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Head and shoulders portrait of John Peters Humphrey from the 1930s. He is serious looking.

John Peters Humphrey 1905 to 1995

Did you know that a Canadian wrote the original draft of the UDHR? Open each section below and explore the story of John Peters Humphrey, whose lifelong advocacy for human rights continues to inspire us today.

Learn more about
John Peters Humphrey
in this remarkable story

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1. Introduction

John Peters Humphrey was instrumental in bringing human rights to international attention in the 20th century. Together with a small group gathered in Eleanor Roosevelt's New York City apartment, Humphrey set about drafting a world-changing document. But his role in crafting the UDHR remained unrecognized for 50 years. Learn more about John Peters Humphrey in this remarkable story.

"There has never been a more revolutionary development in the theory and practice of international law and organization than the recognition that human rights are matters of international concern."

- John Peters Humphrey

  • Image 1 of 4: Head and shoulders portrait of John Peters Humphrey from the 1930s. He is serious looking.
  • Image 2 of 4: An Assembly meeting. A partial view of the meeting hall where the desks are arranged in a circle. Seated side by side from the left, we see: Eleanor Roosevelt and John Peters Humphrey. At the back of the hall, people are seated on chairs without desks. Some take notes, others listen or discuss.
  • Image 3 of 4: Four paragraphs of hand written text (paragraphs 14 to 17).
  • Image 4 of 4: A photograph of two men sitting side by side at a meeting table. On the left, John Peters Humphrey sits behind a tabletop nametag on which is written: Director, Division of Human Rights. To the right sits a distinguished looking man in spectacles, Eric Einar Eikstrand.

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2. Early Challenges

Personal tragedy influenced Humphrey's outlook on life. He lost his left arm at age six and was orphaned by 11, all the while victimized by bullies at school. These experiences forged within him a deep sympathy for human suffering. How could he help protect the vulnerable?

"I had an accident playing with fire (and they amputated) the left arm. But I've never looked on it as a handicap. I even can tie a bowtie."

- John Peters Humphrey

  • Image 1 of 7: A hand drawn family tree by John Peters Humphrey on McGill University Faculty of Law letterhead. Five generations are accounted for on the diagram.
  • Image 2 of 7: A horizontal, oval shaped family photo of John Peters Humphey's father, Frank Monmouth Humphrey with his sister and four brothers. Beside him, in the centre of the picture.
  • Image 3 of 7: A portrait of John Peters Humphrey's mother simetime around 1905. The photograph is in a vertically oriented gold oval picture frame. Her hair is rolled into a bun on top of her head and she is wearing a turtleneck sweater. She looks dreamily off towards her right.
  • Image 4 of 7: A head and shoulders portrait of John Peters Humphey as a child of about five years. He is turned towards the left with a bemused look on his face.
  • Image 5 of 7: A head and shoulders portrait of John Peters Humphey as a young man. His ears are prominent as is his smile and tender regard.
  • Image 6 of 7: A picture, taken outdoors, of John Peters Humphrey at the age of 26 with his sister. They are dressed in light colour clothing standing in front of a fence. In the distance behind the fence are trees.
  • Image 7 of 7: A picture of John Peters Humphrey at the age of 29 with his wife. He sits sideways in a chair turned to look at his wife who sits behind the chair on a stool, leaning on the back of the chair.

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3. Passion Awakened

As a law student at McGill University, his social conscience was awakened. He began to exchange ideas with a group of progressive thinkers. As the Great Depression took its toll, the young visionary contemplated a more just society. In his later role as a law professor at McGill, he continued to search for ways to advocate for human rights.

"The individual seeks not only protection against interference by governments, he looks to the collectivity for positive services."

- John Peters Humphrey

  • Image 1 of 7: A head and shoulders profile portrait of John Peters Humphrey wearing university graduation garb. He is 19 years of age and looks very serious.
  • Image 2 of 7: A picture of a very serious John Peters Humphrey at the age of 20 sitting in profile at his desk. He has a pen in hand and has almost completely filled the page with writing. On his desk also sits an open book. The desk is placed against a wall and a number of books are stacked or stand on the desk against the wall.
  • Image 3 of 7: A McGill University diploma written in Latin attesting to the completion of a bachelors degree in Economics and Political Science.
  • Image 4 of 7: A certificate, written in French, declaring admission to the Bar in the Province of Quebec. Personal data such as name, place and date are hand written. The certificate is dated 8 July 1927.
  • Image 5 of 7: A University of Paris student card. The card looks like a small open booklet. On the left side of the card is a picture of a 30 year old John Peters Humphrey. On the right side are university details such as inscription and course withdrawl dates.
  • Image 6 of 7: A law diploma from the Faculty of Law of the University of Paries dated 1937. It contains only eight lines mainly of hand written text with information such as name, place and date of birth.
  • Image 7 of 7: Course notes typed on three holed paper. An additional paragraph is hand written at the top of the page and hand written corrections are found throughout the page.

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4. Drafting the Declaration

In 1946, as the world emerged from WWII, the renowned law professor was called upon to serve as the first director of the United Nations Human Rights Division.

