history of human rights presentation

History Cooperative

The Evolution, Growth, and History of Human Rights

The history of human rights isn’t that simple. The concept has been around for eons, really, but inalienable rights are only a recent development. Just how recent? Well, the legal recognition of human rights within the international community wasn’t until the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Even still, the moral principles that constitute our fundamental rights are rich in history. Global leaders and government officials in 1948 didn’t just wake up one day thinking, “Wow, the last six years sucked for humanity, we need to do something about it.” No, the steps towards securing mankind’s fundamental freedoms have been growing over generations.

Everything grows from something. As Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Violence begets violence; hate begets hate; and toughness begets a greater toughness.” What is put out into the world comes back to us tenfold. That being said, why not have love beget love; empathy beget empathy; and respect begets greater respect?

Table of Contents

The History of Human Rights: What are Human Rights?

The history of human rights is a complex and evolving narrative that spans centuries and is deeply intertwined with the development of societies, cultures, and philosophical thought.

Human rights are the collective rights of everyone. Every member of the “human family” is entitled to several fundamental freedoms and rights. This includes – but is not limited to – multiple civil and political rights, economic, social, and cultural rights, and environmental rights. In short, human rights can best be described as the most basic rights of mankind.

The United Nations describes human rights as the “rights inherent to all human beings, regardless of race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, or any other status.” Therefore, human rights are both universal and undeniable. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you are from. In the eyes of the United Nations, you have rights that are worth protecting and enforcing.

Everybody has human rights: you, your grandma, and your weird neighbor included. It is the preservation and implementation of these rights on such a massive, international scale when things get tricky.

Types of Human Rights

There are a handful of human rights. There are five “themes” of human rights that the rest fall beneath.

Types of human rights include…

• Economic rights
• Social rights
• Political rights
• Civil rights
• Cultural rights

These five themes of human rights encapsulate the collective rights of humanity. Though they may not be much to look at at a glance, there is a lot to them. Each theme can be broken down into countless categories and sub-categories. As the years have gone on, the list of human rights only grew (albeit slowly).

Violations of Human Rights

There is not a person on this earth that can be denied their rights as a human being. Right? Unfortunately, that is where things can get complicated.

It is painful to admit, but human rights are a new thing. They may have entertained the thoughts of rulers of ages past, or been explored through the eyes of philosophers many years ago; however, the fundamental rights of mankind have only been established within the last hundred years.

You would think it would be a no-brainer to treat folk with inherent dignity. However, when push comes to shove (or in times of strife), it is easy to lose sight of who we are and what we stand for. War, economic collapses, and ecological and natural disasters can all become a slippery slope into human rights abuses.

As human beings, we are born with rights that supersede state, country, or creed. When these rights are violated – oftentimes in the name of governance, extremism, and war – it is up to everyone to hold offenders accountable. Notably, the government is charged with holding itself accountable as well which…can get complicated if the government is acting in its own self-interest. That is where the international community comes into play.

A History of Human Rights: 539 BC to the 21st-Century

Human rights aren’t new, but their legality is. Such is especially true for universal human rights, which were only adopted in 1948 after one of history’s bloodiest wars. Since then, only limited progress has been made toward expanding, respecting, and enforcing human rights.

Much of the time, the evolution of human rights can be described by generations. The first-generation rights (civil and political rights) are theorized to have begun in the 17th- and 18th centuries. Pretty much, people should have a say in what policies will affect them. These rights also offer protections against violations of state.

Second-generation rights focus more on the social, economic, and cultural rights of individuals. How people live and work together became a hot topic during the Industrial Revolution and the burgeoning working class. On the other hand, third-generation rights are known as solidarity rights. These would include the right to a healthy environment and the right to peace among other things.

539 BCE – Cyrus the Great and Basic Freedoms

Cyrus the Great was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, which stretched from the Aegean Sea to the Indus River. Cyrus was also a phenomenal military strategist; all of this, however, was not necessarily what made Cyrus…well, great .

What defined the reign of Cyrus more than anything was his treatment of the lands he conquered. He respected the cultures, religions, and customs of the many, many lands he inducted into his growing empire. There was no forced assimilation, no denouncing of local religions, and an emphasis was placed on tolerance. Today, Cyrus is viewed as a benevolent leader who championed religious minorities in conquered regions.

Part of why Cyrus has such a sparkling interpretation is the Cyrus Cylinder . The cylinder acts as a record of Cyrus’ 539 BCE conquest of ancient Babylon. Apparently, upon arriving in Babylon, Cyrus the Great declared himself chosen by Marduk, the chief city god . Doing such made him positively stand out compared to the king he had deposed.

READ MORE: Ancient Civilizations Timeline: The Complete List from Aboriginals to Incans

The king, Nabonidus, turned out to be in the middle of an (unpopular) religious reformation with the moon god Sîn at its helm. Despite such reformations taking place successfully in the past, Marduk was a popular god amongst the ancient Babylonians. Cyrus’ open worship of the revered deity had him quickly gain traction with common and high-born Babylonians alike.

Later interpretations of the Cyrus Cylinder suggest that Cyrus freed Babylonian slaves, although slavery was continued throughout Achaemeniad rulership. The historicity of this event is debated, though supported in the Book of Ezra which states that Cyrus ended the Babylonian exile. Whatever the true interpretation of the Cyrus Cylinder, Cyrus is still credited with being the first to establish basic freedoms.

1215 – The Magna Carta and Rule of Law

Ancient leaders afforded their subjects certain rights. Though no international bill, the running of ancient empires and societies – and what they viewed as human rights – is nothing to scoff at. Many rulers (good ones at least) did acknowledge the legal obligation that came with leading. That being said, Magna Carta, anyone?

The signing of the Magna Carta is one of the most famous stories in history. After all, it was the first significant record of the rule of law. The Magna Carta (also called “The Great Charter”) establishes that the monarch and their government are not above the law. While it didn’t necessarily propel human rights forward, the Magna Carta was a big deal.

It wasn’t peasants that forced King John’s hand, but rather feudal lords – barons, in this case – that threatened civil war. They were angry about the rise in taxes to fund bitterly unsuccessful wars in France. The tax spike was viewed as a clear exploitation of power by the king. Therefore, to avoid royal infringement on their finances, the barons grouped up and made a heavy-handed threat to the monarch.

Though the Magna Carta was signed, King John did later reach out to the Pope to negate the document’s legal status. You know, looking for any loophole out of a binding agreement…just as someone looking to exploit their power would. Anyways, doing so led to England ’s First Barons’ War, which lasted two years.

READ MORE: The Kings and Queens of England: English Monarchs Timeline from William the Conqueror to Elizabeth II

1625 – Hugo Grotius and International Law

Hugo Grotius (1583-1645) is considered the father of international law. So, you’ve probably guessed it: the consensus is that Grotius laid the foundations of modern international law. He was a Dutch juror, a poet, and a massive fan of Greek and Roman philosophy.

