Materials

Readings will be indicated throughout the Syllabus and will be made available either as a link or hard copy.

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Content
 

This course will examine the nature and application of human rights.  An inquiry such as this must begin with a conceptual and ethical over view about the nature of rights, law and their justification.   Once we have considered the various conceptual and normative views of legal and moral rights we will examine various contexts, such as military intervention in another sovereign state, protection against genocide, and transfer of resources to poor nations,  in which some right is thought to apply.  Finally we will also consider specific rights to free speech, religion, privacy etc., to see what the basis is for these rights and how, if at all, they are vindicated.
 

PREREQUISITES:
 

Although this is a graduate course there is no assumption that you have had any prior course about human rights.  It is assumed, however,  that you will have had some exposure to conceptual and normative (that is to say ethical) reasoning.  The course also assumes that you have the capacity to synthesize information and present your own ideas orally and in writing.  This course will help develop further your analytical skills particularly as they apply to legal and moral reasoning.  This course is designed not only to teach you the ideas of others but also to help you develop the capacity to engage in original thinking and research to advance those ideas further.  Hence, it is absolutely essential to have completed each reading assignment and to be prepared to speak in each class.

Class Requirements

• •  Requirements
     
    • Active class participation : all students are expected to attend class regularly and to be prepared to discuss the reading. Students may be called upon to participate in class and no passing is permitted. Each student will be allowed 1 un-excused absences. Any additional un-excused absence will reduce your final grade by one whole grade per absence. Study the class calendar carefully to make sure  you don't have any prior commitments that would preclude you from meeting these requirements.
    •   There will be a final paper of  approximately 15-25 pages due on the date of the final exam.  This paper is not expected to be a research paper but rather an in depth analysis of some issue of global justice chosen by the student in consultation with the professor. It will be written along the following schedule.....
      •   By the 11th week of class, students will provide a five page draft of the paper using the same arguments they intend to employ in the final paper, albeit in inchoate form.
      •  Final paper will be due via Blackboard at the end of the examination period on the date andtime the university registrar designates for our class.
         

    Grading (subject to qualification described below)

    Class Participation: 20%

    Mid Term 20%

    Five Page Draft: 20%

    Final Paper: 40%
    
     

    Standards: Grading standards are in part subjective and excellence in one area may compensate for deficiencies in another. No curve will be used to calculate the grades in this class. Hence, it is theoretically possible for every student to receive an A if he or she meets the standards for that grade. My primary goals are for each student to develop the critical thinking skills and to understand the ideas covered in this course by the time it is completed. If later exams and papers illustrate this proficiency, earlier grades which do not will be discounted. The following will give you a general guide to the typical performance associated with each letter grade.
     

    A: all course requirements met, work shows full understanding of course material and an original perspective on the subject

    B: all course requirements met, work shows full understanding of course material (or satisfactory understanding of course material and an original perspective on the subject)

    C: all course requirements met, work shows satisfactory understanding of course material

    D: work fails to meet minimum course requirements, either in full and timely completion of requirements or in satisfactory understanding of course material

    F: work falls far below minimum course requirements either in full and timely completion of requirements or in satisfactory understanding of course material.
     
     
     

    University and Classroom Standards
     

    The American University's "Academic Integrity Code" governing standards for academic conduct apply. Students may discuss the subject matter of their essays with anyone. All students, however, must compose their own essays and may not show or read their essays to any other persons, except for proofreading or typing assistance by a person not enrolled or previously enrolled in the course. The use of another person's words or ideas without proper attribution constitutes plagiarism or false authorship. Both are serious academic offenses. By turning in an essay, a student is certifying that the essay is entirely his/her own work. If there are any questions about this matter, consult the Academic Integrity code or see the instructor.
     
     
    

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    Freedom of expression is at the root of academic discourse and the advancement of knowledge. This course will deal with a wide range of topics, some of which may challenge a student's deeply held beliefs and perhaps even cause offense. While no topic will be censored simply because it has these effects, students are expected to treat the differing views of others with respect. While a tolerance towards the opinions of others does not preclude expressions of disagreement, which are, indeed, encouraged, it does require that these expressions be based on the content of the ideas expressed and not on the personal traits or values of the speaker. All class participants will be expected to tolerate the expression of opposing views and to engage in reasoned discourse about them.
     

