The Forgotten Heroine

June 2, 2004

By Paula Bialski
SPARK Program

Prof. Linda Mahood says British philanthropist Eglantyne Jebb, who founded the Save the Children Fund, broke new ground with her children's rights advocacy but is largely overlooked.
Photo by Paula Bialski

If Eglantyne Jebb lived today, it might very well be she, not U2's Bono, winning the ears of presidents and kings. Her selfless work for the marginalized helped — and continues to help — people in all parts of the world.

Jebb, who lived from 1876 to 1928, was the British founder of the international Save the Children Fund (SCF). She also drafted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, which forms the basis of SCF's work and was endorsed by the League of Nations in 1924. An extended seven-statement declaration eventually became the famous United Nations document Rights of the Child.

But history has largely overlooked this important figure, says Prof. Linda Mahood, History. She's trying to revive Jebb's groundbreaking achievements by researching and publishing a biography of the woman.

“Despite the fact that SCF was the first international child-saving organization, there isn't really a lot of information written about Eglantyne Jebb,” Mahood says.

And that's a wonder, given her contributions. An Oxford graduate and primary school teacher, she founded SCF in 1919 after the First World War. The United Kingdom had placed an economic blockade on Germany and its allies, crippling Europe's economy and sending the continent spiralling into poverty.

Jebb believed that children, no matter what country they lived in, must be helped — a daring and novel idea for the early 20th century.

“People in post-war Britain found her very controversial because she was sending aid into Russia and Germany, which was a total taboo at the time,” says Mahood. “Her organization was the first to donate money to people regardless of their race, religion or nationality.”

Prior to that time, charities, like religious organizations, relied on soft methods of persuasion, says Mahood. SCF was the first charitable organization to buy space in newspapers to “advertise” its services and solicit support and donations.

Although the fund was heavily criticized for paying for publicity, today this method is widely used by charities to help with fundraising efforts. The SCF was also one of the first organizations to push images in their ads that provoked emotion, such as a picture of a starving child, Mahood says.

Jebb herself also paved the way for other female activists and their work in global charities.

“She had a motto: no child under the age of seven could do any harm,” says Mahood. “In her eyes, all children should have a right to proper living conditions — and this message resonated throughout the globe, sparking affiliated organizations.”

A Canadian branch of SCF was first established in 1922, and since then, many offices have opened across the country. U of G established its own branch five years ago. Eighty-five years after Jebb began helping children worldwide, the University's branch president, Kirsten Speer, is still carrying out the philanthropist's mandate.

“I really admire the way SCF includes the children as participants in their own development projects,” says Speer. “This empowerment of children and beneficiaries makes up the grassroots development, which is really the most effective kind.”

She is overseeing the 25 active SCF members at U of G to promote awareness and raise funds for SCF projects under way both locally and internationally.

Mahood, who has been working on this project for four years, is planning to publish a biography of Jebb and SCF in the near future. Her study is being funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.