In the groundbreaking novel On the Laws of War and Peace (1625), Grotius boldly attempts to find a middle ground between natural law and the laws of nations. Accordingly, the most-favored idealist view is counteractive, but absolute realism is also unacceptable. Wars will happen, but the standard of warfare is determined by international law; likewise, the treatment of minorities is up to review from the international stage. Grotian tradition “views international policies as taking place within an international society” according to A. Claire Cutler in Review of International Studies .

Grotius, therefore, establishes that there are certain human rights that are unwaveringly fundamental to human beings. These rights are then vital to understanding human nature. Then, international laws somewhat based on human nature are, to a degree, completely valid.

Much of Grotian tradition and the themes that Grotius had discussed in his lifetime became blueprints for modern international human rights law. He vaunted non-intervention policies but agreed that another country could step in against tyrannical rule on behalf of the citizens. This would be because of human dignity rather than any personal gain.

1689 – English Bill of Rights

The English Bill of Rights is best known as the document that establishes Parliamentary privilege. However, there is a lot more to this piece of parchment than just that! The English Bill of Rights stated that there could be no taxation without representation (in Parliament), freedom from government interference, the right to petition, and equal treatment in the court system. Furthermore, other human rights were granted to civilians, such as no cruel and unusual punishment and the right to free speech.

If that sounds familiar to all of you Americans reading, it’s because it is.

The whole “no taxation without representation” theme was a major point of contention within the British-American colonies leading up to the Revolutionary War. British colonies did not have appropriate representatives in Parliament. Agents, sure, but not sufficient representatives that could challenge the British majority. Additionally, when drafting the United States Bill of Rights , government officials definitely looked to the English Bill of Rights for some inspiration.

As it turns out, the populace wasn’t too keen on giving the a-OK to a fledgling government with no guarantee of personal liberty. They rightfully didn’t want British monarchy 2.0, so not many Anti-Federalists (nay to national governments) were willing to ratify the Constitution. This left Federalists (yay to the national government) in a sticky situation. The Federalists added the Bill of Rights to make the Constitution more appealing to the opposition.

1789 – The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen and the French Revolution

The French Revolution was a major upheaval of the feudal system in France. It was a crazy time to be alive and the French Revolution left a lot of European monarchies wiping their brow. The American Revolution – a major source of inspiration for French peasantry – ended a mere 6 years before. And, unlike their American counterparts, the French Revolution was thrice as bloody.

When examining the French Revolution, it is crucial to consider what events led up to it. Again, everything grows from something. Right off the bat, some members of society were granted more rights than others. The Estate System effectively shot down an individual’s right to self-determination and grossly limited their economic rights.

Speaking of economic rights, the economy sucked . The two higher Estates (the First and Second) relied on the taxation of the Third Estate for their livelihood. The Third Estate, composed of the working class, could not afford necessities.

If the bread riots in Paris were bad, then the famine rampant throughout the countryside was horrible. Also, absolutism – the idea that the monarchy has complete, unchallenged control over an entire country – didn’t help at all .

So, the people of France began turning to Enlightenment ideals. The Age of Enlightenment, which emphasized the value of individual liberty and religious tolerance, inspired the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. The Declaration was drafted by American Revolution veteran Marquis de Lafayette and clergyman Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyes, both of whom ironically belonged to the Second and First Estates.

Article I of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen reads as follows: “Human Beings are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions can be founded only on the common good.” Such an open declaration of human rights ignited a spark in many Frenchmen, women, and children who had felt disenfranchised by their system of government.

1791 – The U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights

The end of the Revolutionary War in the United States was a trying period in the nation’s history. No one was quite certain what they wanted when they wiped their hands clean of British rule; they just knew they didn’t want that . Thus, emerged the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists.

The Federalists wanted a national government whereas Anti-Federalists preferred smaller, self-governing states. There was a massive and very real fear that a big government could lead the new country down the same hole they just dug themselves out of.

The United States Constitution was initially introduced to outline the systems of government that the Articles of Confederation (1777) lacked. It was introduced to the Constitutional Convention in 1787. Other Convention topics included state representation in Congress, presidential powers, and the slave trade. The main issue with the Constitution is that it focused only on governmental powers and branches, but not the rights of the people.

READ MORE: Slavery in America: United States’ Black Mark

Which is important when you are trying to assert federal control over them. As the Magna Carta taught us (which the French Bourbon dynasty could have learned from) the government is not above the law. The Federalists needed to think of something to reel the Anti-Feds to their side.

This is where the Bill of Rights comes in. Ten amendments were added to the U.S. Constitution, which collectively became known as the Bill of Rights. These amendments, which guarantee the “certain unalienable Rights” of the Declaration of Independence are still a topic of debate today. While 27 more amendments have been added to the original ratification in 1791, only the first 10 are known as the Bill of Rights.

1919 – Peace Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations

The events of World War I (WWI) shocked the international community. It was the Great War: the “war to end all wars.” Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case.

READ MORE: What Caused World War 1? Political, Imperialistic, and Nationalistic Factors

World War I was a period of rapid advancements in warfare. Tanks , chemical weaponry, flamethrowers, and machine guns were all developed in the shadow of the very first world war. Furthermore, violations of human rights were plentiful.

In various countries – the United States included – opposition to the war could lead to jail time. Civilians were court-martialed and sent to military prisons for speech deemed “disloyal.” In Canada, the War Measures Act was introduced, giving the federal government power to suspend all rights of citizens. Meanwhile, 100,000 civilians in France and Belgium were detained by German forces, only to be sent against their will as forced labor in Germany.

So, at the end of the war, drafting a peace treaty was only one of the many hurdles that nations had to contend with. The biggest issue is that no one could agree on how to treat Germany and other Central powers. What ended up happening was a significant stripping of territory, a reduction of military forces, and a reparations bill that was astronomical. The peace that came with the Treaty of Versailles was fragile at best.

From the treaty came the League of Nations , founded by the 28th U.S. President, Woodrow Wilson. In all, 63 countries were a part of the League: this was a majority of sovereign nations in 1920. The League of Nations was the first international congregation of nations and was developed to help achieve international peace.

At some point, Japan had introduced a clause to the treaty that – if approved – would’ve established racial equality within the League of Nations. The U.S. and a number of British dominions rejected the amendment. Despite this fumble, the League of Nations managed to develop organizations that did positively propel human rights forward.

International Labor Organization

The International Labor Organization ( ILO ) was founded by the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. It became a mainstay in the later United Nations. As it stands, the International Labor Organization safeguards social and economic rights by setting international labor standards.

Much of the foundation of the ILO is based on 19th-century social and labor movements. These movements brought international attention to the plights of workers. After World War I, the beliefs of these movements became revitalized as the demand for social justice and a higher standard of living for the working classes emerged.

