Winner of the 2013 John Hope Franklin Book Prize presented by the American Studies Association A necessary read that demonstrates the ways in which certain people are devalued without attention to social contexts Social Death tackles one of the core paradoxes of social justice struggles and scholarship-that the battle to end oppression shares the moral grammar that structures exploitation and sanctions state violence. Lisa Marie Cacho forcefully argues that the demands for personhood for those who, in the eyes of society, have little value, depend on capitalist and heteropatriarchal measures of worth. With poignant case studies, Cacho illustrates that our very understanding of personhood is premised upon the unchallenged devaluation of criminalized populations of color. Hence, the reliance of rights-based politics on notions of who is and is not a deserving member of society inadvertently replicates the logic that creates and normalizes states of social and literal death. Her understanding of inalienable rights and personhood provides us the much-needed comparative analytical and ethical tools to understand the racialized and nationalized tensions between racial groups. Driven by a radical, relentless critique, Social Death challenges us to imagine a heretofore "unthinkable" politics and ethics that do not rest on neoliberal arguments about worth, but rather emerge from the insurgent experiences of those negated persons who do not live by the norms that determine the productive, patriotic, law abiding, and family-oriented subject.

National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs), defined by the UN as bodies established to promote and protect human rights, have increased in number since the General Assembly adopted principles governing their effectiveness in 1993. The UN and others have encouraged states to set up such institutions as an indication of their commitment to human rights, and now over 20 such institutions exist in Africa and many more will follow. These institutions have taken various forms including ombudsmen, commissions, or a combination of the two. They differ in terms of how they are established; some by constitution, some by legislation and some by decree. These NHRIs have varying functions, usually both promotional and protective, such as giving advice to government, parliament, and others, making recommendations on compliance with human rights standards, awareness raising, and analysis of law and policy. Despite the considerable variations in the method of their creation, powers and composition, most of these institutions have chosen or indeed been mandated, to become involved in international and regional fora. This book examines these institutions in the African region, the way in which they use the international and regional fora, the effectiveness of their contributions and how they are able to participate.

A revealing, comprehensive, and detailed account focusing on the people and personalities behind the Montgomery, Alabama, Bus Boycott in 1955–1956, which became the catalyst for a national civil rights movement. The Montgomery Bus Boycott: A History and Reference Guide offers a comprehensive account of a critical turning point in American history. It offers a richly detailed chronological trip through post-World War II Southern society to the early 1960s, then focuses on the day-to-day frustrations, challenges, and victories of the people behind the protest that inspired a nationwide movement. The Montgomery Bus Boycott fills a gap in available resources with its comprehensive portrait of mid-1950s Montgomery—the mainly black, uneducated female protestors, activist Rosa Parks, Dr. King, and the white society desperate to keep intact the only culture they understood. Firsthand news reports, editorials, quotes, eyewitness accounts, and behind-the-scenes stories of political maneuvering help readers experience this dramatic—and still reverberating—victory over oppression.

What will citizenship mean to the peoples of a new, wider Europe? Welfare state retrenchment and technological change in the work place are undermining social citizenship rights and provoking a critical assessment of the West European concept itself. In the light of these changes, what models can the democratic, industrialized states of the West offer the transitional economies of the East?This innovative book presents new work by an international group of leading social scientists offers historical analysis and empirical description, as well as theoretical and political assessments, of work and citizenship in Europe. It examines the erosion of the welfare state, the emergence of poverty and the underclass, and the rights and duties connected with social citizenship. After a review of labour rights and obligations in the former socialist countries, it also assesses the state of industrial citizenship. It asks why the technological transformation of work tends to create segmentation and exclusion and argues for a debate about economic citizenship rights. Work and Citizenship in the New Europe concludes with theoretical and political arguments in favour of specific social policies on work and citizenship, examining such issues as labour participation, basic income guarantees and durable economic growth.

Issues of race and ethnicity in Europe have been brought to the fore by the recent electoral successes of extreme right-wing parties, while immigration and refugee policies are exposing deep uncertainties across the political spectrum. The politicization of 'race', ethnicity and immigration is a key feature of contemporary European society. In this important new volume, leading specialists explore the political mediation of racism across western Europe, examining its causes, character and consequences. Racism, Ethnicity and Politics in Contemporary Europe includes an overview of contemporary racism, investigations into its socio-economic and ideological roots, analyses of its role in party politics and studies of multilateral and non-governmental initiatives designed to promote anti-racism. The contributors provide case studies of Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy. They consider both the experience of racism in specific countries and common issues thrown up by the resurgence of racism at a time of profound socio-economic restructuring and political uncertainty. The rich insights offered by this book will be of interest to students and scholars active in many disciplines ranging from politics and sociology to discourse analysis and social psychology.

