Professor Karima Bennoune Appointed as United Nations Special Rapporteur on Cultural Rights
The United Nations Human Rights Council, the UN's top human rights body, has appointed Professor Karima Bennoune of UC Davis School of Law as its Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights. In her role as Special Rapporteur, Professor Bennoune will make official visits to countries; observe and report on the promotion and protection of cultural rights at the local, national, regional and international levels; identify possible obstacles to the promotion and protection of cultural rights and make recommendations to the Council on possible actions; and present reports to the Human Rights Council and the UN General Assembly each year.
"I am truly delighted to have this opportunity to contribute to the advancement of human rights, especially in the current challenging global context," said Professor Bennoune. "As Special Rapporteur, I will work tirelessly to promote the human right to culture. The struggle to defend cultural rights is of global, national, and personal significance everywhere."
Professor Bennoune is an author, scholar, and teacher in the field of international human rights at UC Davis School of Law. She recently was awarded the prestigious Dayton Literary Peace Prize and is the first Arab-American to be honored with the Derrick A. Bell Award from the Section on Minority Groups of the Association of American Law Schools. Her TED talk on religious extremism has received more than 1.3 million views.
A dedicated mentor, Professor Bennoune hopes to integrate UC Davis law students into her work as UN Special Rapporteur.
"This is a high honor and well-deserved recognition of Professor Bennoune's leadership in the fields of culture and human rights," said Dean Kevin R. Johnson. "We are proud to have her on the School of Law faculty."
The University of California is the only university system in the world with three UN human rights rapporteurs, making it a world leader in the field of human rights. Professor David Kaye of UC Irvine is the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression. Professor Hilal Elver of UC Santa Barbara is the Special Rapporteur on the right to food.
UN Human Rights Council Announcement