This past Friday, the United Nations’ Human Rights Council formally agreed to commission a report on systemic racism and police violence throughout the world, largely in response to the global uproar that’s followed the police killing of George Floyd.
Speaking on Boston Public Radio Monday, WGBH News analyst and GroundTruth Project CEO Charlie Sennott called the decision a “self-effacing moment for the U.S."
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"It’s a really extraordinary moment to see how globalized the outrage against the killing of George Floyd has become,” Sennott said, adding "I think the United Nations is embracing that in saying they’re going to look at systemic racism."
The resolution has faced criticism from members of President Trump’s administration, which has largely positioned itself in support of police.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, for one, said the move “marks a new low” for the Human Rights Council, which he also described as “a haven for dictators and the democracies that indulge them.” In his Saturday press statement, Pompeo cited the membership of Venezuela, Cuba, and China as evidence of the Human Right Council’s hypocrisy.
Sennott conceded there was some credence to Pompeo’s point, and admitted a history of "glaring hypocrisy around who they go after and why” within the United Nations.
But, he added, "I don’t think that we should feel the U.N. has no standing here to take a look at this, for the world. I think they do, and I think they will."
