Two pieces of advice about voting

Read the version in French / Read in English here

As Election Day approaches in the United States, it is once again time to discuss voting with human rights in mind.

Regular readers of the Daily Brief may remember that we also did this a few weeks before the European elections earlier this year, and much of what I’m about to say will sound familiar. You can accuse me of repeating myself. I prefer to keep it consistent.

Our Advice is the same everywherewhether in Europe or the USA, whether it is a presidential campaign or a congressional contest. Of course we do not support any candidates. We talk about topics.

There are many key issues at stake in the US elections from a human rights perspective – we’ve even created a guide on the subject. Not least among the concerns is a wave of threats to the democratic process itself.

To this guide I would personally like to add two simple pieces of advice.

First, Beware of politicians who blame vulnerable groups for their problems. They are usually easy to recognize: they are not interested in improving their own lives, but in making the lives of others worse.

Your target can be refugees, a religious group, an ethnic group or transgender people. But whoever the vulnerable minority is, the message is essentially the same: you should believe that denying these people their rights will somehow help you and your family. Of course it won’t. Don’t buy it.

Secondly, maybe Think a little longer-term when voting. This can help you see the value of universal human rights. Let me explain with a little personal history.

I look back just four generations and see my 16 great-great-grandparents. Everyone spoke a different native language than me. They all had different religious beliefs than me. They were all born in countries other than the one I was born in, none of which exist anymore.

If you have children or plan to, Think about your descendants a few generations later the line. You don’t know what they will look like, what language they will speak, what religion they will follow, who they will marry, where they will live and work… Things change, and you have no idea where they will end .

If you vote for politicians who aim to punish one group in society, and then they pass laws to do just that, you may end up putting your own grandchildren at risk.

We think long-term and think about your family. It makes sense for you to stand up for universal human rights – Rights for everyone regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, etc.

It is in your own interest to vote for politicians and parties that are more likely to support universal human rights. It is the best choice for the people who come after you.

Oh, and one last thing: remember that the people who come after you will also need a habitable planet to live on.