World Day of Social Justice

February 19, 2022

Written by: Megan Moran

Since 2009, February 20th has been observed around the globe as World Day of Social Justice. This was declared and started by the United Nations on November 26, 2007 as a step towards continuous social justice and fair globalization. According to the United Nations, “The General Assembly recognizes that social development and social justice are indispensable for the achievement and maintenance of peace and security within and among nations and that, in turn, social development and social justice cannot be attained in the absence of peace and security, or in the absence of respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms.”

Every year the United Nations chooses a theme to focus on relating to social justice, which encourages people to fight and get justice for that specific group of people. Past themes have included: Preventing Conflict and Sustaining Peace through Decent Work in 2017; Workers on the Move: the Quest for Social Justice in 2018; If You Want Peace and Development, Work for Social Justice in 2019; Closing the Inequalities Gap to Achieve Social Justice in 2020; and A Call for Social Justice in the Digital Economy in 2021.

This year the United Nations has chosen to focus on Achieving Social Justice through Formal Employment. The United Nations said that it is necessary to promote a transition to formal employment to reduce poverty and inequalities. This will help the approximately 2 billion working people around the globe who earn their livelihood in the informal economy. According to the UN, “Informal workers, who often lack any form of social protection or employment-related benefits are twice as likely to be poor compared to formal workers. Most people enter the informal economy not by choice, but due to lack of opportunities in the formal economy.” This year’s World Day of Social Justice will encourage nations and activists around the world to take actions that benefit informal workers.

Sources

https://www.un.org/en/observances/social-justice-day

https://nationaldaycalendar.com/world-day-of-social-justice-february-20/