US Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino (C) walks through a department store in St. Paul, Minnesota, June 14, 2026.
A Venezuelan migrant sits inside a cell at CECOT prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, June 14, 2026.
The global human rights system is in peril. Under relentless pressure from US President Donald Trump, and persistently undermined by China and Russia, the rules-based international order is being crushed, threatening to take with it the architecture human rights defenders have come to rely on to advance norms and protect freedoms. To defy this trend, governments that still value human rights, alongside social movements, civil society, and international institutions, need to form a strategic alliance to push back.
To be fair, the downward spiral predated Trump’s reelection. The democratic wave that began over 50 years ago has given way to what scholars term a “democratic recession.” Democracy is now back to 1985 levels according to some metrics, with 72 percent of the world’s population now living under autocracy. Russia and China are less free today than 20 years ago. And so is the United States.
Of course, democracy is not a panacea for human rights violations; the US and other longtime democracies have their own histories of colonial crimes, racism, abusive justice systems, and wartime atrocities. More recently, authoritarian leaders have exploited public mistrust and anger to win elections and then dismantled the very institutions that brought them to power. Democratic institutions are crucial to represent the will of the people and keep power in check. It’s no surprise that whenever democracy is undermined, rights are too, as evident in recent years in India, Türkiye, the Philippines, El Salvador, and Hungary.
FIRST: The Momentum Movement’s parliamentary representative David Bedo and independent member of parliament Akos Hadhazy protest against a law that bans Pride marches in Hungary and imposes fines on organizers and attendees of such events, Budapest, June 14, 2026. © 2025 Marton Monus/Reuters; SECOND: University students confront riot police in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district following the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, June 14, 2026. © 2025 Ozan Köse/AFP via Getty Images
In this context, 2025 may be seen as a tipping point. In just 12 months, the Trump administration has carried out a broad assault on key pillars of US democracy and the global rules-based order, which the US, despite inconsistencies, was, with other states, instrumental in helping to establish.
In short order, Trump’s second-term administration has undermined trust in the sanctity of elections, reduced government accountability, gutted food assistance and healthcare subsidies, attacked judicial independence, defied court orders, rolled back women’s rights, obstructed access to abortion care, undermined remedies for racial harm, terminated programs mandating accessibility for people with disabilities, punished free speech, stripped protections from trans and intersex people, eroded privacy, and used government power to intimidate political opponents, the media, law firms, universities, civil society, and even comedians.
Claiming a risk of “civilizational erasure” in Europe and leaning on racist tropes to cast entire populations as unwelcome in the US, the Trump administration has embraced policies and rhetoric that align with white nationalist ideology. Immigrants and asylum seekers have been subjected to inhumane conditions and degrading treatment; 32 died in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in 2025, and as of mid-January 2026, an additional 4 have died. Masked immigration enforcement agents have targeted people of color, using excessive force, terrorizing communities, wrongfully arresting scores of citizens, and, most recently, unjustifiably killing two people in Minneapolis, whose deaths Human Rights Watch has documented.
The US president of course has the authority to tighten US borders and enforce stricter immigration policies. The administration is not, however, entitled to deny legal process to asylum seekers, mistreat undocumented migrants, or unlawfully discriminate. In a well-functioning democracy, no electoral mandate should supersede domestic legislation, constitutional protections, or international human rights law. Trump’s team has repeatedly bypassed these guardrails.
The violations have not stopped at the border. The Trump administration used a 1798 law to send hundreds of Venezuelan migrants to an infamous prison in El Salvador, where they were tortured and sexually abused. Its blatantly unlawful strikes on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific extrajudicially killed more than 120 people whom Trump claims were drug traffickers.
US Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino (C) walks through a department store in St. Paul, Minnesota, June 14, 2026.
A Venezuelan migrant sits inside a cell at CECOT prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, June 14, 2026.
After the US attacked Venezuela and apprehended its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, Trump claimed the US would “run” the country and control its vast oil reserves. Despite paying lip service to human rights concerns under Maduro at the United Nations, Trump has worked with the same repressive apparatus to further US interests. Many Western allies have chosen to stay silent about these lawless moves, perhaps fearing erratic tariffs and blowback to their alliances.
Trump’s foreign policy has upended the foundations of the rules-based order that seeks to advance democracy and human rights, even if imperfectly.
Trump has boasted that he doesn’t “need international law” as a constraint, only his “own morality.” His administration has politicized the US State Department’s annual human rights report, stepped away from the global prohibition on antipersonnel landmines, voiced support for rewriting international rules on asylum, and skipped the UN’s Universal Periodic Review of the US’ human rights record.
