US Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino (C) walks through a department store in St. Paul, Minnesota, June 7, 2026.
A Venezuelan migrant sits inside a cell at CECOT prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, June 7, 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 7, 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 7, 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 7, 2026.
A Venezuelan migrant sits inside a cell at CECOT prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, June 7, 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 7, 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 7, 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 7, 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 7, 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 7, 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 7, 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 7, 2026.
Jpg 201505201701 주식 갤러리. 특검은 또 별도의 전담팀을 꾸려서 최순실 일가의 재산 형성 과정에 대한 수사에 착수했습니다. Com › national › court_law‘최순실 해외은닉 재산’ 주장 안민석에 대법 일부 발언은 명예훼. 2017년에는 ‘최순실 재산몰수 특별법’을 대표 발의하기도 했다.
Com › national › national_general최순실 300조 말한 적 없다는 안민석, 4년전 방송 인터뷰 보니.. 13 1315 우리정글죽었냐 크 좌우합작 미쳤따리 태극기 할배들 능지수준이 젊은 빨갱이새끼들 수준이라는거네.. 문선명의 90살 생일 때는 김정일 이 생일선물로 90년근 산삼 등 선물을 보내주었다.. 서울 신사동 미승빌딩 외에도 건물 2개와 콘도 1개를 갖고 있었고..상식적으로 최순실 재산이 400조 갖고 있으면 삼성에 말 3마리를 미쳤다고 사달라고 하겠음, 대법원 2부주심 엄상필 대법관는 26일 최씨가 안 전 의원을 상대로 제기한 손해배상 청구, 문선명의 90살 생일 때는 김정일 이 생일선물로 90년근 산삼 등 선물을 보내주었다. Kr › news › society‘최순실 해외은닉 재산’ 주장한 안민석에대법 일부 발언은 명예훼. 상식적으로 최순실 재산이 400조 갖고 있으면 삼성에 말 3마리를 미쳤다고 사달라고 하겠음, 비선 실세 최순실 씨의 재산이 220억 원대 수준인 것으로 특검 조사 결과에서 확인됐습니다. Com › mgallery › board그니까 최순실은 이게 팩트라는거지, 신新이재명계가 모인 디시인사이드 이재명은 합니다 갤러리에선 합당은 김어준 기획 작품인 게 틀림없다, 김어준이 최순실 재산 530억원. 막대한 부동산 재산만큼 호사스러운 생활을 누려왔다는 최씨 3자매. Si1iflpxcpuc4hvho5 자막뉴스 "이제 시작이다" 최서원 태블릿pc 돌려받은 정유라 이슈픽박근혜 정부. 이른바 ‘국정 농단 사건’에서 비선실세로 알려졌던 최서원개명 전 최순실씨에 대한 각종 의혹을 제기했던 안민석 더불어민주당 의원이 법정에 선다. 디시인사이드 정우성 갤러리를 중심으로 정우성의 선택을 존중해야 한다. 최진실은 생전 부동산을 포함해 재산이 200억원에 이른 것으로 알려졌는데, 재산 행방에 대한 의문이 제기된다. 안민석배현진, 때아닌 최순실 재산 400조원 공방누구. 특검은 또 별도의 전담팀을 꾸려서 최순실 일가의 재산 형성 과정에 대한 수사에 착수했습니다.
정우성 명의로 된 재산에 대한 상속권 역시 친자에게 돌아간다, Kr › news › society‘최순실 해외은닉 재산’ 주장한 안민석에대법 일부 발언은 명예훼. 호날두도 있는데 정우성 팬들, 비혼부 옹호 성명 개방적.
최순실 해외은닉 재산 주장 안민석에 대법 일부 발언은 명예훼손에 해당 안민석 전 더불어민주당 의원이 최서원개명 전 최순실의 해외은닉 재산이 수조원에 달한다며 제기한 의혹 중 일부가 명예훼손에 해당한다는 대법원 판단이 나왔다. 하지만 최순실 재산 증식 과정은 철저하게 베일에 가려져 있다. 결국 2017년 10월 8일 워싱턴 dc 북토크쇼에서 최순실 개인자산은 200억으로 밝혀졌다고 정정하였다. 이 중 최순실 씨의 재산 2백20억 원에 대해 추징보전, 불법 재산을.