In the wake of WWI, the International Labor Organization proved especially helpful for developing countries. Among these, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, and Poland all were considered separated from Russian claims per the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The benefit of the ILO would again be proved in developing countries after WWII. Then, numerous countries were freed from colonial rule including India, the Philippines, and Indonesia.

Protection of Minorities

Humanitarian conditions were not a driving principle sought to be upheld by the League of Nations. Instead, the League was formed to maintain the status quo following the Allied victory in World War I ( Justifications of Minority Protections in International Law , 1997). That being said, the legitimate international concern of another world war happening did provide substantial reasoning to address some amount of human rights.

The administrative branch of the League of Nations, the International Secretariat, included a Minorities Section in the early years. The Minorities Section dealt with the protections of minorities in relevant nations, particularly those newly formed in Eastern Europe.

Before the formation of the Secretariat and its Minorities Section, the rights of minorities that found themselves aloft in war-torn Eastern Europe were ambiguous at best. It was the Minorities Section that developed “a procedural and bureaucratic structure that untangled the League’s…mandate…guaranteeing the rights of some twenty-five million racial, religious, and linguistic minorities” as stated by Thomas Smejkal in his thesis, “ Protection in Practice: The Minorities Section of the League of Nations Secretariat, 1919-1934 .” For a time, the Section was somewhat successful at addressing inequalities experienced by minorities. It was not until later that the overall weaknesses of the League – such as lack of representation – proved to be an issue in the face of World War II.

With World War II came numerous human rights abuses, with those hit hardest being certain minority groups in Eastern Europe. Without significant world powers (the United States, Germany, the Soviet Union, Italy, Japan, and Spain) it became increasingly difficult to ensure personal liberty for minorities.

1945 – Post-WWII and the United Nations  

World War II, as with the First World War, saw a slew of human rights violations. To be fair, most wars – major and minor – are breeding grounds for such infringements. Supposed “gentlemen wars” are a thing of the past, if not nearer to pure fantasy.

The United Nations was founded in 1945, a month after the end of World War II . To say there was global devastation would be an understatement: roughly 3% of the world’s population died.

Furthermore, a new horror was realized in the later months of 1945. The United States developed and dropped two atomic bombs in the largely civilian-populated cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan. The bombing led to the end of the Pacific Theater, with legal experts and scholars still debating whether or not the dual bombings were war crimes.

Though the threat of weapons of mass destruction was real, the United Nations didn’t immediately act against them. It was not until 1968 that the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) was signed. Even later still was the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) was signed, which didn’t happen until 2017. Currently, the use of weapons of mass destruction is considered a violation of human rights.

After WWII, there was new hope for achieving international peace. The League of Nations, now null and void, was rebranded as the United Nations. In fact, the Charter of the United Nations was signed while World War II was still raging on and the development of the UN began back in 1943 during the pivotal Tehran Conference. During this time, the League of Nations wasn’t completely obsolete, but it was just barely functioning.

The United Nations expanded significantly on human rights and humanitarian laws. Like its predecessor, its primary goal is bolstering international peace.

The United Nations Charter

The United Nations Charter is the founding document of the U.N., signed in 1945. The Charter itself is considered to be an international treaty, legally binding involving countries to oblige by any laws passed. Since its initial signing in 1945, the United Nations Charter has been amended three times.

Commission of Human Rights

One of the more significant creations post-WWII is the Commission of Human Rights . Emerging in 1946, the Commission is responsible for protecting fundamental freedoms. There are numerous themes that the Commission of Human Rights handles.

Anything from the right to self-determination to indigenous issues is discussed by the Commission. Moreover, they look into both human rights violations worldwide and in specific countries. It is the Commission of Human Rights that primarily sets standards for human rights for the international community.

An example is the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. The Commission opens the declaration with the recognition “of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in the world.” Right off the bat, the Commission acknowledges that there are certain fundamental human rights that must be recognized. The inclusion of civil and political rights, and economic, social, and cultural rights, among others, have been later added per the Commission.

1948 – Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a significant landmark in the history of human rights. It has acted as a model document for several “domestic constitutions, laws, regulations, and policies” according to Hurst Hannum in “ The UDHR in National and International Law ” ( Health and Human Rights , 1998). Despite this, the UDHR is not a legally binding document; at least not in whole. However, the Declaration has been incorporated into most constitutions of the nations belonging to the UN.

All things considered, the UDHR is a customary international law. Everyone understands, acknowledges, and respects the Declaration (at least those 193 states and countries within the United Nations). It was drafted for bolstering international peace, after all.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights essentially acts as a guide to human rights norms. It has alternatively been referred to as the international Magna Carta since it sets a standard for how a government treats its own citizens. Thus, the treatment of a government’s citizens towards its own citizens became everybody ’s business.

Since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights has been signed, the U.N. has called out numerous governments for their citizen abuses. To be honest, the United Nations is still pointing out government infringements on human rights. One of the most historically significant times the United Nations has done this was during apartheid in South Africa.

In 1962, the U.N. condemned South Africa’s racial discrimination and bigoted laws, even going as far as calling for members to cut economic and military ties with the country. Unfortunately, not many Western countries were willing to end economic relations, even after apartheid became a crime against humanity in 1973.

1949 – International Humanitarian Law

Another international law signed in the aftermath of World War II is the International Humanitarian Law (IHL). These laws are intended to limit the effects of armed conflict and offer protections for those uninvolved in hostilities. Additionally, the IHL puts restrictions on the methods of warfare and the treatment of prisoners of war. Most – if not all – themes of the IHL had been adopted from the four Geneva Conventions of 1949.

Geneva Conventions of 1949

The Geneva Conventions of 1949 prohibit specific abuses during warfare. Three separate protocols have been added to the International Humanitarian Law, two in 1977 and one in 2005 respectively. These supplemental protocols give rights to certain minority groups in times of war.

The first of the Geneva Conventions gives protection to soldiers who are removed from the ongoing conflict. This Convention deals largely with the sick and wounded and the retention of their human rights. Meanwhile, the second Geneva Convention expands on the first, extending rights to naval combatants and ship-bound non-combatants. The second Convention also clarifies that “shipwrecked” includes those who parachute from damaged aircraft (Articles 12 and 18).

The third Geneva Convention sets standards for the treatment of prisoners of war. The Convention emphasizes that POWs are to be treated with basic human dignity. This means that degrading treatment is effectively illegal (as stated in Articles 13, 14, and 16). Also, it clarifies who is considered to be war prisoners.

Members of the armed forces, militia volunteers, and civilians in the company of armed forces are all considered to be prisoners of war. Therefore, the rights of POWs are extended to civilians under certain circumstances. Particularly those civilians involved in resistance movements and non-combatants, such as medics or chaplains, can be viewed as POWs.

