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- Humphrey was called to the Quebec Bar in 1929. He entered a private law practice before joining the Faculty of Law at McGill University in 1936. He briefly became the dean a decade later.
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Who was John Humphrey?
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Why did John Peters Humphrey leave McGill?
As A.J. Hobbins, editor of On the Edge of Greatness, notes: “Canadian lawyer and human rights advocate John Peters Humphrey (1905-1995) taught law at McGill University before becoming the first director of the United Nations Division of Human Rights, a position he held from 1946 until 1966 ...
- Early Years and Education
- Early Career
- Career with The United Nations
- Career After The Un
- Honours and Legacy
Humphrey’s childhood was marked by tragedy. He lost his father at the age of thirteen months and his mother when he was eleven; both died of cancer. In between those calamities, a horrible accident took away his left arm. Humphrey proved to be a precocious and accomplished student. He was admitted to Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Bruns...
Humphrey was called to the Quebec Bar in 1929. He entered a private law practice before joining the Faculty of Law at McGill Universityin 1936. He briefly became the dean a decade later.
In 1946, Humphrey was appointed director of human rights for the United Nations Secretariat. With the assistance of others, he authored the original draft of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It was passed as a resolution of the General Assembly on 10 December 1948. The declaration was referred to as the “Magna Cartaof all mankind” by Elea...
Humphrey returned to McGill University in 1966. In 1967, he co-founded the Canadian Human Rights Foundation (now Equitas) with Thérèse Casgrain and Dr. Gustave Gingras. He taught full-time until the early 1970s and then part-time until he retired in 1994. He remained active in international affairs and the protection of human rights. He authored se...
It was not until late in his life that Humphrey’s contribution to the UN declaration was formally recognized, after a first draft in his handwriting was discovered. He received many awards and honours. He was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1974 and received the United Nations Prize for human rights advocacy in 1988. Between 1992 and 2011...
In 1946, John Humphrey, then a Professor of Law at McGill University, was asked to work with a committee of the United Nations Secretariat to help the organization draft a statement on human rights.
Returning to Montreal in 1937, Humphrey began a distinguished career at McGill University that spanned nearly three score years. During his early years at McGill, Humphrey taught an eclectic grouping of law courses - from engineering law to administrative and old Roman law. But his first love, international law, was quickly
In 1946, John Peters Humphrey, professor of law at McGill University, turned down an offer of Deanship. Why refuse a position of such influence? Well, it started with a phone call. John Peters Humphrey and Gen. Romulo of the Philippines. Geneva, April 1948. Photographer: United Nations. McGill University Archives MG 4127/2002-0086.04.36.1.
- Jean-Marc Tremblay
Dec 7, 2023 · The answer comes largely through the experiences of one Canadian: John Peters Humphrey. Humphrey is remembered for his role in helping to draft the UDHR, yet in doing so he was working for the UN and not representing Canada, so the repurposing of his legacy to serve a national mythology around human rights is deeply problematic.
Lawyer, internationalist, and McGill University professor John P. Humphrey emerged from the vibrant social, cultural, and intellectual scene of 1930s Montréal to become an influential international civil servant at the United Nations (UN) Secretariat in New York City.
