The Four Freedoms: Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Worship, Freedom from Want, and Freedom from Fear

In his State of the Union address to Congress on January 6, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt presented his reasons for American involvement in the growing war in Europe.  In helping Britain, President Roosevelt stated, the United States was fighting for the universal freedoms that all people possessed.

Roosevelt’s preparation of the speech went through seven drafts before final delivery.  The famous Four Freedoms did not appear until the fourth draft. One night as Roosevelt met with his close advisers in his White House study, the President announced that he had an idea for a peroration (the closing section of a speech).

Samuel I. Rosenman wrote down FDR’s words.  He later recounted:

“We waited as he leaned far back in his swivel chair with his gaze on the ceiling. It was a long pause—so long that it began to become uncomfortable. Then he leaned forward again in his chair and dictated the Four Freedoms.  He dictated the words so slowly that on the yellow pad I had in my lap I was able to take them down myself in longhand as he spoke.”

Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms became the foundational principles for the Atlantic Charter declared by Winston Churchill and FDR in August 1941; the United Nations Declaration of January 1, 1942; President Roosevelt’s vision for an international organization that became the United Nations after his death; and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1948 through the work of Eleanor Roosevelt.

Here are the notes that were dictated by FDR, and the evolution of the Four Freedoms speech in subsequent drafts.

from the FDR Library

Source: fdrlibrary.marist.edu

90 Notes/ Hide

  1. nyfrelan14vz reblogged this from congressarchives
  2. ijoymassagechairx reblogged this from congressarchives
  3. cheap-ebook reblogged this from mlq3
  4. uptomaiminute reblogged this from ourpresidents and added:
    “We waited as he leaned far back in his swivel chair with his gaze on the ceiling. It was a long pause—so long that it...
  5. mergoth reblogged this from mlq3
  6. mlq3 reblogged this from ourpresidents
  7. somanybears reblogged this from ourpresidents
  8. junkyheart reblogged this from ourpresidents
  9. lacorriveau reblogged this from followingyourbliss
  10. followingyourbliss reblogged this from punkrockmuffinatrix
  11. andrewxnguyen reblogged this from congressarchives
  12. mimicorp reblogged this from ourpresidents
  13. txmac5911 reblogged this from ourpresidents
  14. aroomoftheirown reblogged this from ourpresidents
  15. meliortraiano reblogged this from ourpresidents
  16. rainbowsandscholarship reblogged this from congressarchives
  17. k8thekitty-puzzles reblogged this from ourpresidents
  18. tobiasziegler reblogged this from ourpresidents
  19. potsyelooy reblogged this from podsolnechnik
  20. podsolnechnik reblogged this from ourpresidents
  21. omgllamas reblogged this from congressarchives
  22. thecuttingroom reblogged this from congressarchives
  23. heartoftardis reblogged this from congressarchives
  24. vigwig reblogged this from congressarchives and added:
    how about “Freedom from idiocy”
  25. congressarchives reblogged this from ourpresidents and added:
    In addition to these awesome notes, check out FDR’s reading copy of this historic address to Congress.
  26. theuofwoo reblogged this from ourpresidents
  27. tokaikko reblogged this from ourpresidents
  28. talknewstome reblogged this from ourpresidents and added:
    sounds good…Too bad FDR