Museum Matters

Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s annual presidential message to congress on Jan. 6, 1941 presented his reasons for America’s involvement in World War II. The war clouds were gathering in Europe as the Nazis were taking over country after country. Roosevelt knew that he needed to reflect on what the nation was thinking and yet his leadership needed to point a direction for the nation to follow.

He came upon the idea of four freedoms that were part of our national culture that he wanted all free nations to enjoy. For American soldiers that would soon be fighting in Europe, they needed a solid reason of what they were fighting for. These four freedoms provided the reason our great nation was worth fighting and dying for.

Roosevelt continued in his speech, “In 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.”

“This nation has placed its destiny in the hands and heads and hearts of its millions of free men and women; and its faith in freedom under the guidance of God. Freedom means the supremacy of human rights everywhere. Our support goes to those who struggle to gain those rights or keep them. Our strength is our unity of purpose. To that high concept there can be no end save victory.”

These four freedoms later become his Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1948. The four freedoms were painted by Norman Rockwell in 1943. These paintings are in the public domain. Visit us at dublinhistorical.org