Soon Humphrey was selected to be the architect of a landmark document that aspired to secure the rights of all humanity. Tirelessly he worked to synthesize the ideals of diverse cultures and the interests of different nations. Although Canada was not on board at first, the country ultimately gave its support. Adopted by the UN in 1948, this Declaration would inspire the world.

"The final judgment of history will be determined by the impact which the Declaration has and will have on the actual conduct of states and of individual men and women everywhere."

- John Peters Humphrey

  • Image 1 of 4: Head and shoulders portrait of John Peters Humphrey from the 1930s. He is serious looking.
  • Image 2 of 7: A picture of a committee meeting taken literally at the height of the table top. Water pitchers, books and papers are at the forefront of the picture. Further back are very concentrated committee members. John Peters Humphrey sits beside Eleanor D. Roosevelt, head down holding an earphone (for translation) to his ear with his right hand.
  • Image 3 of 7: An Assembly meeting. A partial view of the meeting hall where the desks are arranged in a circle. Seated side by side from the left, we see: Eleanor Roosevelt and John Peters Humphrey. At the back of the hall, people are seated on chairs without desks. Some take notes, others listen or discuss.
  • Image 4 of 7: Hand written notes on a lined piece of paper. The text is formatted to look like a table of contents with subject matter to the left and page numbers on the right.
  • Image 5 of 7: A hand written draft page from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Paragraphs 30 to 34 are shown. Two paragraphs are scribbled over.
  • Image 6 of 7: A hand written diary page with entries for the 15th and the 17th of November 1948. The page appears to be from a spiral bound steno pad.
  • Image 7 of 7: Eleanor Roosevelt standing by a wall in front of a closed curtain. She looks to be reading a giant poster sized print out of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

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5. A Lifelong Dedication

Humphrey did not stop to rest. For the remainder of his life, he devoted himself to advancing the cause of human rights.

He was instrumental in founding the Canadian Section of Amnesty International, while around the world he advocated for the rights of women and minorities, and advised dozens of countries in the creation of their constitutions. With these actions he helped realize the promise of the UDHR.

"There will be peace on earth when the rights of all are respected."

- John Peters Humphrey

  • Image 1 of 7: Many committee members, including John Peters Humphrey sitting around tables stacked with papers listening intently.
  • Image 2 of 7: A photograph of two men sitting side by side at a meeting table. On the left, John Peters Humphrey sits behind a tabletop nametag on which is written: Director, Division of Human Rights. To the right sits a distinguished looking man in spectacles, Eric Einar Eikstrand.
  • Image 3 of 7: Four men standing behind a desk and one sitting on the desk. John Peters Humphrey stands to the left with a cigarette in his hand. Beside him stands a man with a microphone in his left hand, his right hand in his pocket. All the men are smiling and looking at the microphone.
  • Image 4 of 7: A typewritten French press release giving information on John Peters Humphrey.
  • Image 5 of 7: John Peters Humphrey's red diplomatic passport.
  • Image 6 of 7: A view of John Peters Humphrey's opened diplomatic passport. The left page contains personal information and the right page contains a photograph of Humphrey. In this picture, John Peters Humphrey is middle aged with gray hair.
  • Image 7 of 7: Stamped pages in John Peters Humphrey's diplomatic passport. On the left page, the stamp for Geneva is evident. On the right page are numerous stamps amongst which are Lisbon and Rome.

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6. Recognition at Last

In 1968 the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the French jurist René Cassin for his contributions to the UDHR, while Humphrey's central role went uncelebrated. But in 1988 a fortuitous discovery occurred: early handwritten drafts of the UDHR in Humphrey's old McGill files. Recognition at last.

"[This Declaration] is the work of hundreds, indeed of thousands, of people and it represents a synthesis of the ideas and convictions of the millions of people of all races and nationalities who spoke through them."

- John Peters Humphrey

  • Image 1 of 7: A head and shoulders picture of John Peters Humphrey at the age of 80. He sits at a table in front of an empty plate with a serious look on his face.
  • Image 2 of 7: The front page from a 1988 version of The McGill Reporter with an article entitled Magna Cara of Mankind. The article details the discovery of a hand written draft of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and credits John Peters Humphrey as the author. At the centre of the article is a picture of a man, the McGill Law Librarian, sitting at a table reading a document.
  • Image 3 of 7: A cut out from the 1988 edition of The McGill Reporter providing the end of the front page story about the discovery of the draft of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights written by John Peters Humphrey. Humphrey makes the point that he is not the father of the Declaration and that the author's anonymity gives the document prestige and authority.
  • Image 4 of 7: The Order of Canada medal awarded John Peters Humphrey in its case. The medal has the shape of a snowflake. In the centre of the medal is a gold maple leaf within a red ring. Above this centrepiece is the crown of Saint Edward. The medal hangs from a red and white striped ribon. These colors symbolize Canada's flag.
  • Image 5 of 7: The medal of the Ordre National du Quebec awarded John Peters Humphrey. The ribbon has Quebec's blue and white colours. The medal itself is in the shape of a wide cross with the fleur de lis in the bottom left corner.
  • Image 6 of 7: The newspaper clipping from the 23 March 1995 edition of The McGill Reporter detailing the death of John Peters Humphrey. The top portion of the clipping has a picture of a 90 year old John Peters Humphrey.
  • Image 7 of 7: John Peters Humphrey commemorative stamps

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