French diplomat Stéphane Fréderic Hessel was born in 1917 in Berlin, Germany. In 1937, he moved with his parents to Paris, where he applied for French citizenship. Hessel was active in the resistance during World War II. In 1941, he joined the French general De Gaulle. Hessel was arrested and survived the Buchenwald, Dora and Bergen-Belsen concentration camps. In 1948, he collaborated with Eleanor Roosevelt on the final drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Between 1946 and 1950, Hessel helped build the foundations of the UN. In the period after, he worked as a diplomat in Algeria and Indo-China. After his work for the UN, Hessel still led special missions in Africa on behalf of France for people in need.

Hessel fought against abuse, injustice and arbitrariness in the world for decades. France was also criticised for the free movement of people. Hessel tried to change the opinion of others about the sans papiers; the illegal immigrants. He also interfered in the war between Israel and Palestine. Hessel felt that Israel was driving out the Palestinians with unwanted and indecent policies. In old age, Hessel still received awards from many countries. After the Four Freedoms Award, he received the UNESCO-Bilbao Prize for Culture and Human Rights and the North-South Prize of the Council of Europe.