BIHR Tour 2015: 15 days of action to mark 15 years of the Human Rights Act

Date: 2nd October 2015
Category: Awareness-raising

Each autumn, the Human Rights Tour travels the UK holding free-to-attend pop-up community education and debate days. This year, from the 2nd October 2015 the British Institute of Human Rights have 15 days of activities and opportunities to get involved, learn, share and be empowered to join the conversations about how our human rights are protected.

Bring a Human Rights Tour event to your community

This year the Human Rights Tour will run from 2-16 October. If you would like to bring a Human Rights Tour event to your town or city, then complete the short application form to get your bid in for an event in your community, including young people's events and evening talks. The deadline for partner applications is Wednesday 5 August.

Human Rights Act birthday celebrations

There are lots of ways to join in with the Human Rights Act birthday celebrations on 2 October:

Tweet your birthday message to the Human Rights Act using #ImAlrightWithHumanRights and #HRA15

Say Happy Birthday to the Human Rights Act via Facebook, adding your message of support for the protection of universal human rights here at home.

BIHR will be holding an event on 2 October to celebrate the 15 anniversary of the Human Rights, where they will present an "Open Birthday Card" from organisations across the UK. If your organisation would like to sign up to this open card, please get in touch.

Great Human Rights Act Bake-Off

Calling all bakers! Help BIHR celebrate the Human Rights Act turning 15 by baking a birthday cake on Friday 2 October:

- Bake a cake to take into work, school or to your local community group

- Organise a coffee morning at work, school, or in your local community and invite your friends and colleagues

- You could sell slices of cake or cupcakes to your friends and colleagues to help raise money for BIHR

- If you are a keen activist, you could even take a birthday cake along to your MP during their local constituency surgery that day.

Contact info@bihr.org.uk for a Bake Off pack, and visit the website for a Human Rights Act cake recipe card.

Each year in the life of the Human Rights Act

The 15 days of action will start with a blog on 2 Oct looking back at the Human Rights Act coming into force in 2000. The following days will mark another year in the life of the Act, looking at landmark cases or human rights stories. You can get involved by joining the conversation, perhaps writing your own blog and by tweeting using #HRA15, or by following the discussion on Twitter (@BIHRhumanrights) or on their Act For UK Rights blog.

Get in touch with the BIHR if you'd like to write a blog piece.

Why now?

"On 2 October 2000 the Human Rights Act became law, protecting universal human rights across the UK. Fifteen years on, this October BIHR's Human Rights Tour will be celebrating this important anniversary our Human Rights Act and the difference it has made to our democracy and people's lives across the UK."

"With powerful voices talking about unravelling the protection of our universal human rights here at home, now is the time for us all to truly understand what is at stake. More often than not our Human Rights Act is used as a political football, focusing on extreme cases and snippets of the full story. BIHR state from working with people across the UK that there is an appetite to know more, to be better informed, and not simply take what those with power say at face value. This year the flagship community outreach programme - the Human Rights Tour - will mark the Human Rights Act's 15th birthday, providing a space for that different and much needed conversation." - The British Institute of Human Rights.