After the catastrophic and historical defeat of Brazil in the World Cup semi-final against Germany on Tuesday, we began Wednesday with an interesting session entitled “Human Security and Citizen (In)security” with Prof. Matthew Weinert.
Prof. Weinert kicked off the session by asking whom among the fellows has ever had exposure to or worked in the field of human security. Some of the fellows responded positively as they have considerable experience in the area. Then, we passed through a brief history of human security and citizen (in)security from the first conceptual antecedents of human rights to the report of the Secretary General of the United Nations on human security during the 2012 United Nations General Assembly.
Prof. Weinert stated that the definition of human security is vague. It is incomprehensible and does not have a specific context. Furthermore, we were exposed to the critiques of human security, which were as follows: it is conceptually imprecise, and human security is not a universal solution. A state might be the cause for human security, and it is very difficult for an external institution to get into and handle the situation. Most importantly, human security is not just about giving food and water, but it is about capacity building and empowerment also. Prof. Weinert pointed out that most of human security programs are about military intervention, which is an engine of violence and, thus, a failure.
Prof. Weinert pointed out that we have to bring the human into the concept of human security by opening space for civic activism, by brainstorming ideas, by developing partnerships and collaborations, and last, but surely not least, by transparent leadership!
The rest of the day, we were free, but we had to do important work, such as that of the group who had the conference meeting with the Office of the First Lady discussing the education of African girls. They had their meeting in the afternoon to work on this project, and the amazing thing is that, from thirty-six YALI fellows nationally, twelve are UD fellows. Of course, it was not all work this afternoon. Some fellows gathered in the lounge of Independence Hall to watch the second semi-final between Argentina and the Netherlands. Congratulations, Argentina!
