Beyond the Headlines: Underrepresented Topics in Human Rights
For the Winter 2021 Essay Contest, the Harvard Human Rights Journal asked student authors from across Harvard University to think “beyond the headlines” and highlight issues in human rights that are not heavily featured in mainstream media. We received a variety of excellent submissions and selected two winning pieces, along with a select few honorable mentions. HHRJ is excited to share their insightful work over the following weeks. The list of winners and honorable mentions is below and all pieces were published on the Online Journal.
Winners
- Alev Erhan, JD ‘21 – When the Lines between the Public and Private Sectors Blur, Where do Victims Turn for Justice?
- Angel Gabriel Cabrera Silva, SJD Candidate ‘23, LLM ‘16 – At the Margins of the Indigenous Rights Ecosystem: Underrepresented Struggles for Self-Determination
Honorable Mentions
- Nathalie Gunasekera, JD ‘21 – The UN Must Deliver Long Overdue Remedies for the Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian Victims of Lead Poisoning in Kosovo
- Fatoumata Ouedrago, Harvard College ‘23 – The Plight of Talibé Children in Senegal
- Janna Ramadan, Harvard College ‘23 – Perpetuating Islamophobic Discrimination in the United States: Examining the Relationship Between News, Social Media, and Hate Crimes
Essay Contest Prompt
Submissions should be essays written about a topic in human rights that has not received recent attention in popular media. Relevant topics could be entirely unique, or they could be lesser-known dimensions of high-profile issues like the COVID-19 pandemic.
Submissions Accepted: January 1, 2021 – January 31, 2021
Winners will be announced soon afterwards and published in the Online Journal.
Submission Guidelines:
Qualifications: The essay contest is open to all current students at Harvard University, including undergraduate and graduate students.
Length Limitations: Submissions must be limited to a total length of 1,000–2,000 words, including footnotes.
Citation Format: All assertions should be cited. Please cite sources using footnotes rather than endnotes. Law students: ensure footnotes comply with The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation. Other students: please provide complete source information in the footnotes at a minimum.
Submission Process: Applicants should send their submission, in Microsoft Word format, from an official Harvard email address to HHRJ (hlshrj@mail.law.harvard.edu), along with a copy of a recent CV. The subject line of the email should include “HHRJ Essay Contest Submission” and the author’s name. The submissions window is open from January 1-31, 2021. Any submissions received outside of that window will not be considered.