In 1948 world members of the United Nations issued the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to recognize the inherent dignity and equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family. The Declaration states: "...the advent of a world in which human begins shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people."
In 1998, the Robert & Ardis James Foundation, Quilter's Newsletter Magazine and the International Quilt Study Center honored the 50th Anniversary of the Declaration by sponsoring a quilt contest. Quiltmakers around the world were encouraged to consider the ideals set forth in the Declaration and to make a quilt that reflects its universal theme. Breaking Free was a winner in that contest.