Sunderland Minster to mark Human Rights Day at an event this Sunday

Wearside Amnesty International holds an interactive event at Sunderland Minster from 1.45pm on Sunday, December 11. It will be the first time the group has been able to hold their annual event in-person since the pandemic began.

Attendees will be welcomed by the Mayor of Sunderland, Cllr Alison Smith. Speakers include Cllr Claire Rowntree, deputy leader of Sunderland City Council and Chris Howson, University of Sunderland chaplain and chair of Sunderland City of Sanctuary, who will discuss protecting the right to protest.

Other speakers are from Amnesty International and the No To Hassockfield campaign, who want to see the closure of the controversial women’s detention centre near Consett.

A member of the Iranian community will speak about the struggle for human rights in Iran, while a representative from the Ukrainian community will discuss the ongoing war.

Asylum Matters and FODI (Friends of the Drop In for asylum seekers and refugees) will focus on the rights of people seeking asylum and their experiences in Sunderland.

ANEW (Amnesty North East Welcomes) will offer advice on how people can become involved with welcoming refugee families to the UK.

Rowan McCabe, “the world’s first “door-to-door Poet” performs and everyone will have the chance to take part in Amnesty’s Write for Rights campaign, which gives the public an opportunity to write letters of support to people around the world who have been punished for protesting.

There will also be stalls with flyers and resources, plus the opportunity to chat to the speakers over tea and coffee.

Secretary of Wearside Amnesty, Steve Newman, said: “We’re really excited to be back live again this year. Human Rights Day is a big day in the Amnesty calendar and we hope that as many people as possible will be able to share it with us.

“Sadly there will be some grim messages about the state of human rights globally. But there are some successes to report as well and we hope people who come will feel energised to take action for human rights.”

Anyone interested in attending can register at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/human-rights-day-live-registration-446179674417.