Home Archived Human rights Who’s right and whose wrongs? Back Human rights Who’s right and whose wrongs? 21st November 2003, 12:00am Kirsten Sellars Share Human rights Who’s right and whose wrongs? https://www.tes.com/magazine/archive/human-rights-whos-right-and-whose-wrongs Copy Link Rights and Reason By Jonathan Gorman Acumen Publishing pound;14.95 pbk, pound;40 hbk Children as Equals Edited by Kathleen Alaimo and Brian Klug University Press of America pound;29 pbk, pound;55 hbk When UN delegates sat down to draft the 1948 Universal Declaration on Human Rights, they soon discovered that human rights were easier to declare than to define. Debate about the declaration’s first article indicated the problem at hand. First, the French delegate, Rene Cassin, proposed: “All men are brothers. Being endowed with reason, members of one family, they are free and possess equal dignity and rights.” Other delegates objected to the words “all men”. This did not mean “all people”, complained the Soviet delegate, but reflected “the mastery of men over women”. Further, was humanity bestowed by God or by nature? The Brazilian suggested: “Created in the image and likeness of God, they are endowed with reason and conscience.” The British delegate balked, on the grounds that mention of God would alienate the communist world. The Belgian delegate proposed a compromise: no mention of “God” or “nature”. Read more in this week’s TES Friday magazine Kirsten Sellars is the author of The Rise and Rise of Human Rights (Sutton pound;20)nbsp; nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Want to keep reading for free? Register with Tes and you can read two free articles every month plus you'll have access to our range of award-winning newsletters. Register Log in Keep reading for just £1 per month You've reached your limit of free articles this month. Subscribe for £1 per month for three months and get: Unlimited access to all Tes magazine content Exclusive subscriber-only stories Award-winning email newsletters Subscribe now Read more Consuming interest Kirsten Sellars • 30th June 2006 Lesson for the mandarins Kirsten Sellars • 26th May 2006 You have the right Kirsten Sellars • 20th January 2006 Talking tough Kirsten Sellars • 17th September 2004 Recent Most read Most shared 10 questions with...Dr Jeffery Quaye News 19 October 2024 Staff with poor view of leaders in November more likely to leave News 18 October 2024 New ungraded inspections risk inconsistency, trusts’ leader warns News 18 October 2024 Private school VAT rules ‘not fit for purpose’ News 16 October 2024 Ofsted: Monday notification call does not apply to deferred inspections News 16 October 2024 Teacher pay scales 2024-25: what will your salary look like? Analysis 29 July 2024 Third of parents ‘more relaxed’ about children missing school News 16 October 2024 3 ways the Employment Rights Bill could upend education Analysis 16 October 2024 Careers advisers ‘should be funded in every secondary’ News 17 October 2024