    I will endeavor to ensure that the classroom is free of any conduct that has the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating or hostile environment. Furthermore, I will attempt to give each student an opportunity to express his or her own opinions and to treat student opinions with respect. Any student who believes that he or she has not been given fair or adequate opportunity to contribute to class discussion is encouraged to bring this to my attention.
     

    I am genuinely interested in student development and the generation of critical understanding of the issues addressed in this course. If you have any questions or problems and would like to discuss them with me, please call me, visit me during my office hours, or make an appointment to meet with me at a mutually convenient time and location. If problems arise that may affect your performance in this course (e.g. academic, health, family, or other personal matters), it is important that you bring these issues to my attention when they arise and not wait until they interfere with some class exercise such as a paper or an exam. I am eager to assist you in making this an interesting and beneficial educational experience.
     
     
    
    
    

    READINGS

     

Week 1

Introduction: Law, Morality And Rights

  The Moral Basis of Human Rights

 

						= Readimng For Upcoming Class
	Social Contract Theories					Recommended for background
Locke			Second Treatise On Government
	Chapter 1. Of Political Power
	Chapter 2. Of the State of Nature
	Chapter 3. Of the State of War
	Chapter 4. Of Slavery
	Chapter 5. Of Property
	Chapter 7. Of Political or Civil Society
	Chapter 8. Of the Beginning of Political Societies
	Chapter 11. Of the Extent of the Legislative Power
	Chapter 18. Of Tyranny
	Chapter 19. Of the Dissolution of Government
Rousseau
			Essay on Inequality
			The Social Contract
	Book I
		1. Subject of the First Book
		2. The First Societies
		3. The Right of the Strongest
		4. Slavery
		5. That We Must Always Go Back to a First Convention
		6. The Social Compact
		7. The Sovereign
		8. The Civil State
		9. Real Property
	Book II
		1. That Sovereignty is Inalienable
		2. That Sovereignty is Indivisible
		3. Whether the General Will is Fallible
		4. The Limits of the Sovereign Power
		6. Law
	Book IV
		1. That the General Will is Indestructible

    

Week 3

Justice As Duty or Well Being

 

Kant		Excerpts On Morality
		Perpetual Peace
Bentham
		Principles of Morals And Legislation Books I-IV
Mill		Selections From On Liberty

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Week 4

The Role of Justice, If Any, In Global Relations

 

Stanley Hoffman	Duties Beyond Borders	Chapters One and Three
Charles Beitz	Political Theory And International Relations	Introduction And Part One
	International Relations As The State of Nature
Thucydides	The Melian Dialogue
Morgenthau	The Twilight of International Morlaity
Marshall Cohen	Moral Skepticism And International Relations

Week 5

The Legal And Political Basis For Human Rights: Theory

HLA Hart,	Are There Any Natural Rights?
	Separation of Law And Morals
Dworkin	Rights As Trumps
Beitz	Human Rights as a Common Concern	American Political Science Review (June 2001)
Jack Donnelly,	Human Rights As Natural Rights
Lori Fisler Damrosch	Genocide And Ethnic Conflict	International Law And Ethnic Conflict

 

Margaret McDonald, Natural Rights     

 


The Legal And Political Basis For Human Rights: Practice
The Prosecution of War Crimes And Genocide

United Nations	International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights	And In Particular	Part III, Article 6: Right To Life
Andy Carvin	From Sideshow To Genocide Stories of theCambodian Holocaust		The Khmer Rouge Years
Macedo	Universal Jurisdiction
Neil Kritz	Special Report: Rwanda: Accountability for War Crimes and Genocide
United Nation's	Convention Against Genocide And relevant sections of the Human Rights
	Charter and Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
Samantha Powers	Bystanders To Genocide
The International Criminal Court	Basic Documents
	Background And History
Franck	Legitimacy
Christopher Hitchens	The Case Against Henry Kissinger		Background Article
Prosecuting Heads of State	The Case of Pinochet		House of Lords Decision
			Home Secretary Determination of Fitness For Trial
			House of Lords Decision
			Home Secretary Determination of Fitness For Trial

 

Ruth Wedgewood

Limiting The Use of Force In Civil Disputes in International Law And Ethnic Conflict

Week 6

 
The Scope of Human Rights: Universal or Relative?