The fourth Geneva Convention is an expansion to the rights and treatment of civilians in occupied land or conflict areas. Generally, civilians are to retain their civil and political rights. An example of this is addressed in Article 40, which states that civilians cannot be forced to do military-related work for occupying forces. More importantly, civilians are protected from murder, torture, or brutality; and from discrimination based on race, nationality, religion, or political opinion (Articles 13 and 32).

1954-1976 – The Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Civil Rights Movements  

More was happening in the ’60s than just the musical British Invasion. It was the middle of the Cold War , a “bloodless war,” where the United States and the Soviet Union were at each other’s throats from 1947 to 1991. So much for global peace.

READ MORE: Cold War Civil Rights: Race and the Image of American Democracy

The two nations got involved in a series of proxy wars, never directly assaulting the other. The most famous of these proxy wars, the Korean War (1950-1954) and the Vietnam War (1955-1975) were unpopular and viewed as “senseless” by the masses. They were only two out of upwards of 11 proxy wars.

During these terribly unpopular wars, the Civil Rights Movement was speeding up in the United States. In truth, it is impossible to argue for being a beacon of democracy if you oppress minorities in your own country. Thus, the Civil Rights era saw a boom in individuals demanding civil and political rights; economic, social, and cultural rights were also at the forefront.

The Civil Rights Movement was largely connected to the generational trauma of Black Americans caused by the horrors of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. As of the ’60s, only very limited progress had been made from the Reconstruction era that followed the Civil War. For generations , an entire demographic of the American population was denied collective rights afforded to them by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights back in 1948.

Other minority groups within (and outside of the United States) took note. Civil Rights inspired a human rights movement among Native Americans, Asian Americans, Mexican Americans, women, and members of the LGBTQ community. Additionally, Northern Ireland was inspired to lead protests against the British occupation of Northern Ireland. These protests led to the Northern Ireland Conflict (the Troubles) and the creation of the Irish Republican Army (IRA).

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is a legally binding international document drafted in 1954. However, the ICCPR was not signed until 1966. It took another decade for it to become effective in 1976.

A ton of stuff happened within those two decades that could have benefitted from such a document, but we digress. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is viewed as an international human rights law. It ensures that those belonging to mankind (i.e. human beings), have certain political rights as citizens and are treated with basic human dignity. Overall, the ICCPR asserts that people are entitled to specific personal liberties that cannot be denied by government entities.

International Covenant of Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights

The International Covenant of Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) was another international bill that would have made a huge impact if put into effect the same year it was drafted. The ICESCR was developed alongside the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It was also signed and made effective in the same years as the ICCPR. As its title suggests, the ICESCR is intended to promote economic development, all while providing citizens with social and cultural rights.

Compared to other human rights laws of the past, the International Covenant of Economic Social and Cultural Rights has made significant progress for Indigenous Peoples. The identification of cultural rights specifically as human rights has positively impacted other minority groups as well, including the Roma.

Human Rights in the 21st Century

As the Commission of Human Rights states: “Human rights standards have little value if they are not implemented.” Although there have been countless standards, laws, and treaties passed by the United Nations since World War II, the international community has struggled with implementation. Furthermore, since the perception of human rights is constantly evolving, past acts – slavery, racial discrimination, and nuclear weapons to name a few – are now considered to be human rights violations. While these are all terrible acts (and always have been terrible acts) the argument arises that, at the time of practice, these were not considered to be violations. Do, then, past offenders be treated as such? 

The United Nations Human Rights Council has done groundbreaking work at driving the human rights evolution. In that there is no denying. Even still, more work could be done to provide everyone across the globe with equal and inalienable rights.

The internet – a Wild West type of medium – still requires users to uphold human rights; however, it is maintaining human rights in this rapidly evolving environment that’s tricky. Likewise, environmental protections are an extension of the human right to a healthy environment. They are only recent developments.

With everything happening in the world right now, there is legitimate international concern regarding the state of human rights. Only recently has Twitter ’s human rights team been cut from the company. Not to mention the humanitarian crises occurring in parts of Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, and the United States.

Human rights are ever-growing, desperately attempting to keep up with changing times. What has been defined as human rights norms today may always be expanded upon tomorrow.

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4 Human Rights PowerPoint Presentations you can download for free

When you’re talking to a group about a topic like human rights, it can help to use something visual. PowerPoint presentations – a classic tool for teachers, group facilitators, and trainers – can engage your audience while providing essential information. Creating a PowerPoint from scratch, however, isn’t always something you have time for. Turning to a source like the United Nations or UNICEF assures you’re getting accurate information compiled by experts. Depending on the PowerPoint and how you intend to use it, you’ll want to check the usage rights. If you’re using it simply as a guide for your own creation, you likely won’t need to cite it or ask permission. Here are five PowerPoints available online:

“Welcome to the United Nations”

The United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization committed to international peace and cooperation between nations. Their main bodies include the General Assembly, the Security Council, and the International Court of Justice. They produced the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and are a leading authority on global human rights. This PowerPoint can be found on their visitor’s center website. It serves as a great introduction to the organizations, its different parts, and its purposes. Slides include “The General Assembly,” “Security Council,” “Peacekeeping,” and “Economic and Social Council.” If you want to teach a group about the basics of human rights and the UN, this free PowerPoint is a great place to get a general overview.

“Introduction to Women’s Human Rights”

UNICEF is the UN agency responsible for helping children around the world. Their mandate also includes women. The organization is present in 192 territories and countries. Areas of focus include immunizations, disease prevention, improving nutrition for mothers and children, and more.

This PowerPoint, which is actually part of a huge Facilitator’s Guide, teaches people about the history of women’s rights. Since this is intended for a workshop leader, there’s also space for them to talk about women’s rights locally based on where the workshop is being held. The PowerPoint outlines why women’s human rights are of special consideration, the waves of women’s rights, international instruments, and the future of women’s rights.

“Activity 6: We Are All Born Free”

Amnesty International

Amnesty International is a non-governmental organization based in the UK. It was first founded in 1961 and focuses on undertaking research and action focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of human rights. Areas of focus include ending death penalty and torture. In 1977, the organization won the Nobel Peace Prize. As an organization committed to catching the public’s attention, they provide resources on their website to help educators and anyone else interested in learning more about human rights.

The Activity 6 PowerPoint and PDF is a great way to introduce children to the concept of human rights. It’s called “We Are All Free,” which is also the name of a book for children that uses illustrations to explain all 30 fundamental rights. The PowerPoint describes thirteen of the articles in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including Articles 1-4, Article 8, and Article 30. The slides simplify the language so kids can understand and uses colorful, vivid illustrations to demonstrate the articles’ meaning. The age range for this presentation is 6-9 years old.

