Eleanor Roosevelt, was the longest serving First Lady of the United States as wife of Franklin D. Roosevelt, but through her advocacy for human rights she also became known as “First Lady of the World.” Throughout her husband’s political career, she advocated for expanded rights of marginalized populations, whether African Americans and Asian Americans, poor laborers, or women. Following the death of President Roosevelt, Eleanor continued her activism, especially in her role as a United States delegate to the United Nations General Assembly.
At the first meeting of the UN General Assembly, Roosevelt was asked to join a small commission tasked with recommending the structure and function of a permanent Human Rights Commission. Roosevelt was elected chair of the commission and remained chair when it became the permanent United Nations Commission on Human Rights. One of the central recommendations of the commission was that the Human Rights Commission’s first project should be the preparation of “an international bill of rights.” As Roosevelt stated, “Many of us thought that lack of standards for human rights the world over was one of the greatest causes of friction among the nations, and that recognition of human rights might become one of the cornerstones upon which peace could eventually be based.”
The Universal Declaration on Human Rights was drafted between 1946 and 1948 by the Commission. The Commission began its work on the declaration of human rights by sending questionnaires to scholars and leaders throughout the world. The responses resulted in a diverse range of religious, philosophical, and legal perspectives but also a number of commonalities on which the Commission could build. A drafting committee was selected, initially consisting of Roosevelt along with Vice-Chairman P.C. Chang of the Republic of China and Committee Rapporteur Charles Malik of Lebanon, and Canadian lawyer John Humphrey of the UN Human Rights Division. The drafting committee was soon expanded to provide greater diversity.
Multiple sessions were required first by the Drafting Committee and then by the Commission to develop the Declaration. Roosevelt, as Chair of the Commission and the Drafting Committee, played a central role, using her diplomatic skills to bridge ideological divides and rally support for the Declaration. When presenting it to the UN General Assembly, Roosevelt proclaimed: “We stand today at the threshold of a great event both in the life of the United Nations and in the life of mankind. This declaration may well become the international Magna Carta for all men everywhere.”
On December 10, 1948, the UN General Assembly voted to adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The final document consists of thirty articles outlining the basic rights and individual freedoms of all persons, and it built on the declaration that “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.”
Roosevelt remained in the UN until 1952 and continued to promote the Universal Declaration as well as advocate for the rights of women. After that she traveled both the US and world to continue her advocacy for adherence to the principles of the Universal Declaration. While her actions were admired by many, others were deeply critical. There were attacks on her character but also her life. The Ku Klux Klan placed a bounty on her head and there were multiple assassination attempts increased. Still she persisted.