Cui Zhiyuan
Cui also published an paper on Zhang Pengchun’s role in drafting United Nations’ the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. Zhang Pengchun (1892-1957) studied with John Dewey and got his Ph.D. from Columbia University and was the first Provost of Tsinghua University in 1923. He was the only Vice Chairman of the Commission on Human Rights (with Eleanor Roosevelt as the Chairman) in drafting the Universal Declaration, especially in inserting the Chinese concept “Ren” (, two men). Zhang initially translated “Ren” as two men mindedness, because “two men mindedness” is considered as too awkward, thus “conscience” was used in the final text of the Preamble of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Cui's article discusses the important implications of this discovery in the UN archive about Zhang's key role for the current Chinese political and cultural debates—transcending the dichotomy of “Western Centralism” and “Cultural Particularism”— and has been translated into French and published (, Multitudes 2013/3)
Right to an adequate standard of living
The most significant inspiration for the inclusion of the right to an adequate standard of living in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was the 1941 Four Freedoms speech by US President Franklin Roosevelt, which declared freedom of speech, freedom of faith, freedom from want and freedom from fear. On the basis of the speech the American Law Institute established a draft proposals for an international bill of rights, the "Statement of Essential Human Rights", which greatly influenced the UDHR. The statement included the right to adequate food and housing and the right to social security, including the right to health. Article 25 of the UDHR recognises the right to an adequate standard of living, stating that: