Celebrating Human Rights Day

Human Rights Day may not come with lights or decorations, but it marks one of the most powerful commitments the world has ever made. On December 10, 1948, nations came together to adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), a promise that every person, everywhere, deserves dignity, freedom, and equality. Each year, this day invites us to reflect on those universal rights, celebrate the progress we’ve made, and confront the challenges that remain.

Today, the UN helps to organize events to mark Human Rights Day around the world. Many countries hold cultural performances. People attend talks and meetings about human rights. The UN also may award a prize to people or groups that have promoted human rights. In some countries, people have held protests on Human Rights Day.

To help students explore the history and importance of Human Rights Day, let’s unpack human rights, explore their history and importance, and identify how they impact people all around the world.

What Are Human Rights?

The term human rights began being used after World War II, after the UN published the UDHR. This declaration said that all human beings, no matter their race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, or other status, are universally entitled to the right to life and liberty, to freedom from slavery and torture, to freedom of opinion and expression, to work and get education, and more (UN.org).

The History of Human Rights

Ancient Times

People in many early societies had no rights. They had only duties that they owed to their ruler.

The ancient Greeks and Romans were probably the first people to think much about rights. A Roman group called the Stoics believed in something that they called natural law. They said that natural law gave some rights to everyone, even people who were not citizens of Rome.

The Roman Empire in western Europe fell apart in about AD 500. Most people then became subject to the rule of strong kings. But gradually people began to ask for certain rights from their rulers.

Enlightenment

In the 1600s and 1700s, some people in Europe carried this idea even further. Thinkers in this time period of the Enlightenment said that people should not have to ask their rulers for certain rights. These thinkers argued that the purpose of governments is to protect those rights.

These ideas spread throughout Europe and its colonies at a time when people were beginning to question the powers of government. The American Revolution, which began in 1775, and the French Revolution of 1789 grew out of the Enlightenment ideas.

After the Enlightenment

Two documents that were written during these revolutions strongly affirm the rights of citizens. The U.S. Declaration of Independence lists “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” as rights that “all men” get from God. The French wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.

But even in the United States, many people did not enjoy full human rights. Slaves had almost no rights, and women had limited rights. Most slaves did not gain the basic human right of freedom until the 1800s. Women in most countries, including the United Kingdom, did not gain the same rights as men until the 1900s.

Since World War II

After World War II (1939–45), the world learned that Nazi Germany had killed millions of Jews and other civilians. This convinced many countries that it was necessary to protect the basic rights of people everywhere.

A number of these countries formed an organization called the United Nations (UN) in 1945. In 1948, the UN issued a document called the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The declaration calls for “human rights” instead of “the rights of man” because it includes everyone’s rights.

The declaration has 30 articles, or sections. They spell out many different rights, such rights to property, peace, equal justice before the law, fair working conditions, rest and leisure, freedom of religion, and freedom of thought and expression. The declaration also includes the right to live in a healthy environment and to share in Earth’s resources.

Today

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights investigates abuses of human rights throughout the world. The office works with several other UN groups to protect the rights of men, women and children everywhere.

Activists like Malala Yousafzai, Luis Kutner, and Nadia Murad have dedicated their lives to bringing justice to people whose rights have been violated.

Honoring Human Rights in the Classroom

After learning about human rights, spark classroom discussion and further research using these curated resources: