World Human Rights Day: Gonzaga Campus celebrates education, memory and civic engagement

Every year, on December 10, the international community celebrates World Human Rights Day, commemorating the adoption of the 1948 Universal Declaration.

This year too, the Gonzaga Campus has chosen to transform this anniversary into an opportunity for profound learning, involving students of all ages — from the Italian School to the International School of Palermo — in paths of reflection, research and active citizenship.

The result was a rich, creative mosaic of activities strongly connected to the present, capable of uniting history, current events, linguistic skills and ethical commitment.

International School of Palermo: between ideologies, genocides and global diplomacy

M4 – Ideologies and society: understanding where rights are denied

By Prof. Rose Mburu

The students of class M4 analyzed various political ideologies and their impact on societies, with particular attention to situations in which human rights are violated. Weekly round table discussions were held on topics of great ethical complexity:

How can countries repair past injustices?

Is war ever necessary?

What do eugenics and forced sterilizations entail?

A work of critical awareness that has allowed students to address global issues with maturity and responsibility.

M5 – Human rights and genocides: a UN assembly in class

By Professors Gary Collins and Stefania Pecoraro

In M5, the Individuals and Societies and Italian disciplines collaborated in a joint path that ranged from human rights to acts of genocide.

After watching the film Invictus about Nelson Mandela, the students prepared a speech to present to the United Nations. Each chose a state affected by a contemporary genocide and wrote a formal speech that was presented to the class, transformed for the occasion into a simulation of the UN General Assembly.

Italian School: stories of courage, rights and memory

Lower Secondary School: inspiring women, historical memory and presentations in English

III Media A and B – Mujeres inspiradoras: from the Hermanas Mirabal to Frida Kahlo

By Prof. Maria Teresa Cataldo

The students began with the viewing of a video dedicated to the Hermanas Mirabal, symbols of resistance to the Dominican dictatorship. Through comprehension and analysis activities, they explored:

the courage of the Mirabal sisters,

the political and social context in which they lived.

Subsequently, the classes carried out research on other "inspiring women", such as:

Eva Perón

Teresa Perales

Le Sinsombrero

Frida Kahlo

Le Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo

Particularly impactful were the figures of:

Teresa Perales, Spanish Paralympic swimmer, a witness to resilience and determination.

Le Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo, an international symbol of the search for truth and the defense of the rights of children who disappeared during the Argentine dictatorship.

III Media A and B – Presentations in English on great human rights defenders

By Prof. Rossella Valentina Vedda

The classes were divided into working groups dedicated to key figures in the history of human rights, including:

Nelson Mandela

Eleanor Roosevelt

Rosa Parks

Leymah Gbowee

Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Gino Strada

Martin Luther King Jr.

Malala Yousafzai

Each group created a presentation in English, developing communication skills, presentation skills and a spirit of collaboration. The activity put the students in a position to understand the moral scope of the great battles for rights and to tell them in an international language.

Trailer of the work:

High Schools: the biography of Rigoberta Menchú and female figures in the defense of human rights

By Professors Maria Teresa Cataldo and María Victoria Martínez

The classes of the Liceo Classico, Scientifico and Scienze Umane deepened their knowledge of the life of Roberta Menchú, a Guatemalan indigenous leader and activist for the rights of the Mayan peoples.

Through texts and insights, the students analyzed:

her biography, marked by violence and injustice;

her commitment to the peaceful denunciation of human rights violations;

the value of her voice in defending cultural identities and social justice.

The path was enriched with a paired research on female figures from the Spanish-speaking world who have contributed to the defense of rights, including artists, social leaders and activists.

A large Human Rights poster to unite the Campus

A group of middle school students, led by Professor Emio Cinardo, is working on the creation of a collaborative poster dedicated to human rights. A shared project that will become a tangible symbol of the Campus' commitment to promoting awareness, responsibility and active citizenship.

Educating about rights means educating about peace

World Human Rights Day, at the Gonzaga Campus, is not a formal anniversary: it is an educational experience that invites students to question, understand, choose and act.

From dialogue on ideologies to simulated UN interventions, from stories of courageous women to presentations in English on the great defenders of freedom, each activity has contributed to forming more aware citizens, capable of reading the complexity of the world and committing to transforming it.

A path that fully reflects the mission of the Campus: to educate to become men and women for others, protagonists of a more just and peaceful society.