Eglantyne Jebb

Eglantyne Jebb

Ever heard of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? Susan B. Anthony? Most people would acknowledge these human rights activists as heroes. But hardly anyone would recognize the name of my hero, even though she has contributed just as much to the human rights movement as King and Anthony. This is a shame since she was a pioneer of child rights activism. My hero drafted a declaration of children’s rights which the United Nations (UN) adopted and expanded, and she also co-founded the Save The Children Foundation, which is now called the “International Save the Children Fund.” It is the leading independent children’s aid organization in the world (Wikipedia, 2007). This organization helps millions of kids around the world, including the United States. This amazing woman who dedicated her life to fight for children’s rights is Eglantyne Jebb. Eglantyne is an inspiration to me, since, as a teacher, I will be working with children who are lacking emotionally, socially and physically. Eglantyne’s compassionate heart and leadership will remind me to uphold justice at whatever the cost and care for all the needs of my students because every child deserves the best.

Eglantyne Jebb was one of six children in her family born in Shropshire England in 1876 (Wikipedia, 2007). According to the biographer Yates (2007), she was born to a well to do family that was socially active within the community. This influenced Eglantyne to take on the same characteristics. Her mother whose name was also Eglantyne founded the Home Arts and Industries Association, which helped individuals in rural areas learn about arts and crafts and helped them start their own craft endeavors. Her father Arthur was a generous man and would always reach out to those in need, especially his employers. Eglantyne’s sister Louisa helped found the Women’s Land Army in World War I, which took willing women and assigned them to work on farms to replace the men who went off to war. Eglantyn’s other sister Dorothy was actually was the co-founder with Eglantyne of the Save the Children Fund (1).

Eglantyne Jebb

Yates (2007) writes that Eglantyne began her academic endeavors at Oxford in 1895, studying history and training to become a teacher. Her first year of teaching was not a great experience so she went back to school at Cambridge. Cambridge is where she started becoming interested and involved in charity work (3). At Cambridge she wrote a book based on her research about poverty in the city, the results of which indicated that education is the key to helping disadvantaged impoverished students (3). After World War I ended, Eglantyne and her sister were shocked at the aftermath of the war. They saw how the German and Austrian economics began to crash, and how the children in these countries were affected. The sisters’ concern about the children and desire see justice upheld for children is what sparked them to start one of the first and now the leading international development agencies “Save the Children”(Save the Children History, 2007). During this time Eglantyne was also inspired to draft a set of children’s rights, which led directly to the UN’s “Rights of Children”. Yates (2007) said, the UN’s "Rights of Children,” based off of Eglantyne’s work, is now ratified by all but one country, the USA (1).

In 1919, the “Save The Children Fund” was established by Elgantyne Jebb to provide aid to children who survived the war in Vienna. Now this foundation is called the “International Save the Children Alliance”, which is comprised of 28 national “Save the Children” organizations that are working in more then 110 countries around the world to insure that children get the care and support then need to live healthy and happy lives (International Save the Children Alliance Mission, 2007). The mission of “Save the Children” is stated as such: “we fight for children’s rights. We deliver immediate and lasting improvements to children’s lives world wide” (International Save the Children Alliance Mission, 2007). They keep to their promise of their mission by setting up health centers, reuniting families, by participating in disaster relief, and by rebuilding schools. In the United States they set up after school literacy, early child development, and health education programs. “Save the Children” does its best to insure any child’s right to food, shelter, education, health care, and freedom from violence and abuse. You can help “Save the Children” Foundation in many ways, such as: financial giving, volunteering, acquiring job opportunities, and sponsorship.