John Humphrey

John Humphrey was the representative of the UN Secretariat to the Commission on Human Rights. His position within the United Nations was Director of the Human Rights Division in the Secretariat’s Department of Social Affairs.

Humphrey was well suited to sit on the Commission. Like Cassin, he combined an extensive knowledge of international law (he was Dean of Faculty at McGill University in Canada) with avid support for the protection of human rights worldwide. At Commission meetings he served as an invaluable mediator between different philosophical factions.

His most recognized contribution was the preparation of a four hundred-page blueprint for the Universal Declaration, which was consulted by the Drafting Committee during the UDHR’s formation. That draft outline contained the comprehensive information that was used to define the UDHR’s thirty articles, including a bill of rights drawn up by Humphrey, and numerous suggestions by government Delegations and non-governmental organizations.

National Coordinating Committee for UDHR50.
Copyright © Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute. All rights reserved.
Revised: April 24, 1998.