Is calling the United Nations “irrelevant” a fair judgement?
As a newbie to the whole college experience, I am in the process of taking my first steps towards higher education and pursuing an educational path that is tailor-made for me. These next four years will prepare me for a career in the real world, outside of my Whittier College bubble. I aim to have a career with the United Nations, or an NGO, and to get my feet wet, I am taking a UN focused course in addition to a Model United Nations Conference.
I’ve heard people whisper under their breath that the UN is irrelevant in society. I’ve listened to people tell me that the UN is not making any contributions to the world around us. Why is there such a strong opinion of pessimism surrounding the United Nations when it was created to help the world, not solve its problems?
The following are sources to be used in my argument. Stay tuned.
United Nations.
United Nations Law.
United Nations Peacemaking.
The Evolution of United Nations Peacekeeping.
The Relevance of United Nations Decisions in Domestic Litigation.
The Relevance of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child for United States Domestic Policy: Welfare Reform and Children in Immigrant Families.
Important Improvements in the Functioning of the Principal Organs of the United Nations that can be Made Without Charter Revision.
The Myth of Scholarly Irrelevance for the United Nations.
The United Nations System and the Future.
Basic Problems of the United Nations.
The New Pacific Diplomacy at the United Nations: The rise of the PSIDS.
Key words: “United Nations,” “relevance,” “importance,” “problems,” “stagnant,” “helpful,” and “progressive”
This is another source for information on the mechanics of the United Nations: United Nations Ted Talk.
I am finding that people make accusations toward the UN because they do not understand its fundamental operations or peacekeeping objectives. More often than not, the accusations are made from an uniformed standpoint. I think that having that general knowledge is the basis of a somewhat credible opinion. This talk sparked my interest because it defines the United Nations and most, if not all, of its duties. I was intrigued right away by the speaker’s introduction of the United Nations, defining it more as a community than an organization. However, this kind of description takes away from the formulated respect that surrounds the body. This is where I would make my changes to the video to ensure that the authority of the organization is held in the highest regard.
People
Professor McBride, Professor Gunn, Secretary-General António Guterres, UN Ambassador Samantha Power