Daniel Bell	East Meets West: Human Rights And Democracy In East Asia	Chapter 1 pp 23-105
Donnelly	Cultural Relativism And International Human Rights	Part II
Claude Ake	The African Context of Civil Rights,   vol. 34 Africa Today Nos. 1&2 (1987)
Thomas Franck	Is Personal Freedom A Western Value?	Am J. of Int Law Vol. 91, No. 4. (Oct., 1997),
Mary Midgely	Trying Out One's New Sword  (excerpt from Heart And Mind)
Yael Tamir	Hands Off Clitoridectomy: What Our Revulsion Reveals About Ourselves"	Boston Review (1996)
Reply To Tamir by	Nussbaum, Neuwirth, Kamm & George &Her Response
US Immigration Proceeding	In Re Kasinga: Asylum Hearing of Potential FGM Victim

      

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Week 7

 
The Subject of Human Rights: Individual Or Community (And Which Ones)?

 

Martha Nussbaum	Sex And Social Justice  (Oxford, 1999)	Part Chapters Three And Four
JS Hawley	Sati: The Blessing And The Curse: The Burning Of Wives In India (Oxford, 1994)	Chapters Three And Four
United Nations		Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
United Nations	Covenant on Civil & Political Rights	Arts. 18-22  (Freedom of Religion)
Speech vs. Religion		Islamic ProtestsTo The Satanic Verses
Salmon Rushdie		Inside the Mind of Jihadists
Ronald Dworkin	A Matter of Principle	"Do We Have A Right To Pornography"

Falun Gong

The Falun Gong And Its Experience In China.


Week 8   
  
 
 The Value And Rights of Community: Nationalism, Patriotism And Self Determination

Richard Goodin	What is So Special about Our Fellow Countrymen?
Yael Tamir	Liberal Nationalism Chapters Five& Seven
Jacob Levy	The Impossibility of Universal Nationalism in The Multiculturalism of Fear
Will Kymlicka	Multicultural Citizenship	Ethics Vol. 104 , No. 2 (1994)
Daniel Philpott	In Defense of Self-Determination
Alan Buchannan	Theories of Secession
Cass Sunstien	Constitutionalism and Secession

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Week 8

Rights of Community And Its Limits: Sovereignty And Internvention

 

Michael Walzer	The Moral Standing of the State	Philosophy And Public Affairs
Charles Beitz	Nonintervention and Communal Integrity	Philosophy And Public Affairs
Stephen Krasner	Chapter One And Two	Sovereignty: Organized Hypocrisy
Thomas Franck	The Emerging Right to Democratic Governance	Am J. of Int Law Vol. 86, No. 1. (Jan., 1992)


 




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Week 10

Dirty Hands: Torture and Terrorism

    

Patrick Lee	Interrogational Torture
Walzer	Dirty Hands (The Article)
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philsophy	Doctrine of Double Effect
Bentham	What is Utility?
US Government Report To UN Committee On Torture 1999	American Legislation Banning Torture
John Yoo and Judge Bybee	Justice Department Memos on Torture
General Tagube	Report on Abu Ghraib
Geneva Convention Third Article 1949	International Law On Torture
Hassan	An Arsenal of Believers: Talking To Human Bombs

 




 

 

    
     

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Week 10
 

Globalization Multiculturalism, Tolerance And Equality

Michael Walzer On Tolerance Chapters Two & Three
Joseph Carens    Culture, Citizenship, and Community : A Contextual Exploration

of Justice As Evenhandedness   Parts One, Two & Three




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Week 11

 



        




Week 12
 

 Just And Unjust Wars

    Thomas Nagel             War And Massacre
    George Mavrodes        Conventions And The Morality of War
    Robert Fullwinder         War And Innocence
    Lawrence Alexander     Self Defense And The Killing of Non-Combatants
 

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Week 13

For Final Class Meeting

 

                      
          

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Week 14
 

Our Brother's Keeper? International Justice And Aiding the poor?

Peter Singer         Famine Affluence And Morality 
Onora O'Neil       Lifeboat Earth 
Charles Beitz        Justice And International Relations 
 

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Week 15
 
Global Justice And The Law Of The Peoples?

