December 10 marked the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This document was a response to the atrocities of World War II, and presented a clear and concise statement that all persons share certain basic human rights simply because they are human.

The rights recognized by the document include the rights of women, children and worker; freedom from discrimination, torture, political imprisonment, and religious persecution; freedom from want, the right to a fair trial and freedom of expression.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is also the basis of the American asylum policy. Prior to and during World War II, thousands of European Jews requested visas to come to the US to escape death camps. Strict quotas on immigration were in place and there was no mechanism for admitting refugees or asylees. Most applicants for visas were denied and the US turned away ships attempting to bring in those fleeing the Holocaust. In one famous example, the ST. LOUIS, a ship from Germany with several hundred fleeing Jewish passengers, sailed from port to port around the world in search of a country that would take them. All, including the US, refused to let the ship's passengers. Eventually, the St. Louis was forced to return to Germany. At the end of the war, all but four passengers perished at the hands of the Nazis.

After World War II, the shame of the inaction of the counties of the world, led to the signing of the international treaty. Since that time, millions and millions of people have benefited by being granted asylum and refugee status in treaty countries.