The Origin of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

What is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights? It is a document that lists the rights that all people have. Most governments have agreed to respect and protect these rights…

The Origin of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights The Beginning – why it was written Applies to everyone, regardless of ethnicity, nation, age, gender etc An OFFICIAL statement Yesterday’s definition….

Five things you will learn today…. 1.The definitions of PREJUDICE, DISCRIMINATION, PERSECUTION AND GENOCIDE. 2.That there is a set of Human Rights that most governments agree should be guaranteed. 3.That the organisation which protects and promotes them is based in New York. 4.That one of the darkest episodes in history made governments realise that Human Rights needed to be agreed upon and protected. 5.What those rights are!

Which event in 20 th Century history shocked the world so much that it made the leaders’ of nations focus on Human Rights? Clues…. 1.The event happened in Europe… 2.The Universal Declaration of Human Rights turned 60 in 2008… 3.The event involved the deaths of over 6 million people.

The event was….. The treatment of minorities – especially Jews – in Nazi Germany.

In 1924 Adolf Hitler wrote a book called Mein Kampf (My Struggle) The book explained Hitler’s view of the world. At the time Germany was experiencing a lot of problems. Hitler blamed a lot of those problems on the Jewish people. This was a common PREJUDICE at the time. The book explained Hitler’s view of the world. At the time Germany was experiencing a lot of problems. Hitler blamed a lot of those problems on the Jewish people. This was a common PREJUDICE at the time.

What do you think the word PREJUDICE means? Definition: Negative and irrational stereotypes about a group of people (for example, based upon ethnicity or religion) Prejudice = “To pre-judge”

Prejudice against Jews in Nazi Germany Many Germans felt the Jews could not be trusted in business dealings and that they were greedy and dishonest. This was a prejudice that went back centuries and many Europeans also believed it. This was irrational because there was no evidence to support it – it was just a stereotype.

Turning Prejudice into action - DISCRIMINATION People can be prejudiced because that was how they were brought up. Some negative stereotypes are common but few people base their day-to-day actions upon them. A prejudice is a belief about a group. DISCRIMINATION is a little different. What do you think the word ‘DISCRIMINATION’ means?

What is the difference between PREJUDICE and DISCRIMINATION? Definition: When a group of people is treated unfairly because of a prejudice against them. Prejudice = Pre-Judge DiscriminaTION = AcTION

Discrimination in Nazi Germany Many Germans had Jewish friends. Some Germans who shared Hitler’s prejudice still treated Jews fairly. However, some Germans would not employ Jews, allow their children to date them, shop in Jewish shops or rent property to them. These are ACTS of Discrimination

What made Nazi Germany different…? Some would have even discriminated against them… In countries like England, France, the United States and even New Zealand there were people in the 1930s who were prejudiced against Jews. Woodrow Wilson President of the USA ( ) Prejudiced against Jews.

This picture was taken in Nazi Germany. What evidence can you see that Discrimination in Nazi Germany went beyond individuals being unfair to minorities?

Discrimination PERSECUTION Jewish Symbol – the Star of David Sign telling Germans not to shop there. Locked gate Soldier in uniform enforcing closure

In Nazi Germany Nazi Politicians (led by Hitler) made it government policy to discriminate against the Jewish people. Definition Persecution: Government POLICY to discriminate against a group of people because of their ethnicity, beliefs, religion etc.

Prejudice, Discrimination or Persecution? Thinking someone is less intelligent because of the country they were born in… Not allowing teachers to belong to a religious group. Not allowing your daughter to marry someone because of their race. Firing a worker in your shop because you don’t like their religion. Believing that all members of a religion believe the same thing.

The shocking event that made the world take Human Rights seriously… Nazi Germany not only persecuted the Jewish people. In 1941 the Nazis decided that the Jewish ‘problem’ needed to be ended once and for all. The Nazis set up large camps in the occupied country of Poland. They shipped millions of Jews from Europe to these camps….

The Final Solution to the Jewish ‘Problem’ Hitler and other leading Nazis decided to exterminate every Jew in Europe. This was a policy of GENOCIDE. GENOCIDE: AN ATTEMPT TO EXTERMINATE AN ENTIRE RACE OF PEOPLE

Auschwitz The extermination camp outside the Polish town of Auschwitz was one of the largest. Over 1.5 million Jews were exterminated in this camp alone. “Work will set you free”

The Liberation of the Extermination Camps In 1944 and 1945 the Nazis started to lose territory to the Allies. Russian, British and American soldiers captured the camps and liberated the surviving Jews. They were greeted as heroes and saviours.

The awful truth confronting the liberating forces American soldiers at the camp in Dachau

The awful truth confronting the liberating forces The clothes of Jews were confiscated before they were executed. They were sold or given to Germans.

The awful truth confronting the liberating forces

These horrors changed the world…. Soldiers and journalists reported what they had seen in the camps. Survivors returned home to their communities and told the world about life and death inside the camps… Jewish survivors wearing jackets confiscated from Nazi guards.

The United Nations World War Two had shown that the existing ways of preventing war were not good enough. The leaders of the world’s most powerful nations decided that a new organisation was needed to help poor nations and prevent wars. The organisation was the United Nations.

The United Nations was created in 1945 The first meeting was in San Francisco

The United Nations Headquarters is based in New York. The land it is on is international, not American. Statue emphasising the goal of world peace.

Which rights should the United Nations protect? During World War Two Britain, the United States and Russia had agreed that FOUR freedoms would be guaranteed in Europe once the Nazis were defeated : 1.Freedom of expression (“To say what you want” 2.Freedom of assembly (“To associate with who you want”) 3.Freedom from fear (“So no government will persecute you”) 4.Freedom from want (“So no person will be homeless or hungry”)

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Governments did not immediately agree on the rights they would give their citizens. After three years of arguments and discussions the final text was agreed to. In 1948 the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was published.