10 questions · Society & Everyday
Eleanor Roosevelt is born into a wealthy New York family in 1884, but loses both parents early and grows up a shy, insecure child raised by relatives. She marries her distant cousin Franklin D. Roosevelt, who later rises to become President of the United States. The once timid young woman thus becomes First Lady and reinvents the role radically. Rather than confining herself to ceremony, Eleanor Roosevelt becomes a political voice in her own right. During the Great Depression and the Second World War she travels the country, visiting factories, slums and soldiers, holding press conferences and writing a daily newspaper column. She champions workers, the poor and the civil rights of Black Americans: often more boldly and openly than her husband. Her most significant work begins after Franklin's death: in 1946 she becomes a US delegate to the newly founded United Nations and chairs the Commission on Human Rights. Under her leadership one of the most important documents in world history takes shape: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in 1948. To many she is the driving force behind it. Eleanor Roosevelt remains a tireless champion of human dignity and justice until her death in 1962. A president once called her the "First Lady of the World". Her legacy is the conviction that the rights of every individual (especially the weakest) must be defended everywhere.
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Universal Declaration of Human Rights
She chaired the UN Commission on Human Rights that drafted the document.
💡 Did you know? Roosevelt chaired the body that drafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948: her most important life's work.
chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights
In 1946 she became a US delegate to the newly founded United Nations.
💡 Did you know? As chair of the UN Human Rights Commission, Roosevelt negotiated every sentence of the declaration between East and West.
First Lady of the US
She radically reinvented the role and became a political voice in her own right.
💡 Did you know? Roosevelt completely reinvented the role of First Lady: she held her own press conferences open only to women reporters.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Eleanor was married to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, whom she also represented politically after his polio.
💡 Did you know? He was also her distant cousin.
social justice and civil rights
She often acted more boldly and openly than her husband.
💡 Did you know? When a Black singer was refused a venue in 1939, Roosevelt pointedly resigned from the organisation responsible.
daily newspaper column
In her daily newspaper column „My Day,“ Roosevelt wrote about politics and daily life for almost 30 years.
💡 Did you know? She also travelled the country, visiting factories, slums and soldiers.
First Lady of the World
It honoured her worldwide commitment to human dignity.
💡 Did you know? For her global commitment Roosevelt was called the „First Lady of the World“: a nickname from President Truman.
shy, orphaned young
The timid child became one of the most influential women of the 20th century.
💡 Did you know? An early-orphaned, shy child, Roosevelt grew up with a strict grandmother; she had to overcome her timidity first.
Foto: Yousuf Karsh · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 to 1962) was a US First Lady and human-rights champion who decisively shaped the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
💡 Did you know? When the declaration was adopted in 1948, Roosevelt received a standing ovation from the UN General Assembly: a rare honour.
1884
Born: 11 October 1884 in New York City
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