Will Human Rights Survive a Trumpian World?

Authoritarian Advances Threaten Rules-Based Order

The global human rights system is in peril. Under relentless pressure from US President Donald Trump, and persistently undermined by China and Russia, the rules-based international order is being crushed, threatening to take with it the architecture human rights defenders have come to rely on to advance norms and protect freedoms. To defy this trend, governments that still value human rights, alongside social movements, civil society, and international institutions, need to form a strategic alliance to push back.

To be fair, the downward spiral predated Trump’s reelection. The democratic wave that began over 50 years ago has given way to what scholars term a “democratic recession.” Democracy is now back to 1985 levels according to some metrics, with 72 percent of the world’s population now living under autocracy. Russia and China are less free today than 20 years ago. And so is the United States.

Of course, democracy is not a panacea for human rights violations; the US and other longtime democracies have their own histories of colonial crimes, racism, abusive justice systems, and wartime atrocities. More recently, authoritarian leaders have exploited public mistrust and anger to win elections and then dismantled the very institutions that brought them to power. Democratic institutions are crucial to represent the will of the people and keep power in check. It’s no surprise that whenever democracy is undermined, rights are too, as evident in recent years in India, Türkiye, the Philippines, El Salvador, and Hungary.

In this context, 2025 may be seen as a tipping point. In just 12 months, the Trump administration has carried out a broad assault on key pillars of US democracy and the global rules-based order, which the US, despite inconsistencies, was, with other states, instrumental in helping to establish.

In short order, Trump’s second-term administration has undermined trust in the sanctity of elections, reduced government accountability, gutted food assistance and healthcare subsidies, attacked judicial independence, defied court orders, rolled back women’s rights, obstructed access to abortion care, undermined remedies for racial harm, terminated programs mandating accessibility for people with disabilities, punished free speech, stripped protections from trans and intersex people, eroded privacy, and used government power to intimidate political opponents, the media, law firms, universities, civil society, and even comedians.

Claiming a risk of “civilizational erasure” in Europe and leaning on racist tropes to cast entire populations as unwelcome in the US, the Trump administration has embraced policies and rhetoric that align with white nationalist ideology. Immigrants and asylum seekers have been subjected to inhumane conditions and degrading treatment; 32 died in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in 2025, and as of mid-January 2026, an additional 4 have died. Masked immigration enforcement agents have targeted people of color, using excessive force, terrorizing communities, wrongfully arresting scores of citizens, and, most recently, unjustifiably killing two people in Minneapolis, whose deaths Human Rights Watch has documented.

The US president of course has the authority to tighten US borders and enforce stricter immigration policies. The administration is not, however, entitled to deny legal process to asylum seekers, mistreat undocumented migrants, or unlawfully discriminate. In a well-functioning democracy, no electoral mandate should supersede domestic legislation, constitutional protections, or international human rights law. Trump’s team has repeatedly bypassed these guardrails.

The violations have not stopped at the border. The Trump administration used a 1798 law to send hundreds of Venezuelan migrants to an infamous prison in El Salvador, where they were tortured and sexually abused. Its blatantly unlawful strikes on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific extrajudicially killed more than 120 people whom Trump claims were drug traffickers.

After the US attacked Venezuela and apprehended its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, Trump claimed the US would “run” the country and control its vast oil reserves. Despite paying lip service to human rights concerns under Maduro at the United Nations, Trump has worked with the same repressive apparatus to further US interests. Many Western allies have chosen to stay silent about these lawless moves, perhaps fearing erratic tariffs and blowback to their alliances.

Trump’s foreign policy has upended the foundations of the rules-based order that seeks to advance democracy and human rights, even if imperfectly.

Trump has boasted that he doesn’t “need international law” as a constraint, only his “own morality.” His administration has politicized the US State Department’s annual human rights report, stepped away from the global prohibition on antipersonnel landmines, voiced support for rewriting international rules on asylum, and skipped the UN’s Universal Periodic Review of the US’ human rights record.

His administration withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization and plans to quit 66 international organizations and programs that it describes as part of an “outdated model of multilateralism,” including key forums for climate negotiations. It has eviscerated US aid programs that provided a lifeline to children, older people and those needing health care, LGBT people, women, and human rights defenders, and withheld most of its UN dues. 

Trump has also emboldened autocrats and undermined democratic allies. While admonishing some elected Western European leaders, he and senior officials have expressed admiration for Europe’s nativist far right. He has favored autocrats such as Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, while continuing decades of US support to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

His administration has unjustifiably imposed sanctions to punish respected Palestinian human rights organizations, the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) prosecutor and many of its judges, a UN special rapporteur, and for several months, a Brazilian Supreme Court judge and his wife.

