I submitted the following Op-Ed to my local newspaper. It was published today. If anyone here has thoughts and ideas to share, I’m open to suggestions and input. Since I wrote it, I’ll include the entire piece here:
Guest opinion: A call for volunteers to help realize visionary plan
Like many of you, I feel battered by daily reports of what is going on around the world and in our nation's capital. As citizens create new and exciting ways of getting politically, economically and socially involved, we in Mountain View are ready to accept a global challenge and become home to the world's first institute focused on building 100 human rights cities in every region of the world, based on learning and integrating human rights into every aspect of our daily lives. To start this process, I am looking for a small group of people to join me.
In late 2016, Mountain View became a Human Rights City, one of only a few in the world. At its core, this means that we identify the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as guiding principles during our decision-making process in the city, by citizens, government, business and civil society. I don't think, in our current era, there is any doubt that our human rights are under assault, even here (especially here?) in the United States.
Mountain View was introduced to this "way of life" by The People's Movement for Human Rights Learning (PDHRE), the organization providing the expertise our new institute will require. Founded in 1997 to promote and facilitate human rights cities, it is creating a practical and effective way to bring about a new future, leading to change in every region of the world. This extensive international work, including in cities in Argentina, Senegal, Ghana, Austria, India, Canada and the United States, led to the United Nation bestowing its prestigious Human Rights Award, previously awarded to Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr. and former President Jimmy Carter, to the founder PDHRE, Shula Koenig. We look forward to welcoming them to Mountain View.
A city known as the home of Google might be nearly satisfied, but imagine a city known as the global home of humanity's future, a birthplace for a global institute that will reach out to all 7 billion-plus people on this planet and integrate human rights into their daily lives via the facilitation of human rights cities around the world. Imagine an institute, based here, that will transform our views of development, security, and human interrelationships and through our partnerships with the tech community, reach every corner of the planet, as we work together to raise all ships, holding fast to the ideal that all human beings are born free and equal, living free of fear and want, with dignity being an inalienable right.
For the first time in human history, the technology we have and the technology in the pipeline is such that a global transformation in values and principles is possible; for the first time it is a reality to reach all humanity, even at the astounding number of 7 billion.
Mountain View is the ideal location for such a global institute. It is the ideal place to serve as a birthplace of a new way for humanity, one founded on every woman, man, youth and child knowing, integrating and owning human rights as a way of life. Help me make our city known the world over for being more than the home of a search engine.
I am looking to assemble about five to10 people who would form a steering committee to make this a reality. If you are interested, please email me at MountainViewKen@gmail.com. Details will follow.
Ken Rosenberg is the mayor of Mountain View; he is serving his first term on the City Council.