- Dedication
- New to this edition
- Preface to the Third Edition
- Notes on Contributors
- Guided Tour of the Textbook Features
- Guided Tour of the Online Resource Centre
- Introduction: Human Rights in Politics and Practice
- Part 1 Human Rights and Politics
- 1. Normative and Theoretical Foundations of Human Rights
- 2. Feminist and Activist Approaches to Human Rights
- 3. Human Rights in International Relations
- 4. Human Rights in International Law
- 5. Human Rights in Comparative Politics
- 6. Sociological and Anthropological Approaches
- 7. Contemporary Critiques of Human Rights
- 8. Measuring and Monitoring Human Rights
- Part II Human Rights in Practice
- 9. Global Civil Society and Human Rights
- 10. Human Rights and Religion
- 11. Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Human Rights
- 12. Human Rights and Politics in Development
- 13. Economic Globalization and Human Rights
- 14. Political Democracy and State Repression
- 15. Torture
- 16. Human Trafficking
- 17. Children’s Human Rights Advocacy
- 18. Human Rights and Forced Migration
- 19. Indigenous Peoples’ Human Rights
- 20. Genocide and Human Rights
- 21. Humanitarian Intervention
- 22. Transitional Justice
- 23. The Environment
- Glossary
- References
- Index
(p. 9) Part 1 Human Rights and Politics
- Author(s):
Michael Goodhart
This chapter discusses the normative and theoretical foundations of human rights. More specifically, it examines the theoretical basis for the normative ideas advanced by those who use the language of human rights for an ethical critique of international politics and policy. The chapter first traces the origins of the language of rights before discussing cultural relativism and imperialism, both of which challenge the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ claim to have universal application. It then considers the negative/positive distinction as a way of thinking about the differences between liberty and welfare rights. It also explores group rights, along with the philosophical and political history of the idea of human rights. Finally, it explains how the human rights agenda is deeply political, showing that it privileges a certain set of normative commitments that its proponents hope will become, in time, the ethical constitution of the international system.
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- Dedication
- New to this edition
- Preface to the Third Edition
- Notes on Contributors
- Guided Tour of the Textbook Features
- Guided Tour of the Online Resource Centre
- Introduction: Human Rights in Politics and Practice
- Part 1 Human Rights and Politics
- 1. Normative and Theoretical Foundations of Human Rights
- 2. Feminist and Activist Approaches to Human Rights
- 3. Human Rights in International Relations
- 4. Human Rights in International Law
- 5. Human Rights in Comparative Politics
- 6. Sociological and Anthropological Approaches
- 7. Contemporary Critiques of Human Rights
- 8. Measuring and Monitoring Human Rights
- Part II Human Rights in Practice
- 9. Global Civil Society and Human Rights
- 10. Human Rights and Religion
- 11. Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Human Rights
- 12. Human Rights and Politics in Development
- 13. Economic Globalization and Human Rights
- 14. Political Democracy and State Repression
- 15. Torture
- 16. Human Trafficking
- 17. Children’s Human Rights Advocacy
- 18. Human Rights and Forced Migration
- 19. Indigenous Peoples’ Human Rights
- 20. Genocide and Human Rights
- 21. Humanitarian Intervention
- 22. Transitional Justice
- 23. The Environment
- Glossary
- References
- Index