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aReparations for the continuing legacy of American racism is the central civil rights issue of the twenty-first century. Henry's bold and insightful Long Overdue provides a detailed examination of the current rationale for compensation to African Americans. Long Overdue skillfully explores the political debate and controversies surrounding reparations, and provides constructive suggestions for what the movement needs in order to achieve its policy objectives.a
--Manning Marable, author of "Let Nobody Turn Us Around"

aHenry offers a simply superb interrogation of the Black reparations movement that is distinguished by its attention to history, social movements theory, and global context. The case studies presented here provide contrasting examples of reparations in distinct time periods and highlight political mobilization on local, national, and international scales. Long Overdue compellingly illustrates how distinct demands for reparations have been historically articulated, how they have converged with Black nationalist thought, and how they have influenced the broader public discourse on race and racism. An essential read for a contentious debate.a
--Michael Omi, co-author of "Racial Formation in the United States: From the 1960s to the 1990s"

Ever since the unfulfilled promise of aForty Acres and a mule, a America has consistently failed to confront the issue of racial injustice. Exploring why America has failed to compensate Black Americans for the wrongs of slavery, Long Overdue provides a history of the racial reparations movement and shows why it is an idea whose time has come.

Martin Luther King, Jr., remarkedin his aI Have a Dreama speech that America has given Black citizens a abad checka marked ainsufficient funds.a Yet apart from a few Black nationalists, the call for reparations has been peripheral to Black policy demands. Charles P. Henry examines Americansa unwillingness to confront this economic injustice, and crafts a skillful moral, political, economic, and historical argument for African American reparations, focusing on successful political cases.

In the wake of recent successes in South Africa and New Zealand, new models for reparations have recently found traction in a number of American cities and states, from Dallas to Baltimore and Virginia to California. By looking at other dispossessed group -- Native Americans, holocaust survivors, and Japanese internment victims in the 1940s -- Henry shows how some groups have won the fight for reparations.

As Hurricane Katrina made apparent, the legacy of racial segregation and economic disadvantage is never far below the surface in America. Long Overdue provides an up-to-date survey of the political and legislative efforts that are now breaking the surface to move reparations into the heart of our national discussion about race.

This first-hand empirical study of elderly Soviet Jews who immigrated to Israel during the Great Exodus of 1989 to 1991 demonstrates the double jeopardy of transnational relocation in later life. The book traces the depletions that occurred in the elderly immigrants' social networks and examines the impact of a range of network factors on their personal well-being. Given the dearth of systematic field research into the problems and needs of elderly immigrants, and of this group in particular, gerontologists and sociologists will find this case study invaluable. Students, teachers, policymakers, social service providers, and other professional practitioners will gain from the findings about elderly immigrants' network relationships and from practical suggestions for the planning of effective network interventions on their behalf.

The late Jim Harris' theory of the science of law, and his theoretical work on human rights and property, have been a challenge and stimulus to legal scholars for the past twenty-five years. This collection of essays, originally conceived as a festschrift and now offered to the memory of a greatly admired scholar, assesses Harris' contribution across many fields of law and legal philosophy. The chapters are written by some of the foremost specialists writing today, and reflect the wide range of Harris's work, and the depth of his influence on legal studies. They include contributions on topics as diverse as the nature of law and legal reasoning, rival theories of property rights and their impact on practical questions before the courts; the nature of precedent in legal argument; and the evolving concept of human rights and its place in legal discourse. With a foreword by the Honourable Justice Edwin Cameron, this volume celebrates the life and work of Jim Harris

This is a collection of papers that were initially presented at the international conference, which was organized from 9th to 10th November 2018 by the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SASA) and Faculty of Law, University of Belgrade. The conference was organized on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Besides the introductory address, by Ben Ferencz, one of the prosecutors at the Nuremberg Trials, this volume gathers internationally renowned scholars and practitioners who deal with diverging issues from the international human rights law and politics. The volume opens with a selection of contributions broadly falling under the heading - general theoretical issues. It is followed by a handful of articles focusing on the minority rights protection in the 21st century. Third part of the book is devoted to a pertinent problem of accountability of corporations for human rights violations. The closing part of the book is dedicated to environment and bioethics as human rights issues. This volume would be of interest to both human rights scholars and practitioners as well as to those generally interested in public international law issues.

