World Water Day March 22, 2021

The UN designated March 22 as World Water Day in 1993.

In the years since, various UN agencies have declared water to be a human right that “should be treated as a social & cultural good, and not primarily as an economic good.” The UN General Assembly formally recognized water as a human right in 2010.

These declarations have not stopped large corporations from turning water into a commodity to be bought and sold for a profit.  In Indigenous lands in the U.S. and around the globe water resources have been plundered and polluted, with devastating consequences for traditional ways of living and the environment. The ongoing seizure and diversion of water to drive Indigenous peoples from their land have been tools of colonial domination from the Americas to Palestine and beyond.

In the U.S. communities of color have disproportionately faced the poisoning of their water and environment.  In some American cities water shutoffs for nonpayment of bills have forced people to leave their homes, paving the way for gentrification.

Wars are already being fought over water and this is only going to continue as we confront the devastating effects of climate change. Texas recently experienced a ‘Gaza Strip’ moment, when the impact of a freezing storm and deregulated grid left people without power and drinkable water.

The era of the Covid-19 pandemic has brought many problems into urgent focus, and access to clean water is one of them.

 Find out how you can get involved in campaigns for water justice at our March 22nd webinar, Water, Health and Human Rights: Marking World Water Day, from the U.S. to Palestine.  It will focus on water struggles in Detroit, Flint, Indigenous lands, prisons and Palestine and help build public support for legislation to stop water shut-offs in the U.S. during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Register here.