHD, and discussed the ‘Spoonie Theory’, a way to show what it is like to live with energy limitations that can result from living with chronic illness, allowing those affected to visualize their total daily energy. 

In addition, two members of the Human Rights Center team shared their own experiences with living with invisible disabilities. Gabriela Garlo, a student intern, shared how she lives with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, discussing the stigma attached to being an ambulatory wheelchair user. Megan Garrison also shared her daily life experiences with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), and the hardships she deals with. 

We concluded that events which normalize these conditions, and promote talking about them as a society are essential to destigmatizing them. Accepting that at the end of the day, we are all the same in our humanity, yet dealing with different battles, we believe that eventually the world will become a more secure, safe, and inclusive environment.


Allie is a junior human rights studies and criminal justice major from Chicago, Illinois. She is involved in the Dayton Civic Scholars cohort, club water polo and serves on the executive board of her women's fraternity. As a student intern, she works to engage the student body at UD to learn about and get involved in essential human rights issues. Her interests lie within criminal justice reform, women's rights, community outreach, and so much more. 

Ahmi' Moore is a junior human rights studies and English major from Xenia, Ohio. As an Abolition Ohio intern, Ahmi' focuses on furthering anti-trafficking efforts through education, advocacy, awareness-raising, and research. Through this experience, she hopes to gain more knowledge that will serve her dream of starting her own nonprofit organization focused on advocacy for human trafficking victims. After graduating, she plans to pursue a career as a human rights lawyer to help those experiencing injustice.

Aila Carr-Chellman is a University of Dayton student from Moscow, Idaho. She is studying Political Science and Philosophy. Aila is a member of the Inaugural Female Eagle Scout class of 2021, a recipient of the congressional award, and is a strong advocate for public policy. She lobbied in Washington, D.C. for legislation related to climate and sustainability, and remotely managed an Idaho State Representatives re-election bid this year. She’s interested in recognizing oppressed classes on campus, specifically under the umbrella of religious discrimination. Aila serves on the Student Government Association (SGA), as well as Housing and Residence Association (RHA) in addition to being a member of Model UN.

Erin Grealis is a junior at the University of Dayton from County Mayo, Ireland. She is studying a Bachelor of Laws degree in Maynooth University and majoring in Criminal Justice studies while studying here at the University of Dayton. Erin is a committee member of the International Club on campus and a member of Model UN. She is passionate about promoting disability rights, legislative reform on many issues and international law.

Sarah Naughton is a sophomore at the University of Dayton from The Poconos, PA. She is majoring in International Studies, minoring in Pre-law and Political Science with a concentration in Global Migration and Economic Development. Sarah also is a member of the executive committee for Club tennis and is involved on campus through the HRAG. Sarah maintains a focus on immigration issues regarding families trying to cross into the United States, as well as human rights concerns within Latin America and the Caribbean.

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