Regional integration, mass migration and the development of transnational organizations are just some of the factors challenging the traditional definitions of citizenship. In this important new book, Rainer Baubock argues that citizenship rights will have to extend beyond nationality and state territory if liberal democracies are to remain true to their own principles of inclusive membership and equal basic rights. In Transnational Citizenship theoretical discussion of the definition and extension of citizenship rights is combined with comparative policy analysis on rules of naturalization and expatriation in liberal democratic states. An important distinction is drawn between nominal citizenship, which refers to the legal status of membership, and substantial citizenship, which concerns the distribution of basic rights in a state. Three areas where states can become more open to the acceptance of migrants as citizens are suggested: naturalization, the extension of citizenship rights to non-citizens and the admission of immigrants. Although the author still regards citizenship in terms of membership of territorially bounded states, he argues that it can no longer be defined by the model of national communities. In exploring what it means to accept migrants as members of liberal democracies, Rainer Baubock has made a singular contribution to our understanding of citizenship and the right to migration. Innovative without being utopian, this important book will be welcomed by political and sociological theorists, migration researchers and lawyers concerned with issues of migration and naturalization.

A volume in Teaching<~> Learning Indigenous, Intercultural Worldviews: International Perspectives on Social Justice and Human Rights Series Editor: Tonya Huber-Warring, St. Cloud State University, Minnesota For readers new to the field of multicultural education and human relations education, the recency of these publications heralded as seminal may be confusing, for certainly the concepts building the field of multicultural education and human relations education have been around much longer. True. But, for the first time, we found the conceptual framework, guiding principles, and critical works across disciplines and fields in Smith's encyclopedic organization. Because of the comprehensive nature of Pritchy Smith's knowledge bases, they have been employed as the organizing themes for this volume. I would clarify that I have not burdened authors to study Smith's analysis and then apply it to their works; the categorization is my own. And, as is true of any topic, the interpretation and application may be broadly applicable.One of my major goals in founding this series has been to further develop the knowledge bases with voices from those in the trenches (literally and figuratively) and at the chalkface-while proverbial for some parts of the world, chalk remains a teaching staple in many regions of the world. The pages of the Teaching<~> Learning Indigenous, Intercultural Worldviews: International Perspectives on Social Justice and Human Rights book series will be used to build the knowledge bases for diversity concerning places and peoples, philosophies and positionalities not commonly appearing in the professional literature on education. Throughout this volume, authors will explore and research their own discoveries on this journey-narratives of crossing cultures and developing communities, reconceptualizing democracy and reinterpreting traditions, seeking solidarity and sowing the seeds of social justice. Through critical reflection in the shade of these giants, the reader may discover Ming Fang's bamboo tree.

No Prejudice Here chronicles a heretofore untold story of civil rights in modern America. In embracing the Western urban experience, it relates the struggle for civil rights and school desegregation in Denver, Colorado. It chronicles early legislative and political trends to promote Denver as a racially tolerant city, which encouraged African-Americans to move to the urban center for opportunities unique to communities in the postwar American West while nonetheless trying to maintain segregation by limiting educational and employment opportunities for minorities. Dynamic historian Summer Cherland recounts this tension over six decades, with specific attention to the role of community control efforts, legislative and political strategies, and the importance of youth activism. Her insightful study provides an overview of the seminar 1974 Supreme Court case Keyes v. Denver Public Schools No. 1, and traces the community's reaction to court decisions until the city was released from federal oversight twenty years later. Cherland's book proves that civil rights activism, and the need for it, lasted well beyond the years that typically define the civil rights movement, and illustrates for our contemporary consideration the longstanding struggle in urban communities for justice and equality.

Stephen Castles provides a deeper understanding of recent 'migration crises' in this fascinating and highly topical work. The book links theory and methodology to real-world migration experiences, with a truly global perspective and in-depth analysis of the links between economics, migration and asylum and refugee issues. Key features surrounding this complex and often controversial field are examined through five thematic sections: the sociological theories and methodologies most appropriate for understanding the migratory process, including the changing nature of international migration in an era of globalization analysis of contemporary types of migration and the cruciality of understanding migration as a dynamic social process - inability to do so may lead to policy failure and unintended consequences the relationship between migration and development asylum and refugees the effects of international migration on citizenship and identity, providing a critical perspective on the emergence of transnationalism. Migration, Citizenship and Identity will appeal to graduate students, senior undergraduates and lecturers in international migration, globalization, sociology, political science, demography and geography. Government officials, civil society activists, social workers, medical personnel, lawyers and other professional groups whose work is concerned with migrants and refugees will also find much to engage them.

"In The Human Rights Movement," the author examines why human rights abuses have continued to exist and even increase in number. According to Holleman, the reason for this failure is that Western and non-Western nations and cultures disagree as to the meaning of human rights and the means for promoting human rights from nation to nation and culture to culture. Christian theological anthropology suggests a via media between Western and non-Western points of view.

David Saari provides an extended essay on the nature of freedom in contemporary America, its historical roots, and its present-day manifestations. Drawing on the fields of history, law, politics, business, and philosophy, this wide-ranging study examines three facets of freedom--national freedom, freedom from the state, and freedom within the state--as they have developed in American law, politics, and society. Each of these facets is carefully defined and then applied to such contemporary issues as authority, property, equality, justice, and privacy.

