UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

proclaimed 1979 as the International Year of the Child."Prizes and Celebrations: International Year of the Child"
UNESCO. Retrieved 6/29/08. The proclamation was signed on January 1, 1979, by

United Nations Secretary General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-ge ...

Kurt Waldheim Kurt Josef Waldheim (; 21 December 1918 – 14 June 2007) was an Austrian politician and diplomat. Waldheim was the Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1972 to 1981 and president of Austria from 1986 to 1992. While he was running for th ...

. A follow-up to the 1959

Declaration of the Rights of the Child The Declaration of the Rights of the Child, sometimes known as the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of the Child, is an international document promoting child rights, drafted by Eglantyne Jebb and adopted by the League of Nations in 1924, and adop ...

, the proclamation was intended to draw attention to problems that affected children throughout the world, including

malnutrition Malnutrition occurs when an organism gets too few or too many nutrients, resulting in health problems. Specifically, it is "a deficiency, excess, or imbalance of energy, protein and other nutrients" which adversely affects the body's tissues a ...

and lack of access to

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

. Many of these efforts resulted in the

Convention on the Rights of the Child The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (commonly abbreviated as the CRC or UNCRC) is an international human rights treaty which sets out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children. The Con ...

in 1989.

History

Numerous events took place within the UN and in member countries to mark the event, including the

Music for UNICEF Concert The Music for UNICEF Concert: A Gift of Song was a benefit concert of popular music held in the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on January 9, 1979. It was intended to raise money for UNICEF world hunger programs and to mark the b ...

, held at the

UN General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

on January 9.

WBZ-TV WBZ-TV (channel 4) is a television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, airing programming from the CBS network. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division alongside independent station WSBK-TV (channe ...

4 in Boston, Massachusetts, along with the four other Group W stations, hosted and broadcast a celebratory festival, "Kidsfair" (usually held around Labor Day ever since) from

Boston Common The Boston Common (also known as the Common) is a public park in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest city park in the United States. Boston Common consists of of land bounded by Tremont Street (139 Tremont St.), Park Street, Beacon ...

. A film festival showcasing international cartoon and film shorts focusing on children was held at the United Nations building in New York City on December 1, 1979. Canadian animator/director

Eugene Fedorenko Eugene may refer to: People and fictional characters * Eugene (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Eugene (actress) (born 1981), Kim Yoo-jin, South Korean actress and former member of the sin ...

created a film for the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...

, called ''Every Child'', which centered on a nameless baby who nobody wants because they are too busy with their own concerns. This was used to explain how every child is entitled to a home. Sound effects were created with the voices of ''Les Mimes Electriques''.

References

External links

International Year of the Child
at the United Nations Digital Library {{Authority control Child, International Year of the Childhood 1979 in the United Nations

History

See also

References

External links