“Human Rights in Secondary School”

This resource is part of a series of PowerPoints in a teaching pack meant for kids age 11-16. It also comes from Amnesty International. They recommend the pack for Human Rights Day or any lesson where learning about human rights is the goal. Lessons include “Understanding Human Rights,” Human Rights in the UK,” and “Freedom of Expression.” The PowerPoints are labeled by lesson number. Lesson 1, “Understanding Human Rights,” is comprised of pictures from different times in history. They ask what right is being violated. When paired with the PDF that contains the lesson plans, an educator can effectively meet the learning objectives. The lesson plans tell you exactly when to show each slide.

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About the author, emmaline soken-huberty.

Emmaline Soken-Huberty is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon. She started to become interested in human rights while attending college, eventually getting a concentration in human rights and humanitarianism. LGBTQ+ rights, women’s rights, and climate change are of special concern to her. In her spare time, she can be found reading or enjoying Oregon’s natural beauty with her husband and dog.

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History of Human Rights

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Lecture: The Founding of the Nation Unit 1: U.S. History Standard 11.1.

The African System of Human and People’s Rights  December 4, 2001  Human Rights Center.

INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS:

Roots of American Government The Magna Carta 1215 The English people forced King John to sign the Magna Carta in 1215, which is the first time that a King.

Roots of America Government The Magna Carta 1215 The English people forced King John to sign the Magna Carta in 1215, which is the first time that a King.

The Enlightenment Origins of the United States Government.

The Enlightenment and the English and American Revolutions

Enlightenment Philosophers

Democratic Developments in England

Influences on American Documents of Freedom

The Origins of Liberalism

Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Presentation  December 3, 2001  Human Rights Center.

Human Rights` An Overview International Relations Fall, 2014.

“Man is born free, yet everywhere he is in chains…” - Jean Jacques Rousseau.

Declaration of Independence American Government February 2009.

Prologue 3 Democratic Developments in England –I) Medieval Reforms –II) Parliament Grows Stronger –III) Establishment of a Constitutional Monarchy.

The Colonial Period Chapter 2 Section 1.

Historical Roots of U.S. Gov’t Foundations of U.S. Gov’t – Follows Ch. 2-1 in Textbook.

Origins, Articles & Framers. Declaration Of Independence Article of Confederation Virginia Plan New Jersey Plan Great Compromise House Of Burgesses John.

The Origins of Liberalism The only part of the conduct of anyone for which he is amenable to society is that which concerns others. In the part which merely.

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• Human Rights Defined
• The Background of Human Rights
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HISTORY OF HUMAN RIGHTS

Originally, people had rights only because of their membership in a group, such as a family. Then, in 539 BC, Cyrus the Great, after conquering the city of Babylon, did something totally unexpected—he freed all slaves to return home. Moreover, he declared people should choose their own religion. The Cyrus Cylinder, a clay tablet containing his statements, is the first human rights declaration in history.

The idea of human rights spread quickly to India, Greece and eventually Rome. The most important advances since then have included:

1215: The Magna Carta —gave people new rights and made the king subject to the law.

1628: The Petition of Right —set out the rights of the people.

1776: The United States Declaration of Independence —proclaimed the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

1789: The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen —a document of France, stating that all citizens are equal under the law.

1948: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights —the first document listing the 30 rights to which everyone is entitled.

For a more in-depth look at the history of human rights, go to the United for Human Rights website. 

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History of human rights

Short description of the session.

This session invites pupils to explore the history of human rights by reflecting on the images, related to the notion of human rights throughout the history of mankind.  By identifying the milestone historical events and documents, pupils will be able to see the positive development of human rights and their meaning in the life of people.

The session consists of a short introduction, group work activity Timeline of human rights, and the final discussion of the events, documents and persons, who have played a role in the creation of the international human rights system, as we know it  today. 

Learning goals

• Make the pupils learn about the history of human rights by studying the images showing milestone events, documents and persons, who contributed to the universality of human rights 
• Make the pupils learn more about the events, documents and people, who played big role in the development of the international human rights system as we know it today
• Make the pupils understand that the struggle for human rights is an ongoing process, also relevant to our time 

Description 

Time: 2- 3 hours 

Requirements: Set of images on human rights, large room with possibilities for group work, 4 tables put together (2 x 2), scotch, projector 

Preparation (for the teacher)

• Prepare a set of human rights images (images in the power–point presentation attached to this session can be used)
• Prepare the classroom: put two table together for group work; put scotch line in the middle of the tables to mark a timeline
• Prepare background information on every image for the final discussion with pupils. 

Introduction 

The end of the World War II and the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948 are two milestone events in the development of the international human rights system. For the first time in history, the term human rights was included in the Statutes of the international organization, the United Nations. By this, respect and fulfillment of human rights were acknowledged as necessary preconditions for societies to develop in a peaceful and democratic way. 

The first two articles of the UDHR state that no matter geographical, social or religious background, no matter language, gender or colour of skin, all human beings are born free and all people are equal in their rights. Human rights are therefore universal in its content. Today, we say that human rights and freedoms are part of our everyday life. They are protecting us from states’ misconduct. They define national, as well as international policies.

 Meanwhile, the idea of human rights is as old as humanity itself. One can find references to human dignity and justice both in religious and in philosophical texts. The Golden Rule of conduct, – Treat the others as you want to be treated yourself,-  is present in all big religions.

Already in the 3 rd century BC. Greek Stoics expressed that the distinctive trait of all people is the capacity to reasoning. They believed that people did not have to be rich or have a high rank in society in order to be able to produce a good judgement. Everybody could do it. The ideas that people do have the ability to think on their own, and should therefore have the possibility to express their opinions have even become stronger during the Enlightenment, in the 17 th century.  As early as 1679, the Habeas Corpus Act was adopted in England.  Protecting bodily autonomy, habeas corpus remains today to be one of the central principles of the rule of law in our societies. Gradually, understanding of preciousness of human life was spreading across the continents.

 Usually, talking about the universality of human rights, we say, that they indivisible, interdependent and interrelated. It means that it is difficult to give a priority to one particular right and neglect another. As, it is difficult to say that the right to shelter and food is more important than the right to express own opinion. People need equally both. We also say that human rights are inalienable. It means that we have them from birth, and no one can take it from us.

Still, if we look back into the history of humankind, is has not always been like this. Slave markets, where human beings could be bought and sold, were common for two hundred years ago. One hundred years ago, women were denied to take part in elections and to vote. Corporal punishment of children in schools was the reality in several countries until the late 1960s. We cannot unfortunately say that our world today is free of torture, hunger or unlawful arrests.

 Nevertheless, it is important to reflect on core historical events, adoption of the decisive judicial documents and on personal courage of people throughout the planet, making human rights concrete tools protecting human beings from abuse, injustice and discrimination.

