Human Dignity

What is Human Dignity

Human dignity is the combination of two main factors, respect for

ones self and others having respect for your self
Human dignity gives your life a sense of worth, and belonging
Every one has the right to live with dignity
Human dignity is respected when the basic needs of people are
met
These basic needs are:
Food
Clean Water
Health
Security
Shelter
Education

Needs

From the moment of birth, human beings hve basic

needs that must be met in order to survive
When these basic needs are met, people are free
to choose the kind of life they wish to live
When these needs are not met, people spend their
lives trying to exist.

Abraham Maslow

An american called Abraham Maslow designed a

pyramid to explain the basics needed to protect
human dignity
The pyramid shows how the needs of one level must
be met before the next level can be reached

To develop
to ones full
potential
Feelings of selfconfidence,
respect and
worth
To give and receive love,
to feel cared for

Safety, security, protection

Food, water, air, sleep, exercise and shelter

Needs and Wants

A need is a necessity
A want is desire
Wanting things can be healthy, for example; wanting to
get promoted can drive a person to work harder and to
better themselves
However wanting things can be negative; wanting a
new watch because every one else has one
Wants, particularly material wants, are circumstantial
and can depend on the situation and how they are
obtained

Human Dignity: Discrimination

Discrimination happens when a person or groups of

people are treated unfairly because of their age,
gender, race, skin colour religion or other similar
reasons
It is wrong to discriminate against people for any
reason
When people experience discrimination, their
human dignity is taken away

Human Dignity: Disibility

People sometimes make wrong judgements about disabled

people and so disabled people are not given the same
chances as in life as other people
They are sometimes excluded because our world does not
always recognise their needs:

For an education
For a job
For proper care
For a voice
For support
For access
And so on

Human Dignity: Disability

Most people with disabilities lead full lives

There are fifty million people with disabilities in
Europe and they represent a huge pool of talent
and ability
December 3rd: International Day of Disabled People

Human Dignity: Disability

Louis Braille was borne in France in 1809

When he was four he was playing in his fathers
workshop and had an accident
He injured his eye and soon after became blind
He was sent to a special school for blind people in Paris
He invented Braille to help himself and to help himself
and others learn to read
When Braille machines were made they were also able
to write

Human Dignity: Disability

Every four years the special Olympics are held to celebrate

disabled sports stars from around the world
Ireland hosted the Special Olympics in 2003
The Paralympics were first held in 1960 and they happen at
the same time as the Olympics every four years
Paralympics cater primarily for people with physical
disabilities
The special Olympics cater for people with learning
disabilities
Both the Paralympics and the special Olympics remind us
how able at sports many people are who are labelled as
disabled

Human Dignity: Homelessness

Shelter is a basic human need

Throughout the world there are people looking for a
place to live with dignity
Being homeless is more than not just having a roof over
your head it means that a persons security and
belonging needs are also not met
People can be made homeless by:
Disasters
Poverty
War
The way their lives develop

Human Dignity: Homelessness

In Ireland people can end up homeless through

addiction, because of family conflict, after a period of
detention in prison or residential care or through abuse
Even though Ireland is seen as a wealth country, many
people sleep rough every night in our cities and towns
In Ireland there are a number of organisations that look
after the homeless:
Simon Community
Focus Ireland
The Salvation Army
St. Vincent de Paul

Human Dignity: Education

115 million children around the world cannot go to

school
Education Is a human dignity issue because without
an education, how can any child grow up to
develop fully as a human being
As countries develop they usually provide for the
education of their children and make laws to make
sure that parents send their children to school
In Ireland children must go to school until the age of
16

Human Dignity: Education

In some poor and developing countries children do not

go to school
Here are some reasons why:
They have to go out to work to provide for their
families (Child labour)
They are farm workers and have to work on the farm
They have to stay at home to provide for the needs of
their families
They are very unhappy or are being bullied at school

Human Dignity: Girls and Education

There are many more girls in the world who do not

get an education than boys
It is a fact that girls and women:
Make up half of the population of the world
Raise almost all of the children in the world
Do two-thirds of all the work (particularly
housework)
Get fewer chances to go to school than boys

Human Dignity: Girls and Education

Many people believe that it is very important to

improve education for girls in developing countries
They believe that doing this will:
Help

reduce poverty
Improve health in families
Fewer

babies will die

Better diet
People will live longer

Human Dignity: Girls and Education

In countries where there is no tradition of girls going

to school, governments have to:
Spend more money on education- more schools,
more teachers, more books
Make education free for all
Make schools girl friendly
Help girls who have to work to go to school
Make it possible for women who missed out on an
education when they were young, go back to school