The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is a document that outlines the basic rights of children. It was adopted and opened for ratification in November of 1989. Up until 2015, every country that is part of the United Nations, besides the United States and Somalia, have ratified it. In January of 2015 Somalia ratified the CRC, leaving the U.S. as the only country in the UN to have not ratified it.
So what does ratification mean? It is basically the formal validation of proposed documents. 22 years ago, in 1995, President Bill Clinton signed the CRC. But now the only thing preventing it from being enacted is the ratification process that must go through the Senate.
It is time to guarantee all children basic human rights, which coincides with our core values as Americans.