BOISE, Idaho — The horrors of World War II shocked the world. Images and stories of unthinkable death and destruction caused the world to pause. In 1946 a document was drafted to address the topic of never again. In 1948 it was published as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
“All humans have inherent dignity and that honoring that dignity is sort of the foundation of peace, justice, freedom,” said Christina Bruce-Bennion, Executive Director of the Wassmuth Center for Human Rights in Boise.
Bruce-Bennion said The Center’s mission ties in perfectly with the UDHR.
“I think it was an extraordinary effort, given how divided and literally out of massive conflict so many regions of the world were at that time coming out of World War Two. The fact that so many countries came together, 48 countries at the time signed it is a pretty extraordinary effort, I think, and I think speaks a lot to how really a terrible and destabilizing sort of the events of World War Two and what we saw happen during that time,” Bruce-Bennion said.
Boise has a unique tie to the entire document.
“Part of the Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial. We are one of the few places that has the full text of the UDHR completely written out for the public to read. It's actually on these tablets behind us and has been a longstanding core part of the memorial. And so it's a really instructional space. It's a reflective opportunity to really think about. So, yeah, we're proud to have it here,” Bruce-Bennion said.
75 years after it was published, this living document serves as a reminder of the importance of protecting human rights around the world. Bruce-Bennion highlights what sticks out to her.
“There was this collective faith in the fundamental nature of human rights and the fact that that is really that human rights and dignity and worth of the human person. And in the equal rights of men and women to have determined and to promote social progress and better standards of life and larger freedoms. So just again, connecting that idea that it really all flows from dignity,” Bruce-Bennion said.
Words like respect and dignity are common. A deep understanding and education of what those truly mean take it a step further.
“That's actually one of my favorite things, is to go through this with a group of students and hear their responses and their reflections and and even the acknowledgment that people came together to really think about what are a fundamental and universal human rights,” Bruce-Bennion said. “The UDR really was the first international effort that went into that, that really took hold in the way that it has and that they've continued to build on it with additional or more enforceable type things over the decades.”
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is not a simple document. It is extensive and serves a purpose as the road map for human rights around the Globe. Eleanor Roosevelt pushed that purpose as Chairperson of the drafting committee of the UDHR.
“There are 30 different articles and they cover everything from the right to education, the right to work, the right to freedom and all kinds of things. So yeah, it covers a lot. Spelled out right behind me,” Bruce-Bennion said. “When you look at these different rights as they are laid out, they are often the ones that really start close to home. And in our communities and in our workplaces and in our homes and in our schools. And so it's a good reminder that while these are big and universal, they are the things that really start close to home.”
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