Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site

05/07/2021

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

...is a milestone document in the history of human rights. Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (General Assembly resolution 217 A) as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected and it has been translated into over 500 languages. The UDHR is widely recognized as having inspired, and paved the way for, the adoption of more than seventy human rights treaties, applied today on a permanent basis at global and regional levels (all containing references to it in their preambles).

Preamble
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, therefore,

The General Assembly,

Proclaims this Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

#UDHR #universaldeclarationofhumanrights #EleanorRoosevelt United Nations #NPSHydePark #HumanRights

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

...is a milestone document in the history of human rights. Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (General Assembly resolution 217 A) as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected and it has been translated into over 500 languages. The UDHR is widely recognized as having inspired, and paved the way for, the adoption of more than seventy human rights treaties, applied today on a permanent basis at global and regional levels (all containing references to it in their preambles).

Preamble
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, therefore,

The General Assembly,

Proclaims this Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

#UDHR #universaldeclarationofhumanrights #EleanorRoosevelt United Nations #NPSHydePark #HumanRights

05/06/2021

#ThrowbackThursday #erquotes

"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent."

"...good manners and consideration for others are important to all human relations and no one can afford to ignore them."

"...freedom makes a huge requirement of every human being. With freedom comes responsibility."

"We can treat others with respect due human beings and we will receive respect in return, regardless of race, color, or creed."

Photo - Courtesy of Library of Congress, Eleanor Roosevelt, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing front. , ca. 1945. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/93503451/.

#ThrowbackThursday #erquotes

"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent."

"...good manners and consideration for others are important to all human relations and no one can afford to ignore them."

"...freedom makes a huge requirement of every human being. With freedom comes responsibility."

"We can treat others with respect due human beings and we will receive respect in return, regardless of race, color, or creed."

Photo - Courtesy of Library of Congress, Eleanor Roosevelt, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing front. , ca. 1945. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/93503451/.

05/05/2021

My Day, August 13, 1948
HYDE PARK, Thursday—It has been a little hard this summer to read the many books that have come my way, but I finally did get a chance to enjoy "The White House Diary" by Henrietta Nesbitt (FDR's housekeeper).

When I read the message from Mrs. Nesbitt on the fly leaf, I was a little overcome and embarrassed, because Mrs. Nesbitt is truly kind to all of us. It is true she didn't always like all of our friends and some of the visitors seem to have been a real trial, but so far as my husband and myself and the children are concerned she was certainly a very charitable and generous friend.

Some of the recipes she gives still make my mouth water, and I wish she were still doing some baking and I could ask her to send us some of the things we all liked so much.

Of course, there are a few slight inaccuracies in the book, but it is interesting and readable. Mrs. Nesbitt's viewpoint was all her own, and she perhaps had the opportunity of knowing people better in certain ways than anyone else in the house. Luckily, she seems to have been able to keep some sense of humor through these trying years in the White House, and I will always remember gratefully how she and Mr. Nesbitt came together and tackled a very big job because I asked them to do it. She says very generously that it was a lifesaver for her, but it was also a lifesaver for me.

* * *

I always got on well with Mrs. Nesbitt. My husband became difficult about his food in the last few years, and with rationing troubles it became more difficult to give him the things he really wanted.

The greatest sacrifice which Mrs. Nesbitt made for him was working with his mother's cook, whom he kept after Mrs. Roosevelt's death in 1941 to cook two meals a day for him in the White House and to go to Hyde Park when he went there. Some of my time was spent mediating between Mrs. Nesbitt and Mary, the cook, who had her own kitchen on the top floor of the White House. When I was away, Miss Thompson took over the job of mediating.

One of my daughters-in-law used to worry a great deal about our White House food, which she did not consider very good, and as I had never been able to pretend that I knew anything about food, I had to be very humble about her criticisms and try to remedy the defects. Not being conscious of them myself, I'm afraid I was not very successful. Thus, I was very grateful when our daughter joined our household after her husband went overseas, because she could interpret what had then become Franklin's whims far better than I could.

All in all, I think Mrs. Nesbitt deserves the gratitude of every member of our family for her patience and efficiency during the busy years in the White House, and I only wish our paths crossed more often today.

Photos from Library of Congress, 1939.

#EleanorRoosevelt #FDR #MrsNesbitt #MyDay #WhiteHouse
#NPSHydePark #Springwood #housekeeper

05/04/2021

May is #HistoricPreservationMonth

After being covered up for many years, the National Park Service restored the swimming pool at Val-Kill in 2016. This was the Centennial Project for the 100th Anniversary of the National Park Service.

The pool was used by FDR, Eleanor, King George VI, and Winston Churchill, just to name a few.