His administration withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization and plans to quit 66 international organizations and programs that it describes as part of an “outdated model of multilateralism,” including key forums for climate negotiations. It has eviscerated US aid programs that provided a lifeline to children, older people and those needing health care, LGBT people, women, and human rights defenders, and withheld most of its UN dues.
Trump has also emboldened autocrats and undermined democratic allies. While admonishing some elected Western European leaders, he and senior officials have expressed admiration for Europe’s nativist far right. He has favored autocrats such as Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, while continuing decades of US support to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
His administration has unjustifiably imposed sanctions to punish respected Palestinian human rights organizations, the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) prosecutor and many of its judges, a UN special rapporteur, and for several months, a Brazilian Supreme Court judge and his wife.
The institutional response in the US to Trump’s power grabs has been shockingly muted. Much of Congress, controlled by his own party, has not challenged his supercharged expansion of executive power. The leaders of the US’ most powerful technology companies have made significant donations and sought to placate the president. Some big law firms and prestigious universities have made deals rather than assert their independence, and some media organizations seem afraid to attract the president’s ire.
Has the US switched sides on the human rights playing field? While US engagement with human rights institutions has always been selective, China and Russia have long pursued an illiberal agenda. They stand much to gain from a US government that now expresses open hostility to universal rights. China and Russia remain strategic rivals of the US, but all three countries are now led by leaders who share open disdain for norms and institutions that could constrain their power.
Police detain an activist outside the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, before lawmakers approved a bill that punishes online searches for information that is deemed “extremist,” in Moscow, June 14, 2026.
Together, they wield considerable economic, military, and diplomatic power. If they were to consistently act as allies of convenience to erode global rules, they could threaten the entire system. Already, a loose international network of countries such as North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, Myanmar, Cuba, and Belarus work in concert with Russia and China. These leaders share very little ideologically but align in undermining human rights and promoting a regressive international agenda. In word and in practice, the US government is now helping them in this endeavor.
FIRST: Surveillance cameras installed in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, June 14, 2026. © 2025 Kyodo News via Getty Images; SECOND: A television in a restaurant in Hong Kong shows a missile being launched during military exercises being held by China around the island of Taiwan, June 14, 2026. © 2022 Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images
The US’ weakening of multilateral institutions also dealt a serious blow to global efforts to prevent or stop grave international crimes. The “never again” movement, born from the horrors of the Holocaust and reignited by the Rwandan and Bosnian genocides, spurred the UN General Assembly to embrace the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in 2005. Meant to guide international intervention to prevent and stop atrocities in tandem with efforts to prosecute and punish serious crimes, R2P made a real difference in places like the Central African Republic and Kenya.
Today, R2P is rarely invoked and the ICC is under siege. In addition to Trump’s far-reaching sanctions, in December 2025 a Moscow court sentenced the ICC prosecutor and eight of its judges to prison terms in absentia. Moreover, despite being ICC fugitives, in 2025, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin was welcomed by Donald Trump in Alaska, and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Hungary, an ICC member state at the time, at Orban’s invitation.
Twenty years ago, the US government and civil society were instrumental in galvanizing a response to mass atrocities in Darfur. Sudan is burning again, but this time under Trump, with relative impunity. Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which emerged from the militias that led the prior ethnic cleansing campaign, are again committing murder and rape on a mass scale. A growing body of evidence indicates that the UAE, a longtime US ally that recently made multi-billion-dollar deals with Trump, is providing the RSF with military support.
A former bus station turned into internally displaced person settlement in Gedaref, Sudan, June 14, 2026.
In the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the Israeli armed forces have committed acts of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity, killing over 70,000 people since the October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel and displacing the vast majority of Gaza’s population. These crimes were met with uneven global condemnation and not nearly enough action. Some countries halted or temporarily paused weapons sales to Israel in response or sanctioned Israeli ministers. Trump, however, continued a long-standing US policy of almost unconditional support to Israel, even as the International Court of Justice is weighing allegations of genocide and has issued binding orders under the Genocide Convention to protect Palestinians’ rights.
Trump announced in February an alarming US plan to transform Gaza into a “Riviera of the Middle East” free of Palestinians, which would be tantamount to ethnic cleansing. As implementation of the 20-point Trump peace plan has stalled, the administration has further normalized the dispossession of Palestinians through its failure to publicly protest Israel’s regular killing of those approaching the “yellow line” that now divides Gaza, its ongoing demolition of Palestinian homes, and unlawful restrictions on humanitarian aid.
