Four Freedoms
Encyclopedia
The Four Freedoms were goals articulated by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt
on January 6, 1941. In an address known as the Four Freedoms speech (technically the 1941 State of the Union address), he proposed four fundamental freedoms that people "everywhere in the world" ought to enjoy:
His inclusion of the latter two freedoms went beyond the traditional US Constitutional values protected by its First Amendment
, and endorsed a right
to economic security and an internationalist
view of foreign policy. They also anticipated what would become known decades later as the "human security
" paradigm in social science and economic development
.
Eleanor Roosevelt
regarding her inspiration behind the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, General Assembly Resolution 217A.
. Indeed, these Four Freedoms were explicitly incorporated into the preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which reads, "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 the highest aspiration of the common people,...."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
President Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech inspired a set of four Four Freedoms
paintings by Norman Rockwell
. The four paintings were published in The Saturday Evening Post
on February 20, February 27, March 6 and March 13 in 1943. The paintings were accompanied in the magazine by matching essay
s on the Four Freedoms. The most famous is Freedom from Fear
.
The United States Department of the Treasury
toured Rockwell’s Four Freedoms paintings around the country after their publication in 1943. The Four Freedoms Tour raised over $130,000,000 in war bond
sales.
Rockwell's Four Freedoms paintings were also reproduced as postage stamp
s by the United States Post Office. Also, postage stamps of the Four Freedoms were issued in 1943 and in 1946.
The New Jersey muralist Michael Lenson (1903–72) likewise responded to Roosevelt’s speech in a pictorial way, painting a mural titled “The Four Freedoms” for the Fourteenth Street School in Newark, New Jersey.
to design a monument to be dedicated to the first hero of the war. The Four Freedoms Monument
was created in 1941, and was dedicated at Madison Square Garden
in New York in 1943.
was a park designed by the architect Louis Kahn
for the south point of Roosevelt Island
. The Park celebrates the famous speech and text from the speech is inscribed on a granite wall in the final design of the Park.
honors outstanding individuals who have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to these ideals. The Four Freedoms Award
medals are awarded at ceremonies at Hyde Park, New York
and Middelburg
, Netherlands
during alternate years. Among the laureates have been:
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
on January 6, 1941. In an address known as the Four Freedoms speech (technically the 1941 State of the Union address), he proposed four fundamental freedoms that people "everywhere in the world" ought to enjoy:
- Freedom of speechFreedom of speechFreedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship. The term freedom of expression is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used...
and expression - Freedom of worship
- Freedom from want
- Freedom from fear
His inclusion of the latter two freedoms went beyond the traditional US Constitutional values protected by its First Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
, and endorsed a right
Rights
Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people, according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory...
to economic security and an internationalist
Internationalism (politics)
Internationalism is a political movement which advocates a greater economic and political cooperation among nations for the theoretical benefit of all...
view of foreign policy. They also anticipated what would become known decades later as the "human security
Human security
Human security is an emerging paradigm for understanding global vulnerabilities whose proponents challenge the traditional notion of national security by arguing that the proper referent for security should be the individual rather than the state...
" paradigm in social science and economic development
Economic development
Economic development generally refers to the sustained, concerted actions of policymakers and communities that promote the standard of living and economic health of a specific area...
.
The Declarations
The speech delivered by President Roosevelt incorporated the followingIn the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms.
The first is freedom of speech and expression—everywhere in the world.
The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way—everywhere in the world.
The third is freedom from want—which, translated into world terms, means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants—everywhere in the world.
The fourth is freedom from fear—which, translated into world terms, means a world-wide reduction of armaments to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression against any neighbor—anywhere in the world.
That is no vision of a distant millennium. It is a definite basis for a kind of world attainable in our own time and generation. That kind of world is the very antithesis of the so-called new order of tyranny which the dictators seek to create with the crash of a bomb.—Franklin D. Roosevelt, excerpted from the State of the Union Address to the Congress, January 6, 1941
United Nations
The concept of the Four Freedoms became part of the personal mission undertaken by First LadyFirst Lady of the United States
First Lady of the United States is the title of the hostess of the White House. Because this position is traditionally filled by the wife of the president of the United States, the title is most often applied to the wife of a sitting president. The current first lady is Michelle Obama.-Current:The...
Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. After her husband's death in 1945, Roosevelt continued to be an international...
regarding her inspiration behind the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, General Assembly Resolution 217A.
. Indeed, these Four Freedoms were explicitly incorporated into the preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which reads, "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 the highest aspiration of the common people,...."
Disarmament
FDR called for "a world-wide reduction of armaments" as a goal for "the future days, which we seek to make secure" but one that was "attainable in our own time and generation." More immediately, though, he called for a massive build-up of U.S. arms production: "Every realist knows that the democratic way of life is at this moment being' directly assailed in every part of the world… The need of the moment is that our actions and our policy should be devoted primarily—almost exclusively—to meeting this foreign peril. … [T]he immediate need is a swift and driving increase in our armament production. … I also ask this Congress for authority and for funds sufficient to manufacture additional munitions and war supplies of many kinds, to be turned over to those nations which are now in actual war with aggressor nations. … Let us say to the democracies: '…We shall send you, in ever-increasing numbers, ships, planes, tanks,guns . …'"- Franklin D. Roosevelt
Norman Rockwell’s paintings
Four Freedoms (Norman Rockwell)
The Four Freedoms or Four Essential Human Freedoms is a series of oil paintings produced in 1943 by the American artist Norman Rockwell. The paintings are approximately equal in dimension with measurements of ×...
paintings by Norman Rockwell
Norman Rockwell
Norman Percevel Rockwell was a 20th-century American painter and illustrator. His works enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of American culture. Rockwell is most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios he created for The Saturday Evening...
. The four paintings were published in The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post is a bimonthly American magazine. It was published weekly under this title from 1897 until 1969, and quarterly and then bimonthly from 1971.-History:...
on February 20, February 27, March 6 and March 13 in 1943. The paintings were accompanied in the magazine by matching essay
Essay
An essay is a piece of writing which is often written from an author's personal point of view. Essays can consist of a number of elements, including: literary criticism, political manifestos, learned arguments, observations of daily life, recollections, and reflections of the author. The definition...
s on the Four Freedoms. The most famous is Freedom from Fear
Freedom from Fear (painting)
Freedom from Fear is one of Four Freedoms by Norman Rockwell that were inspired by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the State of the Union Address he delivered to the 77th United States Congress on January 6, 1941...
.
The United States Department of the Treasury
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
toured Rockwell’s Four Freedoms paintings around the country after their publication in 1943. The Four Freedoms Tour raised over $130,000,000 in war bond
War bond
War bonds are debt securities issued by a government for the purpose of financing military operations during times of war. War bonds generate capital for the government and make civilians feel involved in their national militaries...
sales.
Rockwell's Four Freedoms paintings were also reproduced as postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
s by the United States Post Office. Also, postage stamps of the Four Freedoms were issued in 1943 and in 1946.
The New Jersey muralist Michael Lenson (1903–72) likewise responded to Roosevelt’s speech in a pictorial way, painting a mural titled “The Four Freedoms” for the Fourteenth Street School in Newark, New Jersey.
Monument
FDR commissioned sculptor Walter RussellWalter Russell
Walter Bowman Russell was an American artist and mystic known for his achievements as a painter, sculptor, author and builder and less well known as a natural philosopher and for his unified theory in physics and cosmogony. He posited that the universe was founded on a unifying principle of...
to design a monument to be dedicated to the first hero of the war. The Four Freedoms Monument
Four Freedoms Monument
The Four Freedoms Monument was commissioned by President Franklin D. Roosevelt following his articulation of the "Four Freedoms" in his 1941 State of the Union Address...
was created in 1941, and was dedicated at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
in New York in 1943.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park
The Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms ParkFranklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park
The Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park is a memorial to Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Four Freedoms, located at the southernmost point of Roosevelt Island, in the East River between Manhattan Island and Queens in New York City...
was a park designed by the architect Louis Kahn
Louis Kahn
Louis Isadore Kahn was an American architect, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. After working in various capacities for several firms in Philadelphia, he founded his own atelier in 1935...
for the south point of Roosevelt Island
Roosevelt Island
Roosevelt Island, known as Welfare Island from 1921 to 1973, and before that Blackwell's Island, is a narrow island in the East River of New York City. It lies between the island of Manhattan to its west and the borough of Queens to its east...
