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    Evidence for Hope: Making Human Rights Work in the 21st Century
    Kathryn Sikkink. 9/8/2017. Evidence for Hope: Making Human Rights Work in the 21st Century, Pp. 336. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. See full text.Abstract

    Kathryn Sikkink's new book documents the history of successes of the human rights movement, and makes a case for why human rights work.

    Evidence for Hope makes the case that, yes, human rights work. Critics may counter that the movement is in serious jeopardy or even a questionable byproduct of Western imperialism. They point out that Guantánamo is still open, the Arab Spring protests have been crushed, and governments are cracking down on NGOs everywhere. But respected human rights expert Kathryn Sikkink draws on decades of research and fieldwork to provide a rigorous rebuttal to pessimistic doubts about human rights laws and institutions. She demonstrates that change comes slowly and as the result of struggle, but in the long term, human rights movements have been vastly effective.

    Attacks on the human rights movement’s credibility are based on the faulty premise that human rights ideas emerged in North America and Europe and were imposed on developing southern nations. Starting in the 1940s, Latin American leaders and activists were actually early advocates for the international protection of human rights. Sikkink shows that activists and scholars disagree about the efficacy of human rights because they use different yardsticks to measure progress. Comparing the present to the past, she shows that genocide and violence against civilians have declined over time, while access to healthcare and education has increased dramatically. Cognitive and news biases contribute to pervasive cynicism, but Sikkink’s investigation into past and current trends indicates that human rights is not in its twilight. Instead, this is a period of vibrant activism that has made impressive improvements in human well-being.

    Exploring the strategies that have led to real humanitarian gains since the middle of the twentieth century, Evidence for Hope looks at how these essential advances can be supported and sustained for decades to come.

    Kathryn Sikkink is the Ryan Family Professor of Human Rights Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and the Carol K. Pforzheimer Professor at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. Her books include The Justice Cascade (Norton) and Activists beyond Borders. She lives in Cambridge, MA.

    Guantanamo

    Guantánamo: Bush-era Officials Warn Keeping Prison Open May be $6bn Error

    February 2, 2018

    Article features Carr Center Senior Fellow Alberto Mora
     

    Alberto Mora, general counsel of the Department of the Navy from 2001 to 2006, expressed hope that Mattis, who persuaded Trump not to resume the use of torture, may also convince him not to send more inmates to Guantánamo, which Mora called “a ludicrous and extravagant waste of military manpower”.

    But even if no more prisoners are sent there, Trump’s...

    Read more about Guantánamo: Bush-era Officials Warn Keeping Prison Open May be $6bn Error
    2018 Feb 14

    Study Group: An Introduction to the UN Human Rights System

    12:00pm to 1:30pm

    Location: 

    Carr Center Conference Room, Rubenstein 229, Harvard Kennedy School

    Study Group: An Introduction to the United Nations Human Rights System with Carr Center Fellow, Leo Castilho

    Meeting dates (all 12:00 - 1:30pm in the Carr Center Conference Room, Rubenstein-229, Harvard Kennedy School of Government *subject to change - participants will be informed of any changes as soon as possible*).

    • Wednesday February 7, 
    • Wednesday February 14, 
    • Wednesday March 21,
    • and Friday, March 30.

    In this study group, participants will gain an understanding of the origins...

    Read more about Study Group: An Introduction to the UN Human Rights System
    2018 Feb 08

    RPP Colloquium Series: Why Nonviolent Civil Resistance Works: Highlighting the Power of Spiritually-Engaged Communities in Movements for Sustainable Peace

    6:00pm to 8:30pm

    Location: 

    Havard Divinity School, Sperry Room, Andover Hall, 45 Francis Ave.
    Sponsor Religions and the Practice of Peace, the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and the Women’s Studies in Religion Program at HDS
    Contact ...
    Read more about RPP Colloquium Series: Why Nonviolent Civil Resistance Works: Highlighting the Power of Spiritually-Engaged Communities in Movements for Sustainable Peace

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