A Good Read on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Development of U.S.

In 1950, the UN General Assembly proclaimed December 10 as Human Rights Day, to bring to the attention “of the peoples of the world” the Universal Declaration of Human Rights “as the common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations.”

  

U.S. leaders routinely acknowledge the significance of the Universal Declaration as a fundamental aspirational document.  However, the U.S. position on the economic, social and cultural rights protected by the UDHR — such as social security and education — has been ambivalent.  As Assistant Secretary of State Michael Posner stated in a 2011 speech to the American Society of International Law — where he was determined to put a positive spin on the matter — “The United States has taken steps to provide for economic, social and cultural rights but we understand them in our own way . . .”

Now, Sally-Anne Way has written a fascinating article in the current issue of Human Rights Quarterly, vol. 36 (Nov, 2014), pp. 869-897, that examines the early U.S. position on economic, social and cultural rights in greater historical detail.   The article is titled:

The “Myth” and Mystery of US History on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights: The 1947  “United States Suggestions for Articles to be Incorporated in an International Bill of Rights.”  

Here is the abstract:

 ABSTRACT:

This article examines the official position of the United States on economic, social, and cultural rights during the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the detail of which is mysteriously absent from contemporary histories of human rights. An overlooked June 1947 US draft for an international bill of rights proves beyond doubt early official US support for economic, social, and cultural rights, if only in an aspirational Declaration rather than a legally-binding Covenant. The official US position shifted significantly over 1947 and 1948, but this US draft remained surprisingly significant for the eventual phrasing of the 1966 International Covenant on these rights.