Human Rights Day – History and facts

Human Rights Day is observed every year on 10 December. It commemorates the day on which, in 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In 1950, the Assembly passed resolution 423 (V), inviting all States and interested organizations to observe 10 December of each year as Human Rights Day.

Human rights are our basic rights or freedoms. They include our right to live, our right to health, education, freedom of speech and thoughts, and equal rights. Some groups organize protests on Human Rights Day to alert people of circumstances in parts of the world where human rights are not recognized or respected, or where these rights are not considered to be important. Cultural events and photo exhibitions are also held to inform people, especially today’s youth, of their rights and why it’s important to hold on to them.

About Human Rights Day
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted between January 1947 and December 1948. It aimed to form a basis for human rights all over the world and represented a significant change of direction from events during World War II and the continuing colonialism that was rife in the world at the time. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is considered as the most translated document in modern history. It is available in more than 360 languages and new translations are still being added.

The UN General Assembly adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France, on the December 10, 1948. All states and interested organizations were invited to mark December 10 as Human Rights Day at a UN meeting on December 4, 1950. It was first observed on December 10 that year and has been observed each year on the same date. Each year Human Rights Day has a theme. Some of these themes have focused on people knowing their human rights or the importance of human rights education.

HUMAN RIGHTS DAY QUOTES

• “The real struggle for us is for the citizen to cease to be the property of the state.”
• “Many of us persons of the tinted persuasion care about human rights and artistic freedom too.”
• “To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.”
• “The rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.”
• “Laws are silent in times of war.”
• “Knowledge makes a man unfit to be a slave.”
• “Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must — at that moment — become the center of the universe.”
• “Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
• “We are just two people. Not that much separates us. Not nearly as much as I’d thought.”
• “No matter how pathetic or pitiful, every human is fated to have one moment in their lives in which they can change their own destiny.”
• “Please use your freedom to promote ours.”
• “The only way to make sure people you agree with can speak is to support the rights of people you don’t agree with.”
• “Today’s human rights violations are the causes of tomorrow’s conflicts.”
• “We believe that human rights transcend boundaries and must prevail over state sovereignty.”
• “An injustice committed against anyone is a threat to everyone.”
• “Together we can prevent genocide from happening again. Together we can make a better future for our children.”
• “You are a human being. You have rights inherent in that reality. You have dignity and worth that exist prior to law.”
• “Remember, the change you want to see in the world, and in your school, begins with you.”
• “If the prisoner is beaten, it is an arrogant expression of fear.”
• “It is hard to talk about a middle ground for something that is a fundamental right.”
• “Health is a human necessity; health is a human right”.