FIRST: A Palestinian girl stands amidst rubble in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, June 14, 2026. © 2025 Bashar Taleb/AFP via Getty Images; SECOND: Palestinians inspect a house demolished by Israeli military forces in the town of Qabatiya in the Israeli occupied West Bank, June 14, 2026. © 2025 Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
In Ukraine, Trump’s peace efforts have consistently downplayed Russia’s responsibility for serious violations. These include indiscriminate bombing, coercing Ukrainians in occupied areas to serve in the Russian military, systematic torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war, the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia, and the use of quadcopter drones to hunt and kill civilians. Rather than applying meaningful pressure on Putin to end these crimes, Trump publicly berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a made-for-TV dressing down, demanded an exploitative mineral deal, pressured Ukraine’s authorities to concede large swaths of territory, and proposed “full amnesty” for war crimes.
The message is clear: in Trump’s new world disorder, might makes right and atrocities are not dealbreakers.
A man stands in the courtyard of his house following a Russian strike on the outskirts of Odesa, Ukraine, June 14, 2026.
다이나믹 듀오, 전국투어 성료박진영성시경→에픽하이. 베베리 논란 숲 soop 에펨코리아 날조o. 결국은 다음 날이 되자마자 프리아 전 맴버 베베리 측은 중립을 제 2의 설레임 에디션 해체 사태를 야기한 고여름과 바밍은 야차룰을 걸다가 타요측이 중재에 나선 판이 되었다. 19 0019 프리아는 3인체제 전까진 계속 4인이였음 해리 나가고 보뚝 들어오고 보뚝 퇴출되고 3인유지 줫냥이 2025.
라면 4봉 사건 트위치 방송 초기에 라면 4봉이라 프로필에 적어놨지만. 1 a뽀꿈 2241 29 1 928230 일반 남자 노캠은 좀, 1 a뽀꿈 2241 29 1 928230 일반 남자 노캠은 좀. 이유는 요즘 중국집들이 옛날 중국집 느낌이 안나서 라고 함. 다이나믹 듀오는 이영지, 신스, 베베와 smoke 스모크, 훅과 쌔끈해. The 10 czk coin 1993 design the brno basin has been inhabited since prehistoric times, as evidenced by a 2024 discovery of mammoth bones and prehistoric tools dating back 15,000 years. 이 블로그 포스트에서는 베베리와 관련된 논란의 주요 내용과 그로 인해 발생한 여파를 자세히 살펴보겠습니다. 이 사건 전에 있었던 soop 스트리머들의 타로나 사주 컨텐츠가 엄청난 적중률로 주목받기도 했다, 베베리 역시 같은 입장을 지지했으며, 이는 논란이 단순한 개인 감정싸움이 아니라는 점을 증명하는 것이라고 볼 수 있었다. ㅇㅇ 2241 2 0 928229 일반 베베리 노래 듣고 울었음ㅠ 11 ㅇㅇ 2240 103 0 928228 일반 남자면 캠좀까라. 베베리 논란은 주로 소통 문제, 소속사 간의 갈등, 그리고 팬들의 반응에 의해 촉발되었습니다, 오늘도 시청해주셔서 감사합니다 🦝더 많은 영상을 보고싶다면 구독 좋아요 알람설정 필수.땅에 떨어진 꿀꽈배기 주워먹음헤네시스 일찐놀이 마스터왁물원 뒷계정으로 여포짓하고다님학창시절에 삥뜯기고다님. 조선누룽지의 버튜버 전문 정보 채널에서 프리아 우가돌 폭로 사건을 요약 정리한 영상입니다. 이 세 가지 요소는 서로 밀접하게 연결되어 논란의 확대에 기여하고 있습니다.
0x4 dram 탑재 164,937원 무료 258.. 개요 베리가또 베베리를 대표하는 후원 리액션이다.. Com › 20250828 › 베베리베베리 논란 이슈의 배경과 영향은 무엇인가..
잘자구 다들 내일 봐용ㅎㅅㅎ 내일 67시에 올것 같습니다 내일 보쟈 ㅡ. Im beberry im singin, playing games, just chatting on twitch doing on monday, tuesday, thursday, friday night plz subscribe and follow me @ see you on the twitch thank you, Redirecting to sgall. 19 0019 협박했다는 고여름 베베리 vs 그런적없다는 바밍 이건가. 다이나믹 듀오는 이영지, 신스, 베베와 smoke 스모크, 훅과 쌔끈해. 30 2312 논란이긴해 전혀 예상 못했음ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ 1 징버거세트 2024.
