World Children’s Day is a universal holiday celebrated on every 20th of November. It was passed as a holiday in 1959 by the United Nations General Assembly when the Declaration of the Rights of the Child was taken up.
In 1989 on the same day, the UN General Assembly also took up the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Declaration of the Rights of the Child is an international document that cites the rights that children should receive, such as food and water.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child is an agreement between countries that have promised to protect children’s rights. It explains the responsibilities of governments who agreed to it.
On World Children’s Day, a range of activities that aim to promote children’s welfare are carried out. Conferences and meetings are held, children may wear matching colors, and various fun activities for the children are set up.
In this article, we will show you how to mark World Children’s Day uniquely by sharing some quotes concerning the holiday. You can post them on social media or tell them to a friend to raise awareness about the holiday.
Historical Overview
World Children’s Day began as a small special church service for the children in the Universalist Church of the Redeemer in Chelsea, Massachusetts. The pastor of the church, Reverend Dr. Charles Leonard, initially named it Rose Day. Later the name was changed to Flower Sunday then finally to Children’s Day.
It came to become World Children’s Day when it was first accepted as a national holiday in the Republic of Turkey on April 3rd, 1920. The day was then later suggested in the UN General Assembly by India and Uruguay.
In 1954, there was an agreement among the countries in the UN to make a holiday that focuses on children and their rights and welfare. On 20 November 1959, the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, making the day World Children’s Day.
However, not all countries celebrate the holiday on 20th November. They all have their valid reasons as to why this is so. An example is India, which celebrates its World Children’s Day on 14 November to honor the memory of its first prime minister, Pandit Nehru. He loved children and invested in their welfare, making the people of India find it fit to have a different date to celebrate.
Quotes from Renowned Personalities
Some celebrities have shown their support for World Children’s Day by sharing their witty and funny thoughts with us at conferences and interviews. Here are some citations from some famous figures.
- “A child is a beam of sunlight from the Infinite and Eternal, with possibilities of virtue and vice, but as yet unstained.” — Lyman Abbott, American Congregationalist minister
- “While we try to teach our children all about life, Our children teach us what life is all about.” — Angela Schwindt, home-schooling mom States
- “When I approach a child, he inspires in me two sentiments — tenderness for what he is and respect for what he may become.” — Louis Pasteur, French chemist, and microbiologist
- “The best way to make children good is to make them happy.” — Oscar Wilde, author and poet
- “Safety and security don’t just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear.” — Nelson Mandela, Former President of South Africa
- “If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” — Albert Einstein, theoretical physicist
- You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, for instance.” — Franklin P. Jones, American humorist
- “If we are to teach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children.” — Mahatma Gandhi, Indian political and spiritual leader
- “Children are like buds in a garden and should be carefully and lovingly nurtured, as they are the future of the nation and the citizens of tomorrow. Only through the right education can a better order of society be built up.” Jawaharlal Nehru
- “No one has yet fully realized the wealth of sympathy, kindness, and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure.” – Emma Goldman Read
Inspirational Quotes on Child Rights
Fighting for children’s rights is a dedicated job. It’s hard for the fighter and the child because some of them wait too long to be granted their rights. This is why there are millions of inspirational quotes based on this topic, to encourage first and second parties, while notifying the third. Here are some quotes shared by various people about child rights.
- The future is in the hands of children, so to secure the future we should take care of the future-holders.
- The pureness in someone’s heart can be determined by how they treat the innocent and vulnerable in society.
- Protecting children’s rights has a bigger domino effect. It is the kind that could go on for years.
- To protect the future, we must protect nations. The hierarchy eventually ends with children. So protecting children means protecting the future.
- Children’s rights are basic. We shouldn’t obstruct them from getting them.
- The most important right a child can receive is good treatment coming from a place of love.
- Loving a child shouldn’t be too hard. They are already cute mini versions of us. One smile should be all it takes for them to get what they need.
- A safe growing space for children will result in a good-hearted humanity later.
- Children didn’t ask to be born so it’s fair if you give them their rights without complaining.
Reflections from Young Activists
Some young people have also stepped up to advocate for children’s welfare. They are just as driven, wise, and influential as other activists are. Here are some of their quotes.
- “Even if people are still very young, they shouldn’t be prevented from saying what they think.” Anne Frank
- “Adults talk about children’s rights in world capitals and buildings like this. But today, young people don’t want to be talked about. We want to do the talking”, Millie Bobby Brown.
- “If we nurture the dreams of children, the world will be blessed. If we destroy them, the world is doomed!” ― Wess Stafford
- “Children are great imitators. So give them something great to imitate.” — Anonymous
- “Pretty much all the honest truth-telling there is in the world is done by children.” — Oliver Wendell
- “If God places a child before you, and you are too busy to wield either a positive or negative influence…you just did the latter! You communicated that the child doesn’t matter and isn’t important.” ― Wess Stafford
- “Children hungry and sick. Children living through wars. Children who lost their parents in earthquakes and floods. Girls and boys with different stories and backgrounds from my own, but like all children they have one thing in common: they have ambitions and they have dreams for a better future,” David Beckham
- “Climate change is a very severe problem. Girls and boys have something to say because we are the ones who will inherit a sicker and sicker world. Without a healthy environment, all our rights are threatened.” Dante Vegara
- “Old men can make war, but it is children who will make history.” — Ray Merritt
- “Children must be taught how to think, not what to think.” – Margaret Mead
Quotes on the Joy and Innocence of Childhood
Children are best known for how easily they become joyful and how simply they perceive life. Below are some quotes on the joy and innocence of childhood. Some are funny, some simply very fitting, but all of them will apply to a certain aspect of your life.
- Children are a miracle because when humans are younger, all their qualities are open to shaping.
- Deep down we all wish our minds could go back to just knowing a few things.
- When a living thing is young, that is when it is more malleable.
- We adults realize childhood was great but the children don’t. Our job isn’t just to make them know, but to help them maximize on it.
- A child is a gift because even in adversity, their ignorance will remind you to let go of the things you cannot control, and do what you can for the things you can control.
- I would like to go back to the days when all I had to worry about was schoolwork. If it wasn’t done I would feel the way I feel now when I’m late on rent.
- Children are happier because they know that someone will handle the issue for them. Christians should learn from them.
- The playfulness and laughter of a child must be protected, enhanced, recorded, and made constant before time slowly takes it away.
Conclusion
Children are miracles. They resemble us in a more vulnerable state to show us that they are a chance granted to us to make humanity better. Chances that are not the first should be taken seriously, and we can do this by giving children their rights and diligently addressing any of their issues.
This World Children’s Day aims to sensitize people about children and their rights so that they can play a hand in building a better future for humanity.
