The Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity is a declaration adopted by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Twelve key informative Articles constitute this Declaration which discusses identity, diversity and rights.

Articles 4 and 5 explore cultural rights, which you can view here.

Cultural diversity refers to the many cultural, racial, ethnic groups in a society.

There are quite a few challenges in cultural diversity and rights that can lead to cultural prejudice, such as racism and stereotypes.

Some expressions of this are:

Xenophobia: dislike of or prejudice against people from other countries.

Ethnocentrism: the belief that ones own ethnicity or culture is superior to all of the others.

Racism: prejudice, discrimination by an individual, community, or institution against a person race or ethnic group.

These prejudices restrict people to express their background and lifestyle.

Following this, what are your cultural rights? Cultural rights are rights everyone is entitled to.

They are human rights that aim to assure everyone with a particular cultural background that they have a right to enjoy their culture and lifestyle.

Each culture has a personal lifestyle. Many might wear clothing that differs from traditional British attire.

They may speak a different language, which many people receive hate or discrimination when they speak their language in a public environment simply because others do not understand.

This is something you should feel free to do without experiencing any judgement.

We live in a free and democratic society where you have the freedom to state opinions, and you have the right to equality.

Section 27 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (Which we have also covered) says that:

“All persons with a particular cultural, religious, racial or linguistic background must not be denied the right, in community with other persons of that background, to enjoy their culture, to declare and practise their religion and to use their language.”

The full declaration can be read on the United Nations Human Rights Website here.