English Reading Practice

Human Right Number 14:
The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live

To seek means, "to try to achieve."
1. Watch the video at the top of the page.

2. Read the story "The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live" just below it.

3. Do the exercise at the bottom of the page.

Here is the The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live video. You can watch it in your own language at www.youthforhumanrights.org. (Simply click the word "language" at the top of their homepage.)



The Universal Declaration of Human Rights describes 30 basic rights that each person has, simply because he or she is human.

This is human right number 14 (the simplified version):

"14. The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live. If we are frightened of being badly treated in our own country, we all have the right to run away to another country to be safe."

Now read the short story about this important human right.

The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live  

Lily is sixteen. Her brother Georgie is only eleven. They live together with their single mother. Their parents are divorced.

Lily and Georgie's mother is not well. She is depressed and drinks a lot. When she drinks, she gets very angry. She screams at them, throws things, and sometimes even hits them. Lily worries that she and her brother are not really safe at home.

Lily tells Georgie to pack a bag. One Friday after school, Lily and Georgie take a bus to their father's city.

He is happy to see them, but he is also surprised. He asks them why they are there. Lily explains that they are scared of their mother, and that they need a safe place to live.

Their father is shocked. He does not know that their mother is in such bad shape. He invites them to stay with him. He takes care of everything so they can live together. He gets their mother the help she needs.

Lily and Georgie are very happy with their father. They feel safe and are able to get the care they need. They make new friends and do well at their new school. They miss their mother but they also know they were right to seek a safe place to live.

And now, practice:

Exercise 01

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