 The activity Timeline of human rights, presented below, shows the development of human rights throughout history. Its focus is on the historical events, documents and people, who played quite a role for human rights to become universal values and be universally protected.

Activity Timeline of Human Rights

In a classroom, put scotch in the middle of two tables, set up together, in order to mark a timeline. Write down “Beginning of the 13 th century” on one end, “End of the 21 st century” on another. Pupils can work in groups of 4-5 persons. They are given a set of images . It can be 19 images, as suggested here. Alternatively, images can be divided into two sets, 9 or 10 each.

The task for pupils is to produce the timeline of human rights, based on images they get, by putting images chronologically on the table. Pupils do not have to know exact dates of events or persons shown on the pictures.  The idea is to let them discuss in the group the messages an image can contain, to imply the date, place or the human right the image is about.

When timelines are ready, the whole class can gather beside one of them, for debriefing. If groups were more than two, it is better to proceed directly to the discussion of images’ content with the whole class.

The questions to discuss will be:  

•   What does the image show?
• What connection does the image have to human rights?

During the discussion, pupils should be encouraged to come up with any suggestions and ideas they might have. It does not matter whether they give correct or wrong answers. It is not either a problem if they make mistakes, mix events or names. The main goal of this activity is to wake pupils’ interest to human rights. Moreover, they will get the right answers later, when the teacher presents images on a screen and gives a background information on each image.

Background information of the images used for the activity Timeline of Human Rights.

  Image 1, Magna Carta

Magna Carta or “the Great Charter” is an ancient document mentioning such human rights, as the rights of all free people to own a property and be protected from excessive taxes. King John of England was pressured by his subjects to sign under Magna Carta in 1215 and limit therefore own monarchical power. More information is available at the British Library: https://www.bl.uk/magna-carta

 Image 2, American Declaration of Independence

American Declaration of Independence was adopted by the United States Congress on the 4 th of July 1776. The text was developed by Thomas Jefferson. The document stresses, in particular, individual rights, – right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. More information is available at: https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration

Image 3, Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (1789) was adopted as an aftermath of the Great French Revolution. All citizens should be guaranteed the rights of “liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression”, it said. The document has been used as a source and inspiration for development of the several national constitutions. More information about the Declaration is available at: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Declaration-of-the-Rights-of-Man-and-of-the-Citizen

  Image 4, Bill of Rights

Bill of Rights (1791) contains amendments to the constitution of the USA, one the oldest national constitutions. Bill of Rights protects such political rights, as freedom of speech, freedom of belief and freedom of assembly. More information about Bill of Rights is available at: https://billofrightsinstitute.org/founding-documents/bill-of-rights/

Image 5, Geneva Convention, 1864

The first Geneva Convention was adopted in 1864 as to protect wounded soldiers and give them medical treatment, regardless of the side for which they had fought. In total, there are four Geneva Conventions. They define the rights of the wartime prisoners, protect wounded and civilians, and constitute what is called the International Humanitarian Law. More information about the Geneva Conventions is available at the International Committee of the Red Cross, www.icrc.org

Image 6, Women’s Suffrage movement

Suffrage movement was the movement of women, struggling for the right to vote on equal basis with men. The movement started at the end of the 19 th century in the USA and Great Britain and developed to a broad international movement at the beginning of the 20 th century. Women have been struggling for the right to vote on the elections for almost hundred years. After years of discrimination, forced medical treatment and hunger strikes, women all over the world “started” to get the right to vote. First in New Zealand in 1893, and later in other countries. Finland was the first European country to give women right to vote in 1906. More information is available at:

https://interactive.unwomen.org/multimedia/timeline/womenunite/en/index.html#/1900

Image 7, Clara Zetkin and Rosa Luxemburg 

Zetkin and Luxemburg were social-democratic political activists in Germany in the beginning of the 20 th century. In 1910 at the International Socialist Women’ s Conference in Copenhagen, they proposed to celebrate an annual Women’s Day in order to bring more attention to women’s struggle for the right to vote. The proposal was in the beginning supported by socialist and communist countries. In 1977, General Assembly of the United Nations proclaimed the 8th of March to be the International Women’s Day, – the day of women’s rights all over the world. To achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls is one the Sustainable Development Goals

(URL: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/gender-equality/ ), proclaimed by the United Nations in 2016. 

Image 8, Trade unionism or labour movement

The image is symbolizing trade unionism or labour movement, which had intensified in the Great Britain in the 19 th century. The goal was to make the working conditions of the workers better and safer, and to make payment more just. Many trade unions have become the fundament for political parties in the European countries. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) was established in 1919 in order to argue for decent working conditions and social justice in the world.

Film A short history of trade unions (6 min), URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPPeDO4dMRA

ILO, URL: https://www.ilo.org/global/lang–en/index.htm

Image 9, Nansen passport

Nansen –passport was the name of the identity document, issued by the League of Nations (forerunner of the United Nations) in 1922. Passport was named after Fridtjof Nansen, Norwegian polar explorer and diplomat. Being commissioner for refugees, Nansen advocated for saving thousands of lives of people fleeing from hunger and Revolution in Soviet Russia, as well as more than three hundred  thousand of Armenians, fleeing form the Turkish genocide (1915- 1923). Nansen-passport was the first identity document in the world, protecting refugees. The UN Refugee Convention was one of the first international treaties, adopted by the United Nations after the World War II, in 1951.

More information about the 1951 Refugee Convention is available at:

https://www.unhcr.org/1951-refugee-convention.html

Image 10, “Human zoo”

The so-called “human zoos” were common in Western Europe and the USA in the period from 1870 to 1930. Indigenous people were brought together and shown as “primitive” in their outlook and lifestyle. Aborigines, Indians, Sami, people of the Philippines, Fiji and several African countries were “shown” in this way. Such show-off is considered to be pure racism today. This image is from the World’s Fair in Belgium in 1958, where people from Congo were brought to Belgium to show a Congolese village. Meanwhile, people were kept on the t resembled a zoo, since visitors were encouraged to feed people, as shown in the picture. The UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) was adopted in 1965, and is ratified per 2020 by 182 states.  ICERD is an important tool today to tackle hate speech and racist political rhetoric.

Text of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination,

URL: https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/cerd.aspx

Image 11, Children at the Auschwitz concentration camp

Children at the Auschwitz concentration camp at the time of camp’s liberation in  January 1945. Mass killing of Jews, the Holocaust, and atrocities of the World War II have led to the establishment of the United Nations (UN) in 1945. The main goal of the UN has been defined as to preserve peace in the world and reaffirm faith to fundamental human rights. For the first time in history human rights were written down in the statutes of the international organisation. 193 countries are members of the UN today.

The United Nations, URL: www.un.org

Virtual tour, Auschwitz concentration camp, http://panorama.auschwitz.org/

Image 12, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

On the 10 th of December in 1948 the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was adopted. UDHR is the first international document, which states that human rights are inalienable rights of all people on Earth, no matter their background, belief, gender or colour of skin. The UN working commission, led by Eleanor Roosevelt (on the picture) used two years for collecting opinions, suggestions on the rights from all the continents in order to include them into the UDHR. Human rights mentioned in the UDHR are the minimum standards people need in order to live a decent life. UDHR is considered to be the foundation of the international human rights law.

Text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, URL:

https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/

Film, UDHR @70 Perspective (4 min), URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaHwy5tdLOY

Image 13, Rosa Parks

Rosa Parks was an activist of the Civil Rights Movement in the USA in the 1950s, led by Martin Luther King. Parks is known for participation in the Montgomery bus boycott, when she rejected to give a seat to a “white” person in the bus in December 1955. Montgomery bus boycott lasted for almost one year in Montgomery, Alabama, as a protest to racial segregation in public transportation in the USA. The “rule” was that the first ten rows in the buses could be only used by “white” people. Montgomery bus boycott was one of the many actions of civil disobedience, carried out in the USA in 1950-60ss as reactions to a highly segregated society.

Film on the History of the American Civil Rights Movement (6 min), URL:

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URxwe6LPvkM

Cartoon film “I am Rosa Parks” (15 min), URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcJMEDR-87w

Image 14, Independence of Ghana

Ghana was the first country on the African continent to gain independence in 1957. The process of the decolonisation sped up after the Fifth Pan-African Congress in 1945, where strengthened opinions on independence of the African states were declared. As a result, in 1975, 54 African countries became independent from the European colonial rulers (Great Britain, France, Germany, Portugal, Belgium, Spain). The African Union, established in 2002, is a kind of Pan-African parliament today, pursuing the aim of peace, security and protection of human rights in accordance with the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights (1986) and international human rights law on the African continent.  African Union, URL: https://au.int/en

African Charter on Human and People’s Rights, URL: https://au.int/en/treaties/african-charter-human-and-peoples-rights

Image 15, the European Court of Human Rights

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) was established in 1959, by the Article 19 of the European Convention of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (1950). ECHR is placed in Strasbourg, in France. Strasbourg is also the seat of the Council of Europe, the goal of which is to uphold human rights, democracy and rule of law in Europe.

European Court of Human Rights, URL: https://www.echr.coe.int/Pages/home.aspx?p=home

Film on the European Court of Human rights,  (14 min, in English), is available here:

https://www.youtube.com/user/EuropeanCourt

Film on the European Court of Human rights in Bulgarian, is available here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrkiuXlxn4A&list=UUeKYK7AiOqPyJMk5-cSjseQ&index=29

Council of Europe, URL: https://www.coe.int/en/web/portal/home

Text of the European Convention of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, URL:

https://www.echr.coe.int/pages/home.aspx?p=basictexts

Image 16, Amnesty International

Amnesty International is one of the largest non-governmental organisations, working on human rights worldwide. Amnesty Int. was founded by the British lawyer Peter Benenson in 1961. Amnesty International is the example of a grassroot initiative, which role is crucial for development of a free and just society. Having more than eight million supporters all over the world, the organisation works on the fulfilment of human rights in accordance with the international human rights law.

Amnesty International, URL: www.amnesty.org

Image 17, Unknown man at the Tiananmen Square

A man standing in front of a column of tanks at the Tiananmen Square in Beijing, in June 1989 is an iconic picture. Tanks were on their way to suppress mass protests at the Tiananmen Square, where thousands of students, workers and intellectuals had gathered demanding political freedoms and democratic reforms in China.

For further reading: Peter Li, Marjorie H. Li, Steven Mark Culture and Politics in China: An Anatomy of Tiananmen Square, 2011

Image 18, trial of Slobodan Milosevic

Trial of Slobodan Milosevic, the former President of Yugoslavia, was held at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in Hague, in 2002. ICTY was established in 1993 by the UN’s Security Council Resolution in order to investigate war crimes on the territory of the former Yugoslavia.

The main charges against Milosevic were crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes. War atrocities on the territory of former Yugoslavia, causing deaths of thousands of people, were the most tragic events in Europe after the World War II.

Hague in the Netherlands is also the seat for the International Criminal Court (ICC), which was established in 2002 with mandate to prosecute individuals for crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes. International Criminal Court, URL: https://www.icc-cpi.int/

Image 19, prisoners at the Abu-Ghraib prison

The picture is from the Abu-Ghraib prison in Iraq. It is one of many pictures, published in 2004 by CBS News, CNN, The New Yorker revealing serious human rights violations, – abuse and torture used by the personnel of the United States Army. International Human Rights Law prohibits use of torture or degrading inhuman treatment under any circumstances.

The whole set of images can be downloaded from here.

How to use museums

As values and legal obligations of the States human rights have contributed to the humanization of life in general. Our societies are in constant development and changes bring new dimensions in understanding of human rights as protection tools.

An interesting project to offer to schoolchildren could the task to identify museums in own town or country, which might have exhibitions related to human rights or to the history of human rights in the country.

Museums to look after can be

• Historical museums and their focus on the history of the country, development of the Constitution, political ideologies through time, etc.
• Ethnographic museums and their focus on people or groups of people living on the territory before and now
• Photography museums and their focus on telling a personal story. What is the message? Is there any relation to human rights? In what way?
• Museums and exhibitions, attached to institutions and national authorities, like parliament, supreme court, media, ministries of health care, education, ministry

An additional task can be to identify as many “interesting” facts as possible in the history of own country and development of human rights, and find out whether these facts are present in museums/ exhibitions. Following topics could be taken for further investigation:

• Development of the right to vote in my country
• Development of the right to get married in my country
• Diversity of the society today: what groups of the society have experienced more discrimination throughout history and nowadays? Why?
• Development of the right of the child in my country during the last hundred years
• Crime and punishment in the history of my country. Development of the right to life and personal security. Reforming the prison system in my country.
• Freedom of expression in my country: before and now, what has changed?
• The history of trade unions and labor rights in my country

Teaching the History of Human Rights

• First Online: 14 April 2017

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• Dan-Erik Andersson 5  

Part of the book series: Religion and Human Rights ((REHU,volume 1))

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Textbooks on human rights often describe the history of human rights as a linear process, where human rights rest on a rather unified history. In this history, the idea of Enlightenment is a central component, leading to the understanding of human rights, as we know them. This article argues that the common presentation of the history of human rights in some central textbooks is highly problematic, not least on the relation between religion and human rights. Even though a simplified narrative to some extent makes it easier to promote human rights, instead of repeating a simplified history there is need to present the history in its complexity. This article gives examples of how the relation between religion and human rights is more complicated than most often argued. The judicial and educational context of the paper is the situation in Sweden.

