The United Nations Human Rights Council has announced the holding of an "urgent" debate on systemic racism and police brutality on Wednesday, June 17, 2020.
The U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva said, it will examine the "current racially inspired human rights violations, systemic racism, police brutality and the violence against peaceful protests" this Wednesday.
In a letter to Tichy-Fisslberger obtained by CBS News, Burkina Faso's representative to the U.N. Dieudonné W. Désiré Sougouri called for the debate Friday in the wake of the protests that have spread throughout the world since the death of George Floyd.
"The tragic events of 25 May in Minneapolis in the U.S. which led to the death of George Floyd led to protests throughout the world against injustice and police brutality that persons of African descent face on a daily basis in many regions of the world," Sougouri said.
Several high profile U.N. officials, including Secretary General António Guterres, have denounced racism, while more than 20 senior U.N. officials who are African or of African descent also published a statement titled, "On the Black Lives Matter Protests and other Mass Demonstrations against Systemic Racism and Police Brutality."
