In 1958, on the 10th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Eleanor Roosevelt rhetorically asked the question:

“Where, after all, do universal rights begin? In small places, close to home — so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerned citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.” 

That call for concerned citizen action was answered a few years later. In December, 1960, a 39-year-old English barrister, Peter Benenson, was taking the tube to work in London when he read about a young woman and a man who were imprisoned in Portugal for two and six years respectively for peacefully opposing dictator Antonio Salazar’s regime. Mr. Benenson was outraged that nonviolent opposition to a dictatorship could lead to such severe punishment. He experienced something of an epiphany, akin to the reaction of Gandhi when he was thrown off a train in Pietermaritzburg in South Africa in 1893. Or Rosa Parks when she was told to go to the back of the bus in Montgomery in 1955.

Six months later, Benenson penned an article, The Forgotten Prisoners, which was published simultaneously on May 28, 1961 in the U.K.’s Observer and France’s Le Monde newspapers, urging readers to write letters demanding the release of six “prisoners of conscience” from six different countries who had been jailed for peacefully expressing their opinions or beliefs. The article was reprinted in other countries, including the United States. The response was enormous. From this newspaper appeal, Amnesty International was born and with it the global human rightsmovement. 

Fifty years and a Nobel Peace Prize later, Amnesty now has more than three million members and supporters in over 150 countries worldwide. Through its campaigns, tens of thousands of political prisoners have been released, torture chambers closed and executions halted.

To commemorate the 50th anniversary, members and supporters of Amnesty International USA will gather at the home of Mike and Mary Wallace in Vineyard Haven on Friday evening, August 5, with honorary hosts Harry and Pamela Belafonte and special guest Mia Farrow.

Among the inspiring speakers who will participate are Salil Shetty, Amnesty International Secretary-General, Aliakbar Mousavi Khoeini, the former Iranian parliamentarian and prisoner, and Ronan Farrow, the State Department’s special adviser for global youth issues. Donatella Rovera, Amnesty International’s crisis director, who spent weeks under fire in Misrata, will also attend to share her experiences in Libya.

Charlayne Hunter-Gault, the distinguished journalist, will lead a conversation about youth activism, social media and the Arab spring.

This premier event on the Amnesty International 50th anniversary calendar would not have happened without the support of longtime Amnesty International USA members who include the dedicated human rights activists and Martha’s Vineyard summer residents Rose Styron, Nancy Rubin and Wendy Leurs.

Many know that the Amnesty International symbol is a candle wrapped in barbed wire. It was designed by young British designer Diana Redhouse, who was inspired by the Chinese proverb, better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. Peter Benenson said that the Amnesty candle “burns not for us but for the prisoners we failed to reach, those languishing in torture chambers or awaiting execution.” It also burns, of course, for those who are denied theirhuman dignity through poverty and inequality.

As it embarks upon the next 50 years, Amnesty is looking for a new generation of dynamic activists to “step up to the human rights plate.” I urge readers to support those around the world who hunger for justice and are putting their lives on the line for freedom and the realization of human rights for all people, everywhere.

In a message to Amnesty recently released Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi wrote:

“We are not bystanders in our own history, every one of us writes a story that is told. Where basic human rights are not met, the struggle may be hard, it may take time . . . but if we demand it change will come.”

Bill Shipsey is a Katama summer resident, human rights activist, founder of Art for Amnesty and a barrister.