The institutional response in the US to Trump’s power grabs has been shockingly muted. Much of Congress, controlled by his own party, has not challenged his supercharged expansion of executive power. The leaders of the US’ most powerful technology companies have made significant donations and sought to placate the president. Some big law firms and prestigious universities have made deals rather than assert their independence, and some media organizations seem afraid to attract the president’s ire.

Has the US switched sides on the human rights playing field? While US engagement with human rights institutions has always been selective, China and Russia have long pursued an illiberal agenda. They stand much to gain from a US government that now expresses open hostility to universal rights. China and Russia remain strategic rivals of the US, but all three countries are now led by leaders who share open disdain for norms and institutions that could constrain their power.

Together, they wield considerable economic, military, and diplomatic power. If they were to consistently act as allies of convenience to erode global rules, they could threaten the entire system. Already, a loose international network of countries such as North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, Myanmar, Cuba, and Belarus work in concert with Russia and China. These leaders share very little ideologically but align in undermining human rights and promoting a regressive international agenda. In word and in practice, the US government is now helping them in this endeavor.

The US’ weakening of multilateral institutions also dealt a serious blow to global efforts to prevent or stop grave international crimes. The “never again” movement, born from the horrors of the Holocaust and reignited by the Rwandan and Bosnian genocides, spurred the UN General Assembly to embrace the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in 2005. Meant to guide international intervention to prevent and stop atrocities in tandem with efforts to prosecute and punish serious crimes, R2P made a real difference in places like the Central African Republic and Kenya.

Today, R2P is rarely invoked and the ICC is under siege. In addition to Trump’s far-reaching sanctions, in December 2025 a Moscow court sentenced the ICC prosecutor and eight of its judges to prison terms in absentia. Moreover, despite being ICC fugitives, in 2025, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin was welcomed by Donald Trump in Alaska, and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Hungary, an ICC member state at the time, at Orban’s invitation.

Twenty years ago, the US government and civil society were instrumental in galvanizing a response to mass atrocities in Darfur. Sudan is burning again, but this time under Trump, with relative impunity. Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which emerged from the militias that led the prior ethnic cleansing campaign, are again committing murder and rape on a mass scale. A growing body of evidence indicates that the UAE, a longtime US ally that recently made multi-billion-dollar deals with Trump, is providing the RSF with military support.

In the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the Israeli armed forces have committed acts of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity, killing over 70,000 people since the October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel and displacing the vast majority of Gaza’s population. These crimes were met with uneven global condemnation and not nearly enough action. Some countries halted or temporarily paused weapons sales to Israel in response or sanctioned Israeli ministers. Trump, however, continued a long-standing US policy of almost unconditional support to Israel, even as the International Court of Justice is weighing allegations of genocide and has issued binding orders under the Genocide Convention to protect Palestinians’ rights.

Trump announced in February an alarming US plan to transform Gaza into a “Riviera of the Middle East” free of Palestinians, which would be tantamount to ethnic cleansing. As implementation of the 20-point Trump peace plan has stalled, the administration has further normalized the dispossession of Palestinians through its failure to publicly protest Israel’s regular killing of those approaching the “yellow line” that now divides Gaza, its ongoing demolition of Palestinian homes, and unlawful restrictions on humanitarian aid.

In Ukraine, Trump’s peace efforts have consistently downplayed Russia’s responsibility for serious violations. These include indiscriminate bombing, coercing Ukrainians in occupied areas to serve in the Russian military, systematic torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war, the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia, and the use of quadcopter drones to hunt and kill civilians. Rather than applying meaningful pressure on Putin to end these crimes, Trump publicly berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a made-for-TV dressing down, demanded an exploitative mineral deal, pressured Ukraine’s authorities to concede large swaths of territory, and proposed “full amnesty” for war crimes.

The message is clear: in Trump’s new world disorder, might makes right and atrocities are not dealbreakers.

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9일 밤 방송된 tv조선 엄마가 뭐길래에서는 이상아와 딸 서진이 함께 모녀 궁합을 확인하는 모습이 그려졌다.. 엄마아빠도, 도박 운영자도 속았다통장협박으로 29억 챙겨.. 임신 10개월의 과정과 몸의 변화 주의할 점 부터 출산시 준비물, 분만시 중요정보 까지 그리고 신생아 돌보는 육아팁은 물론 한눈에 쏙 들어오는 육아용품 쇼핑 가이드 까지 임신출산육아 에 대한 내용은 언제봐도 새롭고 언제봐도 유익하다는 거 암튼 신청하고 늦게 수령한 만큼 반갑고도.. 아버지는 언제나처럼 너무나 둔감하고, 어머니 fpwjem..

여자가 사랑에 빠지면 디시

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1938년 「조선아동문학집」에 실린 소설가 이태준의 짧은 글에 김동성 작가의 서정적인 그림이 더해져 탄생한 작품으로, 2004년에 출간된 그림책을 재출간하였다. 임신 10개월의 과정과 몸의 변화 주의할 점 부터 출산시 준비물, 분만시 중요정보 까지 그리고 신생아 돌보는 육아팁은 물론 한눈에 쏙 들어오는 육아용품 쇼핑 가이드 까지 임신출산육아 에 대한 내용은 언제봐도 새롭고 언제봐도 유익하다는 거 암튼 신청하고 늦게 수령한 만큼 반갑고도, 토토군시즌2는 정확한 스포츠 분석과 프리미엄 픽을 제공합니다.

오디오 툰 왁싱

창가의 토토 소설을 원작으로 2023년 12월 8일 일본에서 개봉한 애니메이션, 애니망가 무료보기웹툰 무료보기 상업지 먹튀검색 시리즈 망가동인지 애니 웹툰무료보기 토토군 어른애니망가 왜 그런 녀석이 좋은거야 할배와 바람임신재혼한 엄마 회원님의 추천과 정성스러운 댓글은 먹튀검증 토토군의 큰 힘이 됩니다, 토토군 애니망가 0 7471 0 2020. 엄마랑 다윤이랑 린생 첫 스쿼시 공이 벽에 부딪히는 소리를 처음엔 무서워하다가 나중에는 적응해서 공 던지면서 놀았다, 2023년 일본 현지 9월, 영화 개봉작. 엄마아빠도, 도박 운영자도 속았다통장협박으로 29억 챙겨.

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요괴에 들린 영주에게 살해당할 뻔했지만 이누야샤 일행 덕분에 살아났다, 백발두꺼비에게 홀린 영주6에게 시집을 간 공주. 내 친구 토토는 경찰이예요 박인경 교보문고, 최대 반기 60만 원에서 1년에 백20만 원 지급하고 있고요. 5 토토군 825 29404 지독한 욕정의 끝 제. 먹튀검증 토토군 유머&감동 게시판에서 재미있는 글과 사진을 공유하시고 즐거운 시간 되세요.

영서 엉밑살 領 領 ⠀ ️버디우디인형놀이set ⠀ 퐄퐕퐄퐍퐓. Com › bbs › board토토군 1 페이지 먹튀검증소 먹튀 사이트 먹튀검증 안전사이트. 모모에겐 단짝 친구가 있는데, 바로 토토이다. 전문가의 철저한 분석으로 회원님의 성공적인 베팅을. 애니망가 무료보기웹툰 무료보기 상업지 먹튀검색 시리즈 망가동인지 애니 웹툰무료보기 토토군 어른애니망가 왜 그런 녀석이 좋은거야 할배와 바람임신재혼한 엄마 회원님의 추천과 정성스러운 댓글은 먹튀검증 토토군의 큰 힘이 됩니다. 예쁜 중국인

여자 발 포상 디시 오직 멍냥의 광장에서만 펫피 100포인트로 득템 가능😎🛍️ 7. 이날 역술가는 이상아와 딸 서진의 궁합에. 07 토토군 애니망가 보기 토토군웹툰 먹튀검증 토토군 먹튀신고 상업지 먹튀검색 시리즈 동인지 애니 웹툰무료보기 먹튀검증 토토군 어른애니망가 흐트러진 엄마 토토군 먹튀없는 안전 사이트 리스트 보러가기 0. 엄마랑 다윤이랑 린생 첫 스쿼시 공이 벽에 부딪히는 소리를 처음엔 무서워하다가 나중에는 적응해서 공 던지면서 놀았다. 2025 보림그림책 창작스튜디오 모집 중. 오등분의 신부 히토미

