Bruce Benson may be on to something. Benson, a Gimli commercial fisher and property developer, recently incorporated The Center for Civilization Inc., a non-profit corporation with the lofty goal of introducing a bold new concept to the world.
Benson penned what he’s dubbed the Universal Declaration of Human Duties and Responsibilities. Benson borrowed heavily from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, championed by Eleanor Roosevelt after the Second World War. Roosevelt’s declaration would win the approval of the United Nations in 1948.
The Benson declaration takes Roosevelt’s a step further. Benson believes we all have, not only rights, as Roosevelt asserted, but responsibilities, as well.
“Rights and responsibilities do go hand-in-hand,” said Benson. “And we’re talking not just about individual responsibility. The declaration is about collective responsibility, as well.”
Benson’s declaration hinges on four key principles, ones he calls, grandly, the principles of man. They are straightforward: man is responsible for the earth, his fellows, his offspring and himself. Guided by these intertwined elements, Benson set out 15 ‘articles’ to flesh out the concept. (For full text, visit web site.)
The hope is that the UN will endorse the center’s declaration.
It’s a bold step , though not unexpected of a man accustomed to swimming against the current. Benson ran as candidate for the Liberal party in Selkirk-Interlake in the January 2006 federal election. There wasn’t a hope he’d win in the staunchly Conservative riding, but he soldiered on. This time, armed with his declaration, he remains as assiduous and determined as ever.
Benson notes that civilizations have fallen and failed in the past. He cites Easter Island, the Mayans, the Roman Empire. The cost of the loss of a civilization is incalculable, he says.

It is difficult to imagine that our global civilization could collapse, as others did. But there is precedent. Benson believes we all need to understand how to avoid the demise of our civilization.
“There should be a centre for civilization in every city on earth,” he said in an interview in Gimli Aug. 7. “If ever we were in a position to prevent the fall of our civilization, it’s now. We have a much better understanding of past civilizations. We have the knowledge to save us or destroy us.”
Benson puts a different spin on former American president John F. Kennedy’s famed injunction, ‘Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.’
Benson’s transformation is: ‘Ask not what your fellow man and your world can do for you, ask what you can do for your fellow man, your Earth and the environment.’
Copies of the declaration have been sent to politicians, among them Liberal leader Stéphane Dion, MP James Bezan (Selkirk-Interlake), Premier Gary Doer and many others. There have been no replies.
“We’re trying to get it out there, but we’re still one small voice in the wilderness,” says Benson, adding with a chuckle, “though I’ve been told I have a loud voice.”
“We’re just one small, recently-incorporated entity in Gimli, Manitoba. It’s tough to get your voice heard on the international stage.”
The chance that the UN will endorse the Declaration of Human Duties and Responsibilities is slim. Such declarations take years to weave their way through the international body. It has taken 25 years, for instance, to advance the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, a declaration that may finally be adopted by the UN General Assembly later this month.
Benson is undeterred. He says individuals, municipalities, provinces and countries can endorse the Declaration of Human Duties and Responsibilities as a guiding principle. ‘Declarations’, in any case, are not binding in law; rather they affirm general principles that guide one’s actions.
“We hope that a lot of people will agree with the concept,” says Benson. “Perhaps it won’t be governments taking this declaration to the UN; it may be brought there by the people.”

E-Link
www.thecenterforcivilization.com

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