The Eleanor Roosevelt Val-Kill Partnership supports projects that help visitors experience Val-Kill as a place of ideals and inspiration. To date, the Partnership has raised over $2.5 million in direct benefits to the Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic site, including the restoration of the swimming pool. To learn more about the Partnership visit their website at:
https://www.valkill.org/

#ValKill #EleanorRoosevelt #swimmingPool #NPS100 #NPSHydePark #NationalParkService #TransformationTuesday

05/03/2021

Marie Souvestre, one of the most important intellectual influences of Eleanor Roosevelt's youth, was born in 1830 in France. An educator known for her high academic standards and liberal political beliefs, Souvestre founded and ran schools for the daughters of the prominent European and American families in both France and England. The best known of these was Allenswood Academy in England, which ER attended from 1899-1902. While at Allenswood, Eleanor became Souvestre's protégé. For ER, orphaned at a young age, Souvestre was a combination of teacher, mentor, parent, and friend as well as the model of a fiercely independent woman. She instructed ER in French, all the while encouraging her to become more confident in her abilities and to express her personality. The two were extremely close, and ER credited Souvestre with forming both her character and her intellectual outlook.

ER thrived on Souvestre's intellectual method, which stressed rigorous analysis and independent thinking. She also responded to Souvestre's humanism and commitment to human justice. Watching Souvestre fight for seemingly lost political and social causes, Eleanor wrote many years later, "I think I came to feel that the underdog was always the one to be championed." Souvestre also introduced ER to the settlement movement (privately funded inner city institutions that provided education and social services to immigrants and the urban poor), which Eleanor later became part of through her work with the Rivington Street Settlement House in New York City. In addition, Souvestre also taught ER the pleasures of independent travel, which gave ER great confidence and influenced her own subsequent love of travel.

ER wanted to stay on at Allenswood for another year, but her grandmother insisted that she return home in 1902 to make her debut in society. Eleanor complied, but she and Souvestre maintained a correspondence until Souvestre's death in March of 1905. Thereafter Eleanor kept Souvestre's portrait on her desk and carried her letters with her.

Text from: https://erpapers.columbian.gwu.edu/marie-souvestre-1830-1905

#TeacherAppreciationWeek #ThankaTeacher #NPSHydePark #EleanorRoosevelt #Allenswood

Photo - Courtesy of Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum

Marie Souvestre, one of the most important intellectual influences of Eleanor Roosevelt's youth, was born in 1830 in France. An educator known for her high academic standards and liberal political beliefs, Souvestre founded and ran schools for the daughters of the prominent European and American families in both France and England. The best known of these was Allenswood Academy in England, which ER attended from 1899-1902. While at Allenswood, Eleanor became Souvestre's protégé. For ER, orphaned at a young age, Souvestre was a combination of teacher, mentor, parent, and friend as well as the model of a fiercely independent woman. She instructed ER in French, all the while encouraging her to become more confident in her abilities and to express her personality. The two were extremely close, and ER credited Souvestre with forming both her character and her intellectual outlook.

ER thrived on Souvestre's intellectual method, which stressed rigorous analysis and independent thinking. She also responded to Souvestre's humanism and commitment to human justice. Watching Souvestre fight for seemingly lost political and social causes, Eleanor wrote many years later, "I think I came to feel that the underdog was always the one to be championed." Souvestre also introduced ER to the settlement movement (privately funded inner city institutions that provided education and social services to immigrants and the urban poor), which Eleanor later became part of through her work with the Rivington Street Settlement House in New York City. In addition, Souvestre also taught ER the pleasures of independent travel, which gave ER great confidence and influenced her own subsequent love of travel.

ER wanted to stay on at Allenswood for another year, but her grandmother insisted that she return home in 1902 to make her debut in society. Eleanor complied, but she and Souvestre maintained a correspondence until Souvestre's death in March of 1905. Thereafter Eleanor kept Souvestre's portrait on her desk and carried her letters with her.

Text from: https://erpapers.columbian.gwu.edu/marie-souvestre-1830-1905

#TeacherAppreciationWeek #ThankaTeacher #NPSHydePark #EleanorRoosevelt #Allenswood

Photo - Courtesy of Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum

05/02/2021

#EleanorRoosevelt #whitehousehistoricalassociation #WhiteHouseHistory The White House

In March 1933, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt hosted five female journalists for lunch in the Family Dining Room of the White House. Deviled eggs, “sliced cold cuts, chicken, ham and roast beef” were served with “grapefruit salad and hot corn muffins on the Theodore Roosevelt state service…Chocolate bonbons and black coffee followed in the dainty gold-patterned china of the Wilson administration, which has the United States seal in gold.”

After they finished their meal, Mrs. Roosevelt took her guests on a tour of the historic home, “pointing out the changes she is making upstairs.” She showed the women her private sitting room and office, the Lincoln Study (today known as the Lincoln Bedroom), and the president’s private office in the Second Floor Oval Room. She also showed them a “handsome inaugural cake that had been sent” but not cut yet, still on display in the State Dining Room!

Mrs. Roosevelt took the group down to the Ground Floor to see “the Presidential china exhibit…and a series of public waiting rooms and cloak rooms.” The tour took more than two hours and ended swiftly when White House Chief Usher Ike Hoover “put in his third appearance and this time Mrs. Roosevelt told him she would ‘be there’ immediately.” The first lady escorted her guests out and thanked them for their visit.

While the White House interiors have changed since the Roosevelts’ time living there, you can still see some of these rooms and spaces today. See for yourself by exploring our 360 Virtual Tour!

https://www.whitehousehistory.org/tour-the-white-house-in-360-degrees

Image: Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum