WORLD CHILDREN'S DAY | November 20
WORLD CHILDREN'S DAY
Each year on November 20, World Children’s Day promotes the welfare of children around the world. The day also spreads awareness for issues that children face and celebrates international togetherness.
#WorldChildrensDay
Human rights don’t just apply to adults. They apply to children as well. Children deserve the right to life, health, education, and even the right to play. Additionally, children’s rights include the right to family life, protection from violence, and not to be discriminated against. The child also has the right for their views to be heard.
Unfortunately, children around the world face many challenging issues. According to Children Incorporated, 385 million children around the world live in poverty. One in four children live in poverty in the world’s richest countries. An estimated 8,500 children a day die from malnutrition.
Besides poverty, other significant issues children around the world face include:
- Violence through indoctrination
- Life as refugees
- Lack of education
- Neglect
- Child labor
- Child prostitution and human trafficking
- Internet child pornography
Children have a difficult world in which to navigate. It helps to have loving parents or other family members to help them guide the way. Unfortunately, there are millions of children who do not have someone like this in their life. According to UNICEF, 153 million children across the globe are orphans.
What can be done to give children hope? To help their world become a better place? Having a World Children’s Day helps as it spreads awareness for the many issues facing children. It also forces leaders to come up with solutions to help some of our world’s most vulnerable individuals.
HOW TO OBSERVE #WorldChildrensDay
Many people come together to celebrate this day. This includes teachers, health care professionals, government leaders, civil society activists, mothers, fathers, media professionals, and religious leaders. These people play an important role to make this day relevant to their communities and countries. Children also celebrate the day by taking over roles in media, politics, and entertainment to highlight issues important to them. Many landmark buildings light up blue to show their support for child rights.
To participate:
- Pay off some lunch accounts for children in your local school
- Do something fun with your children like taking them to the zoo or a movie
- Ask your children what issues are important to them
- Donate to an organization, such as UNICEF, that helps children in need
- Find a way for your child to forge a pen pal partnership
- Volunteer for the nursery or youth ministry in your church
- Help a child in need in any way you can
- Wear blue to show support for child rights
No matter what you do, share on social media to help spread awareness with #WorldChildrensDay
WORLD CHILDREN’S DAY HISTORY
On December 14th, 1954 the United Nations General Assembly recommended all countries institute a Universal Children’s Day. This day later became known as World Children’s Day. On November 20th, 1959, the UN adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. On November 20th, 1989, the UN held the Convention on the Rights of the Child. During the Convention, the specific rights of children were proclaimed. This Convention was the most widely ratified international human rights treaty in history.
