International Politics: Is Human Rights A Function Of Western Imperialism

1059 Words5 Pages
Human Rights have been a contentious issue on the international political stage for hundreds of years, and have been even more hotly debated in modern international politics since the conception of the United Nations in 1945 (Taylor 2001). The nature of human rights is very subjective, and opinions differ widely, based upon a number of variables, least of all the cultural norms of the society in question. There are a number of different views that can be taken in regard to human rights, and some are of the opinion that Human Rights are an expression of western imperialism (Bricmont 2006). This essay will critically evaluate the claim that human rights are an expression of western imperialism and present evidence that shows human rights do exist in their own right, however, are commonly used by western imperialists as a front for other ventures (Bricmont 2006). Human rights have been around for hundreds and hundreds of years, and have a very dynamic definition that has developed from the perspective of 18th century enlightenment thinkers. Enlightenment thinkers thought more that human rights were defined as the best interests on the level of the individual, while modern political thought has headed more towards cultural plurality rather than utility (Kohen 2007). There are different forms of human rights that exist throughout the world, and can be often split into two categories: positive and negative rights- that is the right to have something vs. the right to not have something taken away from you (Brown 2001). There is consensus amongst most of society that there are three generations of human rights. The first generation of human rights are the most basic of human rights and are taken to be freedom of speech, the right to a fair trial, freedom of religion, and the right to vote. Second generation human rights relate to equality are and accepted to be the right

More about International Politics: Is Human Rights A Function Of Western Imperialism

Open Document