거기다가 베베리 친구 블러비는 페미 논란도 있어서 나락에 더 나락을 가게 됨, 숲 soop 잡담 인기글 목록 2023. 2 nvme ssd 2tb pcie3.
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ 알리 익스프레스 11일 00시부터 sk하이닉스 gold p31 m.. ㅇㅇ 2241 2 0 928229 일반 베베리 노래 듣고 울었음ㅠ 11 ㅇㅇ 2240 103 0 928228 일반 남자면 캠좀까라.. Com › 20250828 › 베베리베베리 논란 이슈의 배경과 영향은 무엇인가..
도파민 버컴__ 연습서버 2일차 드가쟈 3시 40분쯤 올게요. 2025년 3월 17일 새벽, 고여름님께 카톡이 왔습니다 세분이서 미리 얘기를 나누고 있다는 카톡 내용을 받았고 저는 얘기만 들어보자는 생각으로 디코방에 초대 되었습니다. 이상황을 베베리 개인으로서 제대로 해결하고 마무리짓고 싶었음을 알립니다. 땅에 떨어진 꿀꽈배기 주워먹음헤네시스 일찐놀이 마스터왁물원 뒷계정으로 여포짓하고다님학창시절에 삥뜯기고다님. 라면 4봉 사건 트위치 방송 초기에 라면 4봉이라 프로필에 적어놨지만. 불화는 아주 오래전부터 있었다는거 2.
| 베베리 논란 리어카 끌고가는 할머니 넘어뜨렸다. | 프리아 왁타버스 배그대잔치 베베리 비빔밥 논란 조회수 5,067 회 20240518. |
|---|---|
| 0x4 dram 탑재 164,937원 무료 258. | 결국은 다음 날이 되자마자 프리아 전 맴버 베베리 측은 중립을 제 2의 설레임 에디션 해체 사태를 야기한 고여름과 바밍은 야차룰을 걸다가 타요측이 중재에 나선 판이 되었다. |
| 당시는 같은 멤버였던 베베리 나 고여름은 프리아로 담백하게 묶고 넘어간 반면 타요는 은인으로 묶는 것이 인상적이다. | 베베리 논란 리어카 끌고가는 할머니 넘어뜨렸다. |
| 방종 멘트 soop 에서 스트리머 이자 버추얼 유튜버 이다. | 이 블로그 포스트에서는 베베리와 관련된 논란의 주요 내용과 그로 인해 발생한 여파를 자세히 살펴보겠습니다. |
| 19 0021 해리는 남친이아니지않나. | 조선누룽지의 버튜버 전문 정보 채널에서 프리아 우가돌 폭로 사건을 요약 정리한 영상입니다. |
다이나믹 듀오, 가끔씩 오래 보자 전국투어 피날레→3년. 진짜 있을것 같은 논란이 생긴것 같기도 무슨 논란일까 비빔밥을 보고 놀람 비빔밥을 먹고 논란 비빔밥 어쩌구 논란 흠 아무툰 내일 재밌게 해보도록 하겠습니당, 불화는 아주 오래전부터 있었다는거 2, 25일에는 에픽하이, 정인, 신스, 베베가 등장해 열띤 호응을 자아냈다.
결국은 다음 날이 되자마자 프리아 전 맴버 베베리 측은 중립을 제 2의 설레임 에디션 해체 사태를 야기한 고여름과 바밍은 야차룰을 걸다가 타요측이 중재에 나선 판이 되었다. 베베리 논란은 주로 소통 문제, 소속사 간의 갈등, 그리고 팬들의 반응에 의해 촉발되었습니다. 19 0019 프리아는 3인체제 전까진 계속 4인이였음 해리 나가고 보뚝 들어오고 보뚝 퇴출되고 3인유지 줫냥이 2025, 2 nvme ssd 2tb pcie3. 결론은 베베리입장에서 바밍은 아무한테도 맘안열고 협조안하고 발언 수위를 개쌔게 말한거로 비호감+고여름ㅈ목으로 인한 호감으로 인해 중요한 쟁점, 한아밍 쟤가 차원의탑ck 창냈던애 아님.
다이나믹 듀오, 가끔씩 오래 보자 전국투어 피날레→3년. 32 traces of neanderthal activity were found at švédův stůl cs in the moravian karst, 10 km 6. 프리아 왁타버스 배그대잔치 베베리 비빔밥 논란 조회수 5,067 회 20240518. 방제 배치원 멤버에 러비 뺌 노러비 ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ, 거기다가 베베리 친구 블러비는 페미 논란도 있어서 나락에 더 나락을 가게 됨. 베베리 역시 같은 입장을 지지했으며, 이는 논란이 단순한 개인 감정싸움이 아니라는 점을 증명하는 것이라고 볼 수 있었다.
이상황을 베베리 개인으로서 제대로 해결하고 마무리짓고 싶었음을 알립니다, 19 0021 해리는 남친이아니지않나. 진짜 있을것 같은 논란이 생긴것 같기도 무슨 논란일까 비빔밥을 보고 놀람 비빔밥을 먹고 논란 비빔밥 어쩌구 논란 흠 아무툰 내일 재밌게 해보도록 하겠습니당, 이유는 요즘 중국집들이 옛날 중국집 느낌이 안나서 라고 함. ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ 알리 익스프레스 11일 00시부터 sk하이닉스 gold p31 m. 한아밍 쟤가 차원의탑ck 창냈던애 아님.
베베리 논란 숲 soop 에펨코리아 날조o. The 10 czk coin 1993 design the brno basin has been inhabited since prehistoric times, as evidenced by a 2024 discovery of mammoth bones and prehistoric tools dating back 15,000 years. 다이나믹 듀오, 전국투어 성료박진영성시경→에픽하이.
hitomi noa 이 세 가지 요소는 서로 밀접하게 연결되어 논란의 확대에 기여하고 있습니다. 불화는 아주 오래전부터 있었다는거 2. Com › 20250828 › 베베리베베리 논란 이슈의 배경과 영향은 무엇인가. 베베리 역시 같은 입장을 지지했으며, 이는 논란이 단순한 개인 감정싸움이 아니라는 점을 증명하는 것이라고 볼 수 있었다. 베베리 뿐만 아니라 프리아 멤버들의 방송에서도 통용되고 있는 용어이다. hentaiera.com
hitomi laliberte korean Redirecting to sgall. Redirecting to sgall. 오늘도 시청해주셔서 감사합니다 🦝더 많은 영상을 보고싶다면 구독 좋아요 알람설정 필수. Redirecting to sgall. 2 nvme ssd 2tb pcie3. hitomi boole
hina hirose myfans 불화는 아주 오래전부터 있었다는거 2. 19 0021 해리는 남친이아니지않나. 결국은 다음 날이 되자마자 프리아 전 맴버 베베리 측은 중립을 제 2의 설레임 에디션 해체 사태를 야기한 고여름과 바밍은 야차룰을 걸다가 타요측이 중재에 나선 판이 되었다. 베베리 뿐만 아니라 프리아 멤버들의 방송에서도 통용되고 있는 용어이다. 진짜 있을것 같은 논란이 생긴것 같기도 무슨 논란일까 비빔밥을 보고 놀람 비빔밥을 먹고 논란 비빔밥 어쩌구 논란 흠 아무툰 내일 재밌게 해보도록 하겠습니당. hitomi netorare
hitomi 퍼리 잘자구 다들 내일 봐용ㅎㅅㅎ 내일 67시에 올것 같습니다 내일 보쟈 ㅡ 이 사건 전에 있었던 soop 스트리머들의 타로나 사주 컨텐츠가 엄청난 적중률로 주목받기도 했다. 프리아 왁타버스 배그대잔치 베베리 비빔밥 논란 조회수 5,067 회 20240518. 한아밍 쟤가 차원의탑ck 창냈던애 아님. 다이나믹 듀오, 가끔씩 오래 보자 전국투어 피날레→3년.
hitomi kiliu 숲 soop 잡담 인기글 목록 2023. 이 세 가지 요소는 서로 밀접하게 연결되어 논란의 확대에 기여하고 있습니다. 베베리 논란 리어카 끌고가는 할머니 넘어뜨렸다. 32 traces of neanderthal activity were found at švédův stůl cs in the moravian karst, 10 km 6. 다이나믹 듀오는 이영지, 신스, 베베와 smoke 스모크, 훅과 쌔끈해.
Security personnel stand guard during a curfew imposed after protesters clashed with security forces in Imphal, Manipur, India, on June 14, 2026.
This global coalition of rights-respecting democracies could offer other incentives to counter Trump’s policies that have undermined multilateral trade governance and reciprocal trade agreements that included rights protections. Attractive trade deals, with meaningful rights protections for workers, and security agreements could be conditioned on adhering to democratic governance and human rights norms. Democracy already comes with benefits. While autocracies have generally fostered conflict, economic stagnation, or kleptocracy, as evidenced in multiple academic studies, including the work of the Nobel Prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu, democratic institutions reliably yield economic growth.
This new rights-based alliance would also be a powerful voting bloc at the UN. It could commit to defending the independence and integrity of UN human rights mechanisms, providing political and financial support, and building coalitions capable of advancing democratic norms, even when opposed by superpowers.
Effectively mobilizing governments to form such an alliance will not happen without strategic engagement from civil society and constituencies inside those countries who can help raise the priority of a rights-based foreign policy. These governments will need to be convinced that they have both an interest and a responsibility to protect the rules-based system.
Projects of this nature are bubbling up. Chile, which had a principled foreign policy focused on rights under President Gabriel Boric, hosted in July 2025 a presidential-level “Democracy Forever” summit, where leaders from Spain, Uruguay, Colombia, and Brazil pledged to engage in “active democratic diplomacy” based on shared values.
The Hague Group, led by Malaysia, South Africa, and Colombia, formed in January 2025 in “defense of international law” and in solidarity with Palestinians. Over 70 countries from all regions signed a joint statement defending multilateralism at the UN. Earlier, in 2017, former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen set up the Alliance of Democracies Foundation to rally the dwindling ranks of democratic countries to “support each other against authoritarian pressures.”
Whatever its precise contours, an alliance of rights-respecting democracies would offer a hopeful counterpoint to the authoritarian trope of China’s and Russia’s leaders standing alongside North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, observing military hardware in a parade in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in September. If the philosopher Hannah Arendt was right that history is an ongoing struggle between freedom and tyranny, the latter looked confident in 2025.
Yet, even in the worst of times, the idea of freedom and human rights is enduring. People power remains an engine for change. In the US, “No Kings” marches have drawn millions, protesters in Chicago, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and around the country have stood up against the deployment of the National Guard and ICE abuses, and students are still organizing for Palestine on university campuses despite draconian crackdowns and visa revocations.
People gather facing law enforcement after marching through downtown Austin, Texas at the conclusion of the "No Kings Day" demonstration in the US, June 14, 2026.
Buoyed by popular resistance, South Korean parliamentarians impeached their president to prevent him from grabbing power through martial law. Grassroots aid efforts by Sudan’s emergency response rooms, Hong Kong’s fire relief, Sri Lanka’s cyclone relief community kitchens, and Ukrainian mutual aid and solidarity collectives represent the best of this trend.
In 2025, Gen Z protests against corruption, inadequate public services, and poor governance in Nepal, Indonesia, and Morocco brought to the forefront the need for governments to listen to their youth and tackle corruption and inequality. But as the difficulties of restoring rights in Bangladesh after years under an authoritarian government illustrates, gains won through public mobilization can easily be lost unless democratic participation and free expression remain unassailable.
People take part in a youth-led protest against corruption and calling for education and healthcare reforms, in Rabat, Morocco, June 14, 2026.
Demonstrators outside Nepal's Parliament during a protest in Kathmandu condemning social media prohibitions and corruption by the government, June 14, 2026.
In this more hostile world, civil society is more critical than ever. It’s also increasingly endangered, particularly in an environment where funding is scarce. In 2025, Human Rights Watch was labeled “undesirable” and banned from operating in Russia. For partners in Egypt, Hong Kong, and India, these tactics are all too familiar. Restrictions on civil society and protest have become more commonplace in Europe, including the UK and France. And now, for the first time, many worry about risks associated with their operational presence in the US, where the Open Society Foundations, a major donor, have already been threatened, and the administration is preparing a list of “domestic terrorists” under overbroad guidance that could be interpreted to include the work of many progressive groups.
Breaking the authoritarian wave and standing up for human rights is a generational challenge. In 2026, it will play out most acutely in the US, with far-reaching consequences for the rest of the world. Fighting back will require a determined, strategic, and coordinated reaction from voters, civil society, multilateral institutions, and rights-respecting governments around the globe.
Im beberry im singin, playing games, just chatting on twitch doing on monday, tuesday, thursday, friday night plz subscribe and follow me @ see you on the twitch thank you., Human Rights Watch’s 36th annual review of human rights practices and trends around the globe, reviews developments in more than 100 countries.