In this course you will be introduced to the fundamental principles and practices which underpin the protection and promotion of human rights at the international level. Many facets of human rights will be covered including philosophy and international law. The course is designed to form an interdisciplinary base from which you can go on to further study in the area of human rights.
This module will provide a comprehensive introduction to a selection of the most important human rights bodies and organisations enstrusted with the legal obligation to uphold and enforce international human rights standards and provisions. Students will gain knowledge of the following
the key United Nations bodies involved in setting, implementing and enforcing states' human rights obligations
the role of the European Union in the development of human rights standards in non EU countries and regions
the structure and competence of the European Court of Human Rights
the structure and role of the African system of human rights protection
the structure and role of the Americas system of human rights protection
the structure and role of the Middle Eastern and North Africa system of human rights protection
the contribution made by specific international and non-governmental organisations in promoting global human rights standards
the key United Nations bodies involved in setting, implementing and enforcing states' human rights obligations
the role of the European Union in the development of human rights standards in non EU countries and regions
the structure and competence of the European Court of Human Rights
the structure and role of the African system of human rights protection
the structure and role of the Americas system of human rights protection
the structure and role of the Middle Eastern and North Africa system of human rights protection
the contribution made by specific international and non-governmental organisations in promoting global human rights standards
This course offers students the opportunity to learn techniques for systematic research in the field of Human Rights social science methodology. It also gives student the opportunity to probe deeper into specific issues of human rights. Human Rights specialists from a variety of backgrounds will examine how different disciplines approach human rights problems.
Course Objectives:
To equip students with the skills to identify, locate and retrieve books, articles, official documents and other documents relevant to research on human rights
To introduce students to key research methods, relevant for investigating human rights, in law, the social sciences and the humanities
To examine selected human rights issues in greater depth, with an awareness of the contribution of different disciplines in producing knowledge about them.
Course Objectives:
To equip students with the skills to identify, locate and retrieve books, articles, official documents and other documents relevant to research on human rights
To introduce students to key research methods, relevant for investigating human rights, in law, the social sciences and the humanities
To examine selected human rights issues in greater depth, with an awareness of the contribution of different disciplines in producing knowledge about them.
This 10 week module is an introduction to Sociology and Human Rights. It does not assume any prior understanding of sociology.
Section 1 - Sociological theory and humn rights
We begin with an introductory lecture which looks at what classical sociological thinking might have to offer an understanding of human rights, and also consider some criticisms. We then move on in the second week to consider two competing contemporary attempts to formulate a sociology of rights, and in the third week to consider the problem of universalism versus relativism - that is, what does sociology have to say about different cultural values and perspectives in relation to universal rights? This section then ends with a look at the concept of cosmopolitanism, which challenges conceptions of society as bounded by the nation state and leads on to section 2.
Section 2 - Rights across borders
This second section of the module considers a more substantive question which can help to illuminate a sociological approach to rights, and that is the question of rights across borders. We begin with the position of trans-national migrants as compared with the citizens of host countries. Citizenship is the status that grants full membership of society and full rights, so an interesting question is how far universal human rights can over-come state sovereignty in the granting of rights to non-citizens. We consider this question in relation to the graduated system of rights which characterise most immigration regime, 'civic stratification', and look at specific examples related to gender and immigration, and to asylum seekers. Then we consider the other side of rights across borders by asking what rich countries owe to poor ones, and consider the implications of this material for debates about cosmopolitanism.
Conclusion - Researching meaning and agency
In the final week we will look at more practical questions of how to research human rights in a sociological manner, especially focussing on qualitative approaches to questions of meaning and agency. We take examples from a variety of scholars researching a range of different HRs issues.
Section 1 - Sociological theory and humn rights
We begin with an introductory lecture which looks at what classical sociological thinking might have to offer an understanding of human rights, and also consider some criticisms. We then move on in the second week to consider two competing contemporary attempts to formulate a sociology of rights, and in the third week to consider the problem of universalism versus relativism - that is, what does sociology have to say about different cultural values and perspectives in relation to universal rights? This section then ends with a look at the concept of cosmopolitanism, which challenges conceptions of society as bounded by the nation state and leads on to section 2.
Section 2 - Rights across borders
This second section of the module considers a more substantive question which can help to illuminate a sociological approach to rights, and that is the question of rights across borders. We begin with the position of trans-national migrants as compared with the citizens of host countries. Citizenship is the status that grants full membership of society and full rights, so an interesting question is how far universal human rights can over-come state sovereignty in the granting of rights to non-citizens. We consider this question in relation to the graduated system of rights which characterise most immigration regime, 'civic stratification', and look at specific examples related to gender and immigration, and to asylum seekers. Then we consider the other side of rights across borders by asking what rich countries owe to poor ones, and consider the implications of this material for debates about cosmopolitanism.
Conclusion - Researching meaning and agency
In the final week we will look at more practical questions of how to research human rights in a sociological manner, especially focussing on qualitative approaches to questions of meaning and agency. We take examples from a variety of scholars researching a range of different HRs issues.
This course seeks to provide students with an in-depth understanding of the relevance and role of human rights to a number of contemporary issues. This year, the topics examined will be power and human rights, freedom of thought, expression and association, global distributive justice and human rights
Objectives: to build and consolidate knowledge and skills gained in HU100 and HU200.
To examine the relevance and role of human rights to a number of contemporary issues.
To examine selected substantive human rights in national, regional and global contexts.
To introduce students to comparative human rights analysis.
Objectives: to build and consolidate knowledge and skills gained in HU100 and HU200.
To examine the relevance and role of human rights to a number of contemporary issues.
To examine selected substantive human rights in national, regional and global contexts.
To introduce students to comparative human rights analysis.