Political Science 3388E Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Human Rights Commission, Cultural Relativism, Moral Rights
Document Summary
We have human rights because we are human beings. All humans are born free and equally, with same rights. Repressive regimes overlook universally and the idea that everyone is the same. In past it was ok to deny the rights of someone. Human rights are modern, political invention and controversial. Human rights is a justified claim on someone for smth that is owed. It means we are entitled to claim rights. Human rights are the rights of individuals, not a group and communities. And they are the reason to treat someone in a particular way. Human rights don"t describe our nature, they prescribe our behaviour. Claim is a core of any right. We are asking for something; you don"t actually have to ask out loud, you are still entailed. Negative rights (freedom from something): require no action. Positive rights require action (e. g. right to education). Someone has to do something to fulfill this right.