. The Park celebrates the famous speech and text from the speech is inscribed on a granite wall in the final design of the Park.
Awards
The Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt InstituteFranklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute
The Roosevelt Institute is a progressive non-profit organization devoted to carrying forward the legacy and values of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt by developing progressive ideas and bold leadership in the service of restoring America's health and security...
honors outstanding individuals who have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to these ideals. The Four Freedoms Award
Four Freedoms Award
The Four Freedoms Award is an annual award presented to those men and women who have "demonstrated" an achievement to the principles lined out in the Four freedoms speech president Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave to the US Congress on 6 January 1941...
medals are awarded at ceremonies at Hyde Park, New York
Hyde Park, New York
Hyde Park is a town located in the northwest part of Dutchess County, New York, United States, just north of the city of Poughkeepsie. The town is most famous for being the hometown of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt....
and Middelburg
Middelburg
Middelburg is a municipality and a city in the south-western Netherlands and the capital of the province of Zeeland. It is situated in the Midden-Zeeland region. It has a population of about 48,000.- History of Middelburg :...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
during alternate years. Among the laureates have been:
- Liv Ullman
- Paul NewmanPaul NewmanPaul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
- Joanne WoodwardJoanne WoodwardJoanne Gignilliat Trimmier Woodward is an American actress, television and theatrical producer, and widow of Paul Newman...
- Harry S. TrumanHarry S. TrumanHarry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
- John F. KennedyJohn F. KennedyJohn Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
- Jimmy CarterJimmy CarterJames Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
- Averell Harriman
- Coretta Scott KingCoretta Scott KingCoretta Scott King was an American author, activist, and civil rights leader. The widow of Martin Luther King, Jr., Coretta Scott King helped lead the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.Mrs...
- Elie WieselElie WieselSir Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel KBE; born September 30, 1928) is a Hungarian-born Jewish-American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He is the author of 57 books, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz, Buna, and...
- Tip O'NeillTip O'NeillThomas Phillip "Tip" O'Neill, Jr. was an American politician. O'Neill was an outspoken liberal Democrat and influential member of the U.S. Congress, serving in the House of Representatives for 34 years and representing two congressional districts in Massachusetts...
- William BrennanWilliam J. Brennan, Jr.William Joseph Brennan, Jr. was an American jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court from 1956 to 1990...
- Mike MansfieldMike MansfieldMichael Joseph Mansfield was an American Democratic politician and the longest-serving Majority Leader of the United States Senate, serving from 1961 to 1977. He also served as United States Ambassador to Japan for over ten years...
- H.R.H. Princess Juliana of the NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
- Václav HavelVáclav HavelVáclav Havel is a Czech playwright, essayist, poet, dissident and politician. He was the tenth and last President of Czechoslovakia and the first President of the Czech Republic . He has written over twenty plays and numerous non-fiction works, translated internationally...
- Mikhail GorbachevMikhail GorbachevMikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
- The Dalai Lama
- H.M. Juan Carlos of SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
- Shimon PeresShimon PeresGCMG is the ninth President of the State of Israel. Peres served twice as the eighth Prime Minister of Israel and once as Interim Prime Minister, and has been a member of 12 cabinets in a political career spanning over 66 years...
- Brent ScowcroftBrent ScowcroftBrent Scowcroft, KBE was the United States National Security Advisor under Presidents Gerald Ford and George H. W. Bush and a Lieutenant General in the United States Air Force. He also served as Military Assistant to President Richard Nixon and as Deputy Assistant to the President for National...
- Bill ClintonBill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
Use in popular culture
- John CrowleyJohn CrowleyJohn Crowley is an American author of fantasy, science fiction and mainstream fiction. He studied at Indiana University and has a second career as a documentary film writer...