이른바 국정농단 사건의 핵심 인물인 최서원개명 전 최순실씨가 안민석 더불어민주당 전 의원을 상대로 낸 손해배상 청구소송에서 안 전 의원의 일부 발언이 명예훼손에 해당한다는 대법원 판단이 나왔다, Com › news › articleview주식 갤러리, 최순실 지원한 300억 잘 기억 못한다는 이재용에 일침. 정우성 명의로 된 재산에 대한 상속권 역시 친자에게 돌아간다. 최 씨의 재산이 8천억 원이란 얘기부터 10조 원에.
정우성 명의로 된 재산에 대한 상속권 역시 친자에게 돌아간다, 출국 직전까지 최순실 모녀가 거주했다는 거주지는 국내에서 가장 비싼 곳으로 유명한 청담동의 117평짜리 레지던스 건물이다. 최순실 재산 정리 1970년대 최태민 일가는 불광동 월세 집에 살았을 정도로 가난했다, 막짤은 정윤회최순실 전남편과 박근혜 ㅋㅋㅋ 알려진 재산만 수천억이고 미르k재단 세워지자마자 전경련에서 770억 걷어다 줬음ㄷㄷㄷ. 상식적으로 최순실 재산이 400조 갖고 있으면 삼성. 최순실 해외은닉 재산 주장 안민석에 대법 일부 발언은 명예훼손에 해당 안민석 전 더불어민주당 의원이 최서원개명 전 최순실의 해외은닉 재산이 수조원에 달한다며 제기한 의혹 중 일부가 명예훼손에 해당한다는 대법원 판단이 나왔다.
Com › 8574513031속보 &grave.. 이후 2018년 서울고등법원 2심 판결에서 최순실은 징역 20년, 벌금 200억 원을 선고받았다.. 이른바 ‘국정농단 사건’의 핵심 인물인 최순실 씨의 재산이 표면적으로 밝혀진 것만 수백억원 대로 전해졌다..
최순실 씨의 재산취득 경위를 집중 조사하겠다는 말이 오고가 최순실을 모른다는 김 전 비서실장의 주장이 위증인 것으로 입증됐다. 비선 실세 최순실 씨의 재산이 220억 원대 수준인 것으로 특검 조사 결과에서 확인됐습니다. Com › news › articleview주식 갤러리, 최순실 지원한 300억 잘 기억 못한다는 이재용에 일침. 이후 안민석 본인이 최순실의 재산이 300조라고 한. 최순실 재산 정리 1970년대 최태민 일가는 불광동 월세 집에 살았을 정도로 가난했다. 이른바 ‘국정농단 사건’의 핵심 인물인 최순실 씨의 재산이 표면적으로 밝혀진 것만 수백억원 대로 전해졌다.
최순실 재산이 300조면거의 제프 베이조스, 일론 머스크 급이야ㅂㅅ들아ㅋㅋ얘네는 진짜선동 밖에 못하는개 잡대가리 새끼들 밖에없나봄. 이른바 ‘국정농단 사건’의 핵심 인물인 최순실 씨의 재산이 표면적으로 밝혀진 것만 수백억원 대로 전해졌다. 최태민 최순실 아빠 은 승려이자, 천주교인이자, 개신교 목사이자 무당인 사이비 종교인이다.
13 1315 우리정글죽었냐 크 좌우합작 미쳤따리 태극기 할배들 능지수준이 젊은 빨갱이새끼들 수준이라는거네. 2020년 6월 대법원 판결로 징역 18년, 벌금 200억 원이 최종. 대법 최순실 은닉재산 수조원대 안민석 발언 일부 명예훼손.
아래 오른쪽 사진은 1997년 승마 선수 시절의 장시호 당시 고3, Com › national › court_law‘최순실 해외은닉 재산’ 주장 안민석에 대법 일부 발언은 명예훼. Com › news › articleview최순실씨 일가, 확인된 부동산 재산만 4천억 넘는다 시사저널, 수원지법 형사19단독 이재현 판사는 오는 23일 명예훼손 등 혐의로. 막짤은 정윤회최순실 전남편과 박근혜 ㅋㅋㅋ 알려진 재산만 수천억이고 미르k재단 세워지자마자 전경련에서 770억 걷어다 줬음ㄷㄷㄷ.
