The security provided by a long-held belief system, even when poorly founded, is a strong impediment to progress. General acceptance of a practice becomes the proof of its validity, though it lacks all other merit.
Bernard LownRead
The International Declaration of Human Rights says the right to housing, health, education should be guaranteed to everyone. The moment these things are provided, we will have a different world order and nuclear weapons will become less of a threat.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the necessity of basic human rights for a peaceful world, suggesting that provisions for housing, health, and education can mitigate global threats like nuclear weapons.
Bernard Lown's quote highlights the fundamental rights outlined in the International Declaration of Human Rights, asserting that when essential needs such as housing, health care, and education are ensured for every individual, society can progress towards a more secure and harmonious world. Lown posits that addressing these basic human rights will not only improve individual lives but also reduce global conflicts and the dangers posed by nuclear armament, fostering a new societal order that prioritizes human welfare over war and violence.
Themes
Human RightsPeaceEducationHealthHousingNuclear ThreatWorld Order
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech advocating for human rights during an international conference.
More from Bernard Lown
All quotes →Similar quotes
From the Balkans to Africa, from Asia to the Middle East, we have witnessed the weakening or absence of effective governance leading to the ravaging of human rights and the abandonment of longstanding humanitarian principles. We need competent and responsible states to meet the needs of "we the peoples" for whom the UN was created. And the world's peoples will not be fully served unless peace, development and human rights, the three pillars of the UN, are advanced together with equal vigour.
Ban Ki-MoonRead
So on this Human Rights Day, let us rededicate ourselves to the advancement of human rights and freedoms for all, and pledge always to live by the ideals we promote to the world.
Barack ObamaRead
Violence against women in all its forms is a human rights violation. It's not something that any culture, religion or tradition propagates.
Michelle BacheletRead
In the Saudi system, women are considered inferior. No matter our age, we have male guardians. We must get permission from men to attend school, to work, to marry, to travel overseas - even to have basic medical procedures.
Manal Al-SharifRead
Fundamental violations of human rights always lead to people feeling less and less human.
Aung San Suu KyiRead
Human rights, human freedoms... and human dignity have their deepest roots somewhere outside the perceptible world... while the state is a human creation, human beings are the creation of God.
Vaclav HavelRead