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Andersson, DE. (2017). Teaching the History of Human Rights. In: Sjöborg, A., Ziebertz, HG. (eds) Religion, Education and Human Rights. Religion and Human Rights, vol 1. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54069-6_7

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Equality Deferred

Canada's Rights Revolution

Debating Dissent

The Search for Equality and Justice

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| Copyright Dominique Clément / Clément Consulting

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“Equality Deferred: Human Rights in British Columbia History.” Department of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies Public Lecture Series, Simon Fraser University Harbour Centre (Vancouver, BC), 11 Sept. 2014.

“The Evolution of Human Rights in Canada.” Canadian Human Rights Commission (Ottawa, Ontario) 5 May 2012.

“Social Movements, International Politics and the Global Human Rights Regime.” Department of International Studies Speaker Series, University of Regina (Regina, SK), 17 February 2011.

“The October Crisis and the Writing of Canadian History.” Just Watch Me conference, Carleton University (Ottawa, ON), 12 Oct. 2010.

“Canada’s Rights Revolution: Social Movements and Social Change, 1937-1984.” John Porter Traditional of Excellence Annual Lecture, Canadian Sociological Association (Montreal, QC), 31 May 2010.

“The Sociology of Human Rights.” Confining the Unbound Society: Restraints and Resistance conference, University of Alberta (Edmonton, AB), 9 May 2010.

• “Dragging the Liberal Arts into the 20th Century (21st Pending),” Royal Society of Canada Annual Meeting , 15 November 2018.

“L’égalité et la culture des droits du Canada,” Musée canadien pour les droits de la personne (Winnipeg, MB), 21 February 2017.

“Human Rights and the City.” Human Rights and the City symposium, Art Gallery of Alberta (Edmonton, AB), 26 October 2016.

“Historical Research and the Right to Know.” Right to Know conference (Ottawa, ON), 26 September 2016.

“Intelligence and National Security Planning in Cold War Canada.” The Five Eyes in the Early Cold War (Wellington, New Zealand), 23 April 2016.

“Scholarly Solitudes.” (Re)Making Confederation: (Re) Imagining Canada conference (Charlottetown, PEI), 21 November 2014.

“What are “Canadian” and “Quebec” values?” Canadian Sociological Association conference, Brock University (St Catharine’s, ON), 30 May 2014.

“Policing Protest in Canadian History.” Canadian Civil Liberties Association’s RightsWatch conference (Montreal, QC), 13 October 2012.

“The Social Movement Society and the Human Rights State in Canada.” Social Movement Society workshop (Ottawa, ON), 24 May 2012.

“The Rights Revolution in Canada and Australia: International Politics, Social Movements, and Domestic Law.” Taking Liberties workshop (Hamilton, ON), 2 March 2012.

“Canadian Studies and Graduate Programs.” New Voices in Canadian Studies conference (Peterborough, ON), 13 May 2013.

“Canada’s Rights Revolution.” Department of Educational Policy Studies Speakers Series, University of Alberta (Edmonton, AB), 16 November 2010.

“Human Rights in Canada: Social Movements and International Politics.” Human Rights and Humanitarianism in the 1970s conference, Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies (Freiburg, Germany), 10 June 2010.

“The Women’s Movement and the Human Rights State in Post-World War Two Canada.” Department of Women’s Studies Feminist Research speakers’ series, University of Alberta (Edmonton, AB), 4 February 2010.

“How the Baby Boom Generation Transformed Social Movements in Canada” Department of Sociology Speakers Series, University of Victoria (Victoria, BC), 13 February 2008.

“Working for Rights: Organized Labour and the Human Rights Movements in Twentieth Century Canada and Australia,” University of Sydney Symposium (Sydney, Australia), 27 September 2002.

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Historian. Sociologist. Human rights. Social movements. The nonprofit sector. Professor at the Univ. of Alberta and member of Royal Society of Canada (CNSAS).

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A Brief History of Human Rights

Apr 03, 2019

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A Brief History of Human Rights. Historical Phases. Ishay suggests that there are six phases in relationship to the development of legal documents related to human rights. (She says five at one place, but then sets out six.)

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• ethnic groups
• habeas corpus act
• individual person
• human rights
• rights specific documents
• international regime

Presentation Transcript

Historical Phases • Ishay suggests that there are six phases in relationship to the development of legal documents related to human rights. (She says five at one place, but then sets out six.) • As you develop your project, be sure that you read appropriate declarations carefully.

Phase 1: The King and Parliament • Magna Charta (1215) • No suspension of civil liberties • Petition of Right (1628) and Habeas Corpus Act (1679) • English Bill of Rights (1689) • American Declaration of Independence (1776) • French Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen (1789)

Phase 2: Broadening the Legitimacy of the State • England • Chartist Petition of 1837 and Second Reform Act (1867) (suffrage) • Factory Health and Morals Acts (1802) and Factory Act (1833) (labor health and safety) • Ten Hours Act (1847) (work hours) • General Act of the Berlin Conference (1884) (slavery) • Geneva Convention (1864) (soldiers medical treatment)

Phase 3: International Regime to Prevent War and Genocide • International Labor Organization (1919) • League of Nations (1919)

Phase 4: Further Developments of International Regime • United Nations Charter • Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1948) • Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)

Phase 5: Cold War and the Division of Human Rights • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) • Western liberal perspective • Immediate protection of rights • International Covenant of Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) • Solidarity rights • Implementing rights over time

Phase 6: Rights Specific Documents • United Nations Declaration on the Rights of the Disabled (1975) • United Nations convention on the Elimination of All Forms of discrimination against Women (1979) • Documents of refugees, sexual trafficking, rights of children

United Nations Declaration of Human Rights "Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home - so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm, or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.“ Eleanor Roosevelt

United Nations Declaration of Human Rights • Reading the document as tracing the historical development of rights • 1-2, human dignity • 3-19, liberty (Enlightenment) • 20-26, equality (political, social, and economic equity of the Industrial Revolution) • 27-29, fraternity or solidarity (communal and national solidarity of post-colonial era)

United Nations Declaration of Human Rights • Reading the document as setting out specific rights and grouping these • Security rights: protect people against crimes such as murder, torture, and rape • Due process rights: protect against abuses of legal systems such as imprisonment without trial • Liberty rights: protect freedoms in belief, expression, assembly, etc • Political rights: protect liberty to participate in communicating, voting, assembling, etc. • Equality rights: guarantee things like nondiscrimination • Social rights: require provision for things like education and food • Later treaties include group rights, protection of ethnic groups

Read pages 493-497. Note that the text will reference this document frequently • 1-2, human dignity • 3-19, liberty (Enlightenment) • 20-26, equality (political, social, and economic equity of the Industrial Revolution) • 27-29, fraternity or solidarity (communal and national solidarity of post-colonial era)

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