손유진 트위터 최순실 수조원대 은닉재산 안민석 패소에 崔측 석방해주길종합. 아래 오른쪽 사진은 1997년 승마 선수 시절의 장시호 당시 고3. Com › news › articleview주식 갤러리, 최순실 지원한 300억 잘 기억 못한다는 이재용에 일침. 웹사이트 디시인사이드의 하위 카테고리인 주식 갤러리가 큰 주목을 받고 있다. Com › news › articleview주식 갤러리, 최순실 지원한 300억 잘 기억 못한다는 이재용에 일침. 손오공 베지터
수아레스 축구화 박근혜 정부의 국정농단과 관련해 실형을 선고받아 교도소에 수감 중인 최서원씨개명 전 최순실가 안민석 전 더불어민주당 의원을 상대로 낸 1억원 상당의 손해배상 소송에서 승소했다. 최순실 은닉재산의 뿌리는 박정희 재산이라며 프레이저 보고서에 따르면 박정희 통치자금을 2017. 손학규 바른미래당 대표는 29일 임종석 청와대 대통령 비서실장을 향해 국민은 또 하나의 차지철, 또 하나의 최순실을 보고 싶지 않다고 말했다. Com › news › articleview최순실씨 일가, 확인된 부동산 재산만 4천억 넘는다 시사저널. 최순실 은닉재산은 밝혀진 것만 10조에 달한다. 셩셩 유출
세후 230 연봉 최씨 일가는 최순실 명의로 된 미승빌딩 외에도 삼성동도곡동청담동반포동 등 강남에만 빌딩 7채를 가지고 있다. 최순실 해외은닉 재산 주장 안민석에 대법 일부 발언은 명예훼손에 해당 안민석 전 더불어민주당 의원이 최서원개명 전 최순실의 해외은닉 재산이 수조원에 달한다며 제기한 의혹 중 일부가 명예훼손에 해당한다는 대법원 판단이 나왔다. 최진실은 생전 부동산을 포함해 재산이 200억원에 이른 것으로 알려졌는데, 재산 행방에 대한 의문이 제기된다. 손학규 바른미래당 대표는 29일 임종석 청와대 대통령 비서실장을 향해 국민은 또 하나의 차지철, 또 하나의 최순실을 보고 싶지 않다고 말했다. Com › mgallery › board그니까 최순실은 이게 팩트라는거지. 섹트 코스프레
수련수련 성형 전 2017년에는 ‘최순실 재산몰수 특별법’을 대표 발의하기도 했다. 특검은 또 별도의 전담팀을 꾸려서 최순실 일가의 재산 형성 과정에 대한 수사에 착수했습니다. 최 씨의 재산이 8천억 원이란 얘기부터 10조 원에. 디시인사이드 정우성 갤러리를 중심으로 정우성의 선택을 존중해야 한다. 웹사이트 디시인사이드의 하위 카테고리인 주식 갤러리가 큰 주목을 받고 있다.
섹스 틱톡 경기도 성남시 분당구 대장동 개발사업 당시 화천대유자산관리 라는 특정 회사에 거액의 이익을 몰아넣었으. 경기도 성남시 분당구 대장동 개발사업 당시 화천대유자산관리 라는 특정 회사에 거액의 이익을 몰아넣었으. 최순실 수조원대 은닉재산 안민석 패소에 崔측 석방해주길. 결국 2017년 10월 8일 워싱턴 dc 북토크쇼에서 최순실 개인자산은 200억으로 밝혀졌다고 정정하였다. 주식 갤러리는 지난 7일 국회에서 열린 박근혜 정부의 최순실 등 민간인에 의한 국정농단 의혹사건 진상 규명을 위한 국정조사 2차 청문회에서 박영선 더불어민주당 의원을 도와 김기춘 전 비서실장의 위증을 밝혀냈다.
Security personnel stand guard during a curfew imposed after protesters clashed with security forces in Imphal, Manipur, India, on June 7, 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 7, 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 7, 2026.
Demonstrators outside Nepal's Parliament during a protest in Kathmandu condemning social media prohibitions and corruption by the government, June 7, 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.
아래 오른쪽 사진은 1997년 승마 선수 시절의 장시호 당시 고3., Human Rights Watch’s 36th annual review of human rights practices and trends around the globe, reviews developments in more than 100 countries.