Rights & Justice Festival

Know your Rights? What is Justice? 

The Rights and Justice Festival is a one-day celebration of human rights, social justice, equality, and so much more, and it is open for everyone to attend. It is a great opportunity to learn about new ideas, get involved in interactive activities and to hear from a wide range of speakers who are leaders in their fields.

Join us for some fantastic free talks from experts on areas as diverse as colonialism, the law, the death penalty, the jury system, human rights, children's rights, family law, social rights in the criminal justice system, judges, last year's summer riots, and the US constitution.

The Festival is a collaboration between the University of Worcester's Constitutions, Rights and Justice Research Group and The Hive. Our speakers include Law and Criminology academics from within the University's School of Law and School of Criminology, academics from other departments like History and Psychology, a former judge, and external academics. 

We welcome members of the public, as well as colleges and sixth forms to attend. If you are representing an educational group and have any questions about this event, please contact g.cartmell@worc.ac.uk

 

Schedule 
10am-10:40am – Session 1 
10:40am-11:20am – Session 2 
11:20am-12pm – Keynote 1 
12pm-1pm – Lunch break 
1pm-1:40pm – Session 4 
1:40pm-2:20pm – Session 5 
2:20pm-3pm – Session 6 
3pm-4pm – Session 7 
4pm-6pm – Break 
6pm-7:30pm – Keynote 2 

Please note: There are 2 options available for most sessions. Please do not book for two sessions at the same time. 

 

Session 1A: Dr Michael Lane 
Human Rights and Children’s rights: What are they and why do they matter? 
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Session 1B: Dr Chris Monaghan 
The Not So Swinging 60s: When Britain Exiled Islanders from their Homeland 
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Session 2A: Nicola Monaghan 
When Jurors Go Rogue 
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Session 2B: Dr Isabel Gilbert 
Colonial Legacies in Museums and the Pursuit of Narrative Justice 
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Keynote 1: Dr Beverley Gilbert 
The Impact of Systemic Failure on Communities of Women with Experience of Complex Disadvantage and Trauma 
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Session 4A: Dr Nkem Adeleye 
Inordinate Delays: An Inmate’s Journey on Death Row 
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Session 4B: Dr Mikahil Azad 
From Violence to Unity: A Criminological Analysis of the UK Summer 2024 Riots and the Rise of Hate Narratives 
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Session 5A: Dr Wendy Toon 
The “American Experiment” 
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Session 5B: HH Daniel Pearce-Higgins KC 
Ask a Judge: Does the punishment fit the crime? 
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Session 6A: Jenny Watkins 
Family Law: Fact or Fiction? 
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Session 6B: Dr Clive Sealey 
Wrongs to Rights: The Importance of Social Rights to the Criminal Justice System 
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Session 7: Sarah Lloyd 
Mock Jury: You Decide – Guilty or Not Guilty 
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Keynote 2: Professor Jon Yorke 
International Law and Alabama’s Executions by Nitrogen Gas Asphyxiation 
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