They are rights because they are things one is legally and morally entitled to as part of one’s existence. These rights need to be stated and learned to protect ourselves, our families and our affiliations against those who want to harm us. They also help us get along with each other live in peace.

The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) describes the rights to which each person is entitled. The document was adopted by the United Nations (UN), which came into being shortly after the end of World War II in 1945.Founded to create peace and prevent war, the UN today comprises 192 member nations.

At its inception, the UN formed a commission headed by Eleanor Roosevelt, the wife of Franklin D. Roosevelt (President of the United States from 1933 to 1945), to create a document enumerating the fundamental rights shared by all people. The new Human Rights Commission, composed of representatives from eighteen countries, codified the 30 articles that comprise a statement of truly universal human rights