   John Rawls, The Law of The Peoples (Harvard, 1999) Part I §3 -- II.§10 inclusive.
                        Part One                Part Two

     David Fagelson Two Concepts of Sovereignty: From Westphalia To The Law of Peoples
 

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Useful Philosopy Links
	Stanford Encylcopedia of Philsophy
	Episteme Links
	Philosopher's Web Portal
	Guide To Philosophy On The Internet
	The Galilean Library -- What Is Philosophy
	Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy
	Philosophy Around The Web
	The Royal Institute Of Philosophy

Internet Resources for Human Rights Issues

Legal Research Sites Diana Human Rights Library   One of the best all around sources for documents and other links Legal Research on International Law Issues Using the Internet -- University of Chicago  International Human Rights Agencies African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights Inter-American Commission on Human Rights UN Commission on the Status of Women United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) works for children worldwide United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights United Nations Human Rights links to a wide range of UN bodies dealing with Human Rights United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) World Food Program (WFP) The UNHCHR also provides a useful Human Rights Treaty Bodies Database, which offers information on a range of international bodies that monitor human rights treaties.      International Human Rights Treaties & Declarations United Nations - see the complete list of  United Nation's Documents or connect to the following examples:  Universal Declaration of Human Rights - 1948 International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights - 1966 status of ratifications International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights - 1966 status of ratifications Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights - 1966 status of ratifications Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights aiming at the abolition of the death penalty - 1989 status of ratifications Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples - 1960 United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination - 1963 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination - 1965 International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid - 1973 Convention against Discrimination in Education - 1960 Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief - 1981 Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief - 1992 Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War - 1949 Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War - 1949 Convention (No. 169) concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries - 1989 UN Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples - 1993 European Union European Human Rights Documents European Convention on Human Rights - 1950 (Council of Europe) European Social Charter - Council of Europe - 1961 Community Charter of the Fundamental Social Rights of Workers - 1989   Organization of American States American Convention on Human Rights Signatures and Current Status of Ratifications Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights in the Area of Economic Social and Cultural Rights Protocol of San Salvador Signatures and Current Status of Ratifications Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights to Abolish the Death Penalty Signatures and Current Status of Ratifications Proposed American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples  American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man Inter-American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture Signatures and Current Status of Ratifications   Organization of African Unity African [Banjul] Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights - 1981 ratification information African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child - 1990 Addis Ababa Document on Refugees and Forced Population Displacements in Africa - 1994 Kampala Declaration on Intellectual Freedom and Social Responsibility - 1990   International Judicial Bodies Court of Justice of the European Union European Court of Human Rights - Council of Europe Inter-American Court of Human Rights International Court of Justice International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)   Other Human Rights Resource Sites Diana - International Human Rights Database Human Rights Watch Human Rights Web University of Minnesota Human Rights Library  Yahoo! Full News Coverage on Human Rights Yahoo! Human Rights Links Yahoo! Issues and Causes Specific Topics and Documents The Caste System in Hinduism Caste system in modern India Center for World Indigenous Studies Home Page Child rights- UNICEF Human Rights Center Bibliographies on Human Rights Relief Web Home page - UN Humanitarian Aid site UN Site on Rights of Indigenous Peoples US Bureau of Justice Statistics on Capital Punishment  - 1998 Women Watch Yahoo! Environment and Nature Ethics General Search Sites For Internet Material: Yahoo! is the most popular search engine, and provides an enormous index to browse for sites as well.  Ask Jeeves - is the most innovative search site, where you can search by asking plain language questions.  Go Network Express - excellent free software you install on your computer to conduct Internet search through multiple search engines at the same time.  FedWorld Information Network - Search for US Government web sites  MetaCrawler - allows you to search through several search engines at the same time  United Nations Documentation Research Guide United Nations Web Search - for finding material on the UN Internet sites      Databases Available through Aladdin   The Carl/UnCover service is another extremely useful way to search for printed material. This database is limited to journal articles, but it covers an enormous number of periodicals. In addition to searching for keywords, you can look up a journal by title to see what other articles might appear in that issue.  CARL/Uncover Periodical Database Once connected, choose:  Search the UnCover database, then  Search UnCover Now  PAIS: Public Affairs Information Service - index of international academic periodicals on business and the social sciences with emphasis on contemporary social, economic, and political issues and the making and evaluating of public policy.    LEXIS-NEXIS - full text database of judicial decisions from Canadian, Commonwealth and American courts.  JSTOR -  full article collection of periodicals in the social sciences and humanities. OCLC First Search  --  full article collection of periodicals in the social sciences and humanities. Periodical Abstracts  -- Collection of wide variety of periodicals many of which are available in  full text format. Johns Hopkins University Project Muse Journals.

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