October 24 Is United Nations Day

Today, Sunday, October 24, 2010, marks the 65th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Charter by 50 member states.  Since 1945, UN membership has grown to 192 states.  President Truman issued the first UN Day Proclamation in 1947 asking Americans to spend time on UN Day reflecting on the importance of the UN to U.S. national security and to individuals.  While the UN is sometimes criticized for its inability to prevent or stop armed conflict, it carries out important work on many fronts on a daily basis, including coordination of international travel, mail and telecommunications, promotion of international trade and development, protection of refugees, and development of international rules to protect individuals and the environment, among many other activities.

The theme of this year's UN Day is "Engaging America with the Millennium Development Goals."  The MDGs were adopted in 1990 and include the following goals:

1.    Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

2.    Achieve universal primary education    

3.    Promote gender equality

4.    Reduce child mortality

5.    Improve maternal health

6.    Combat disease

7.    Ensure environmental stability

8.    Develop a global partnership for development

More details regarding the MDGs and the progress that has been made can be found here.

(cgb)