Human Rights of Mathematicians

Introduction

The topic of human rights has been an important focus of the American Mathematical Society (AMS) for decades. Most current cases that the AMS Committee on the Human Rights of Mathematicians (CHRM) has been following for the last several years are based in Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe. Even though imprisonment and allegations of torture of mathematicians have not been found domestically, individuals who have voiced their opinions, which are traditionally protected as a first amendment right, have been fired from their teaching positions here in the United States. The AMS was forward thinking in 1977 to create a committee to focus on human rights of mathematicians. Expanding the effort to consider domestic cases as well as international ones was a move made in 2019. Arguably, the main question today should not be whether to maintain these efforts, but how to increase awareness of these efforts, as well as how to increase the committee’s overall effectiveness.

History, Goals, and Mission of the AMS CHRM

The CHRM held its first meeting on January 28, 1977, in St. Louis. At that meeting it was decided that it would be appropriate for the Committee to advocate on behalf of foreign mathematicians whose human rights had been violated. The Committee was established to assist the AMS Council, which had intervened on behalf of individuals or groups of mathematicians in other countries who were being mistreated by their government. From the original charge, we read:

By violations of human rights, the Committee is to understand violations of freedoms enumerated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the Affirmation adopted by the National Academy of Sciences, USA: in particular, torture, imprisonment for political reasons, dismissal from a job which deprives a mathematician of the opportunity to function professionally.

We further read that:

It would be impractical to consider less drastic offenses like denial of promotion or of professional recognition.

At the beginning and indeed for many years, the authority of the Committee was limited to “foreign” mathematicians:

not because human rights of American mathematicians are less important, or completely safe. The AMS should be, of course, particularly concerned with the rights of American mathematicians. However, matters concerning Americans should not be referred to this Committee.

The earliest cases in which the AMS CHRM took some action—actions including letters sent and Notices articles written—involved mathematicians in Russia (former Soviet Union), Mali, Argentina, Germany, Chile, and Uruguay. Members of the first AMS CHRM committee were Nathan Jacobson (Chair), Lipman Bers, Charles Herbert Clemens, Chandler Davis, Morris Hirsch, and John Nohel. Around the same time that the AMS launched the CHRM, the broader scientific community mobilized to act in the human rights field; notably, the National Academy of Sciences formed its Human Rights Committee.

Over the years, the AMS committee focus has not changed much, though some shifting in the countries of concern has taken place. Cases considered over the past five years are from Russia, Turkey, and Egypt. Cases from Palestine and China have also been considered over the past decades.

The Committee charge has been updated on several occasions with, arguably, the most significant change coming in 2019. By the mid-1980s AMS records show that a discussion of expanding the charge to include cases involving American mathematicians took place. In 2019, this change was made, and the charge no longer solely addresses foreign mathematicians. It now reads:

The AMS is committed to speaking whenever mathematicians are deprived of the opportunity to practice their profession due to violations of the freedoms enumerated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (http://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/) and the Affirmation adopted by the US National Academy of Sciences.

The AMS does not work alone on these issues. In 2013, for example, AMS became a full member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Human Rights Coalition.

Challenges and Opportunities

Information source challenges

While the original CHRM charter states that to make a “recommendation for action,” “any source of information available” may be used. The state of information sharing in 2024 differs greatly from what it was even a decade ago. We no longer rely only on a few traditional sources of obtaining news, sources which admittedly could be biased with their own agenda. Now, we have access to information from a multitude of sources on an almost minute-by-minute basis. More is not necessarily better, however, and the integrity of those sources can be especially challenging to verify. While misinformation may be shared due to sheer negligence, disinformation can be, and is, used purposely to mislead. Artificial intelligence is one tool that can be used to mislead the reader and manipulate viewpoints. The existence of deepfakes is particularly disturbing. Authenticating claims of abuse must be done consistently and objectively. One challenge for the committee is to remain aware of claims made about human rights violations in a timely manner. Another challenge is to verify the authenticity of those claims.

Actionable steps

Yet another challenge of continuing human rights work in 2024 is how to expand meaningful involvement within the mathematics community. That is, interest in sustaining the work of the committee must be maintained by recruiting new members with fresh perspectives. A committee is only as strong as its members and leadership, and each has a role to play in continuing the committee objectives as set forth in its charter. Namely, the CHRM is charged with several possible courses of action when confronted with a case. These steps could include (i) recommending action based on advice obtained from agencies which deal with human rights (such as Amnesty International or Scholars at Risk); (ii) requesting a letter of support written by the AMS president on behalf of the individual in question; (iii) informing the AMS membership about cases; and (iv) posting news items to the AMS website. Our partnerships with established human rights organizations are especially useful. By collaborating with experts in the field of human rights work, a practical course of action can be considered and undertaken by those who know best how to approach a claim. A checklist might be devised so that all cases can be afforded the same degree of attention and review. It may not be sufficient only to bring awareness to a situation: further purposeful action may be warranted. Standing by silently should not be our default status.

Build greater awareness within the AMS

The key to a strong human rights component within the AMS is to build awareness of the Committee’s work, and share the work being done to address human rights violations against mathematicians around the world. Mathematics is the basis of every other science and, therefore, has a wide reach. Encouraging other mathematicians to join these human rights efforts will bring fresh energy and interest so the work continues and remains relevant and effective. As educators, it is our job to educate with factual information, without distortion or bias. The human rights cases that we are aware of are most likely but a small number of actual cases in the world. Given the increasing conflict and atrocities being committed in the world right now, the moral obligation of those of us who are outside of the troubled areas must be to express our humanity by being the voice of those who cannot speak for themselves.

Closing

Since its inception, the AMS Committee for the Human Rights of Mathematicians has been dedicated to raising awareness about injustices targeting mathematicians around the globe. It is painful to observe that situations which may have seemed remote 50 years ago have remained and, in many cases, grown even more dire in the intervening years. International events over just the last two years remind us that we must not ignore these injustices wherever they occur. Indeed, we must look both outwardly and inwardly through a social justice lens. We must remain vigilant in our goal to shed light on these victimized individuals and their circumstances. To be most effective, we must connect with partner agencies that perform the actual work of advocating for and assisting in the resolution of these cases. We must translate awareness and compassion into significant action.

You can find the current CHRM charge, list of members, coverage of individual cases, and ways to engage, at the CHRM web page: https://www.ams.org/about-us/governance/committees/humanrights.