's 2009 novel The Four Freedoms is largely based on the themes of Roosevelt's speech. - In the game series Splinter CellSplinter CellTom Clancy's Splinter Cell is a series of stealth video games, the first of which was released in 2002, and their tie-in novels. The protagonist, Sam Fisher, is presented as a highly-trained agent of a fictional black-ops sub-division within the NSA, dubbed "Third Echelon"...
there are numerous references to the Four Freedoms, with the commanding officer of protagonist Sam Fisher, stating at one point, "this is fifth freedom territory", indicating that the situation (in the game plot) has gotten so grave that one or more of the Four Freedoms are threatened. In the opening sequence of the first game, the Four Freedoms are displayed in text version as a splash screenSplash screenA splash screen is an image that appears while a game or program is loading. It may also be used to describe an introduction page on a website. Splash screens sometimes do not cover the entire screen, but only a rectangle near the center...
at the opening of the game, with a fifth freedom added: The freedom to protect the other four—by any means necessary. It is this "fifth freedom" that the game's protagonist operates under. - Marvel ComicsMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
superhero team the Fantastic FourFantastic FourThe Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium...
is based in the Four Freedoms PlazaFour Freedoms PlazaFour Freedoms Plaza is a fictional structure in the Manhattan of the Marvel Universe; it served as the replacement headquarters for the Fantastic Four when their original dwelling, the Baxter Building, was destroyed by Kristoff Vernard, the adoptive son of Doctor Doom. It is located at 42nd Street...
building. - Florida International UniversityFlorida International UniversityFlorida International University is an American public research university in metropolitan Miami, Florida, in the United States, with its main campus in University Park...
's Wolfsonian museum hosted the Thoughts on Democracy exhibition that displayed posters created by sixty leading contemporary artists and designers, invited to create a new graphic design inspired by American illustrator Norman Rockwell’s “Four Freedoms” posters of 1943.
See also
- Freedom of conscience (or thought)
- Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms ParkFranklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms ParkThe Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park is a memorial to Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Four Freedoms, located at the southernmost point of Roosevelt Island, in the East River between Manhattan Island and Queens in New York City...
- Liberalism in the United StatesLiberalism in the United StatesLiberalism in the United States is a broad political philosophy centered on the unalienable rights of the individual. The fundamental liberal ideals of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion for all belief systems, and the separation of church and state, right to due process...
- Four Freedoms (European Union)Four Freedoms (European Union)The European Union's Internal Market seeks to guarantee the free movement of goods, capital, services, and people – the EU's four freedoms – within the EU's 27 member states.The Internal Market is intended to be conducive to increased competition, increased specialisation, larger...
- Fifth FreedomFifth FreedomFifth Freedom may refer to:* Freedoms of the air § Fifth freedom: The right for an airline to fly between two foreign countries during flights while the flight originates or ends in one's own country....
- The Free Software DefinitionThe Free Software DefinitionThe Free Software Definition, written by Richard Stallman and published by Free Software Foundation , defines free software, as a matter of liberty, not price. The term "free" is used in the sense of "free speech," not of "free beer." The earliest known publication of the definition was in the...
, often called "the four freedoms" within the free software communityFree software communityThe free-software community is an informal term that refers to the users and developers of free software as well as supporters of the free-software movement. The movement is sometimes referred to as the open-source software community or a subset thereof... - Freedom from Fear (painting)Freedom from Fear (painting)Freedom from Fear is one of Four Freedoms by Norman Rockwell that were inspired by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the State of the Union Address he delivered to the 77th United States Congress on January 6, 1941...
- Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929–1945, a Pulitzer-winning history of the era.
- United States Bill of RightsUnited States Bill of RightsThe Bill of Rights is the collective name for the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. These limitations serve to protect the natural rights of liberty and property. They guarantee a number of personal freedoms, limit the government's power in judicial and other proceedings, and...
External links
- Full text and audio of the Four Freedoms speech. An excerpt of the Four Freedoms section is also available.
- Full text of the Four Freedoms speech.
- Text and audio.