여요여 sotwe 아버지는 언제나처럼 너무나 둔감하고, 어머니 fpwjem. 엄마의 기다란 베트남 이름을 부끄러워하는 주인공을 통해 친구들에게 놀림을 받을까 봐, 다르다고 차별을 당할까 봐 걱정하는 다문화 가정의 아이들 모습을 볼 수 있다. 9마리를 출산했는데 그중에 엄마랑 색깔도 똑같고 가장 닮은 토토를 저희 집으로 입양해 주셨어요. 미스터리라 하지 말지어다 15 서울미디어코믹스 임신출산. 토토군 애니망가 0 7471 0 2020. 여자 스캇 트위터

연떠 대학 영제 kaasan jyanakya damenanda. 친구 엄마와의 추억 토토군 1087 29409 작은엄마 토토군 737 29408 고딩동창인 유부녀썰 토토군 773 29407 엄마랑 여관에 목욕썰 5 토토군 1358 29406 처재와 1 토토군 997 29405 성숙했던 초딩때 아는 학원 누나한테 고추를 문댄 썰입니다. 아버지는 언제나처럼 너무나 둔감하고, 어머니 fpwjem. 제주 바닷가 작은 마을에서 한 뼘씩 자라온 두 사람의 인생은 어디로 향할까. 는 내용이 정말 별거없는 언제나의 모자 근친물입니다.

여장바텀 트위터 동인지 카즈군와 엄마 토토군 7 21330 0 2025. 엄마가 뭐길래 이상아, 사주 결과에 충격 결혼 10번 이상. 5 토토군 825 29404 지독한 욕정의 끝 제. 엄마가 뭐길래 이상아, 사주 결과에 충격 결혼 10번 이상. 요괴에 들린 영주에게 살해당할 뻔했지만 이누야샤 일행 덕분에 살아났다.

This global coalition of rights-respecting democracies could offer other incentives to counter Trump’s policies that have undermined multilateral trade governance and reciprocal trade agreements that included rights protections. Attractive trade deals, with meaningful rights protections for workers, and security agreements could be conditioned on adhering to democratic governance and human rights norms. Democracy already comes with benefits. While autocracies have generally fostered conflict, economic stagnation, or kleptocracy, as evidenced in multiple academic studies, including the work of the Nobel Prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu, democratic institutions reliably yield economic growth. 

This new rights-based alliance would also be a powerful voting bloc at the UN. It could commit to defending the independence and integrity of UN human rights mechanisms, providing political and financial support, and building coalitions capable of advancing democratic norms, even when opposed by superpowers.

Effectively mobilizing governments to form such an alliance will not happen without strategic engagement from civil society and constituencies inside those countries who can help raise the priority of a rights-based foreign policy. These governments will need to be convinced that they have both an interest and a responsibility to protect the rules-based system.

Projects of this nature are bubbling up. Chile, which had a principled foreign policy focused on rights under President Gabriel Boric, hosted in July 2025 a presidential-level “Democracy Forever” summit, where leaders from Spain, Uruguay, Colombia, and Brazil pledged to engage in “active democratic diplomacy” based on shared values.

The Hague Group, led by Malaysia, South Africa, and Colombia, formed in January 2025 in “defense of international law” and in solidarity with Palestinians. Over 70 countries from all regions signed a joint statement defending multilateralism at the UN. Earlier, in 2017, former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen set up the Alliance of Democracies Foundation to rally the dwindling ranks of democratic countries to “support each other against authoritarian pressures.”

Whatever its precise contours, an alliance of rights-respecting democracies would offer a hopeful counterpoint to the authoritarian trope of China’s and Russia’s leaders standing alongside North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, observing military hardware in a parade in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in September. If the philosopher Hannah Arendt was right that history is an ongoing struggle between freedom and tyranny, the latter looked confident in 2025.

Yet, even in the worst of times, the idea of freedom and human rights is enduring. People power remains an engine for change. In the US, “No Kings” marches have drawn millions, protesters in Chicago, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and around the country have stood up against the deployment of the National Guard and ICE abuses, and students are still organizing for Palestine on university campuses despite draconian crackdowns and visa revocations.

Buoyed by popular resistance, South Korean parliamentarians impeached their president to prevent him from grabbing power through martial law. Grassroots aid efforts by Sudan’s emergency response rooms, Hong Kong’s fire relief, Sri Lanka’s cyclone relief community kitchens, and Ukrainian mutual aid and solidarity collectives represent the best of this trend.

In 2025, Gen Z protests against corruption, inadequate public services, and poor governance in Nepal, Indonesia, and Morocco brought to the forefront the need for governments to listen to their youth and tackle corruption and inequality. But as the difficulties of restoring rights in Bangladesh after years under an authoritarian government illustrates, gains won through public mobilization can easily be lost unless democratic participation and free expression remain unassailable.