Term paper on United Nations

United Nations Established

RESOURCE GUIDE

At the time of the Atlantic Charter in 1941, President Roosevelt had voiced the need for a post–World War II international organization. Support for his idea gained momentum, and at the Dumbarton Oaks Conference in 1944, the United States , Great Britain , the Soviet Union, and China agreed to create the United Nations. The United States and the Soviet Union disagreed on but ultimately compromised their differences regarding the form and functioning of the proposed association. Then, meeting in late April 1945 in San Francisco , delegates from fifty nations signed the charter that created the United Nations.
Suggestions for Term Papers

1. How did the United Nations differ from the League of Nations ?

2. Analyze the disputes between the United States and the Soviet Union with regard to the organization and function of the UN.

3. Discuss the long-range consequences of the veto power in the Security Council.

4. How effective has the UN been in resolving international disputes?

5. Discuss the organization and purposes of a specific UN agency.

Suggested Sources : See entry 18 for related items.

GENERAL SOURCES

Baehr, Peter R., and Leon Gordenker. The United Nations in the 1990s . 2d ed. New York : St. Martin ‘s, 1994. Examines the likely role of the UN in the future. Part of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs series.

Bailey, Sydney D. The U.N. Security Council and Human Rights . New York : St. Martin ‘s, 1994. History of the Security Council and its relationship to human rights issues.

Black, Maggie. Children First: The Story of UNICEF, Past and Present . London : Oxford University Press, 1996. About one of the most vital units of the UN and its concern for children worldwide.

Falk, Richard, et al., eds. The United Nations and a Just World Order . Boulder , CO : Westview, 1991. Examines the role of the UN in the future world order.

Gakuin, Nagoya . Diplomatic Discourse: International Conflict at the United Nations: Addresses and Analysis . Greenwich , CT : Ablex, 1997. Dis cusses the international aspects, with emphasis on various conflicts in which the UN has become involved.

Hamburg , David A. Sustainable Peace: The Role of the U.N. and Regional Organizations in Preventing Conflicts . Lanham , MD : Rowman&Littlefield, 1997. The role of peacekeeping with UN and regional groups.

Hoopes, Townsend. F.D.R. and the Creation of the U.N . New Haven , CT : Yale University Press, 1997. Traces the decades from idealism of the League of Nations through World War II; examines FDR’s influence on postwar diplomacy and development of the UN.

Knipping, Franz. The United Nations System and Its Predecessors: Basic Documents . London : Oxford University Press, 1998. Important documents detailing the UN and its workings.

Meisler, Stanley. United Nations: The First Fifty Years . New York : Grove, 1995. History and accomplishments of the UN.

Murray, Gilbert. From the League to U.N . (1948). Reprint. Westport , CT : Greenwood , 1988. Brief account of the development of international organization—the League of Nations to the founding of the UN.

Thakur, Ramesh C. Past Imperfect, Future Uncertain: The United Nations at Fifty . New York : St. Martin ‘s, 1997. Detailed history as well as observations about the future.

Tomuschat, Christian. The United Nations at Age 50: A Legal Perspective . Cambridge, MA: Kluwer, 1996. Legal examination regarding the participation of the United Nations in international affairs.

United Nations at Fifty: The Notes for Speakers . New York: UNESCO, 1995. Reviews the achievements and accomplishments of the past fifty years.

United Nations in the 1990s, a Second Chance? New York: UNESCO, 1992. Looks at the UN as a permanent diplomatic market for the exchange of information and views, as well as action on a global basis.

AUDIOVISUAL SOURCES

The Arsenal . Botsford, CT: Filmic Archives, 1973. Traces the development of the United States as a world power, including Los Alamos, the United Nations, and the Pentagon. 52 minutes. Part of the America series, created by Alistair Cooke and produced by BBC and Time Life Video.

WORLD WIDE WEB

‘‘San Francisco Commemorates UN50: San Francisco and the UN.” United Nations 50th Anniversary in San Francisco . May 1995.

http://www.lh.com/un50sf/h/history.htm Brief historical narrative of the founding of the UN.