This timely work offers a clear and thorough assessment of how Roma make sure their voice is heard and addresses the difficulty in determining who legitimately represents this heterogeneous transnational minority community. The book argues that Roma are a transnational minority that, as such, requires transnational representation structures to complement domestic political representation structures. After explaining the relationship between representation and political participation within the context of ethnic mobilization, the book then evaluates representation structures and Roma participation in Romania, Hungary, and in the transnational political context. Analytically, the book presents a multidisciplinary approach that draws from the literature on minority rights, citizenship, international relations, and social movements. Empirically, it describes two domestic political contexts and a transnational one. An engaging, informative, and accessible text, Who Speaks for Roma? sheds light on the key challenges facing Roma across Europe today and will be a timely reference for anyone interested in minority politics, political participation, political representation, and human rights.

What impact do international economic inputs have on human rights in Third World nations? William Meyer explores the effects of direct investment by U.S. multinational corporations, economic and military aid, and MNC manufacturing plants. He examines the international political economy of human rights at both the national and the international levels. Case studies are combined with quantitative studies that use aggregate cross-national data, and theories that link MNCs to human rights are subjected to empirical testing. As Meyer illustrates, at the national level, human rights violations are associated with U.S. MNCs in Chile, Honduras, India, Indonesia, and Mexico. MNCs have been especially guilty of violating labor rights, particularly through their reliance on sweatshops. MNCs have also been responsible for widespread pollution and environmental degradation. At a broader international level, increased investment by MNCs tends to go along with human rights improvements in the Third World as a whole. Meyer shows that there is a broad positive relationship between direct investment by MNCs and broader political rights and improved living standards. Aggregate data are also analyzed for human rights as compared to U.S. economic and military aid. Economic aid is found to be associated with improved civil-political rights and improved socioeconomic rights. Military aid, by contrast, is associated with declining levels of civil rights and with lower levels of social welfare. This book will serve as an important study for researchers, activists, and students of human rights.

Because the Holocaust, at its core, was an extreme expression of a devastating racism, the author contends it has special significance for African Americans. Locke, a university professor, clergyman, and African American, reflects on the common experiences of African American and Jewish people as minorities and on the great tragedy that each community has experienced in its history--slavery and the Holocaust. Without attempting to equate the experiences of African Americans to the experiences of European Jews during the Holocaust, the author does show how aspects of the Holocaust, its impact on the Jewish community worldwide, and the long-lasting consequences relate to slavery, the civil rights movement, and the current status of African Americans.

Written from a Christian perspective, this book argues that the implications of the Holocaust touch all people, and that it is a major mistake to view the Holocaust as an exclusively Jewish event. Instead, the author asks whether it is possible for both African Americans and Jewish Americans to learn from the experience of the other regarding the common threat that minority people confront in Western societies. Locke focuses on the themes of parochialism and patriotism and reexamines the role of the Christian churches during the Holocaust in an effort to challenge some of the prevailing views in Holocaust studies.

This edited volume is the first to focus on how concepts of citizenship diversify and stimulate the long-standing field of law and literature, and vice versa. Building on existing research in law and literature as well as literature and citizenship studies, the collection approaches the triangular relationship between citizenship, law and literature from a variety of disciplinary, conceptual and political perspectives, with particular emphasis on the performative aspect inherent in any type of social expression and cultural artefact. The sixteen chapters in this volume present literature as carrying multifarious, at times opposing energies and impulses in relation to citizenship. These range from providing discursive arenas for consolidating, challenging and re-negotiating citizenship to directly interfering with or inspiring processes of law-making and governance. The volume opens up new possibilities for the scholarly understanding of citizenship along two axes: Citizenship-as-Literature: Enacting Citizenship and Citizenship-in-Literature: Conceptualising Citizenship.

Dangerous Talk examines the "lewd, ungracious, detestable, opprobrious, and rebellious-sounding" speech of ordinary men and women who spoke scornfully of kings and queens. Eavesdropping on lost conversations, it reveals the expressions that got people into trouble, and follows the fate of some of the offenders. Introducing stories and characters previously unknown to history, David Cressy explores the contested zones where private words had public consequence. Though "words were but wind," as the proverb had it, malicious tongues caused social damage, seditious words challenged political authority, and treasonous speech imperiled the crown.
Royal regimes from the house of Plantagenet to the house of Hanover coped variously with "crimes of the tongue" and found ways to monitor talk they deemed dangerous. Their response involved policing and surveillance, judicial intervention, political propaganda, and the crafting of new law. In early Tudor times to speak ill of the monarch could risk execution. By the end of the Stuart era similar words could be dismissed with a shrug. This book traces the development of free speech across five centuries of popular political culture, and shows how scandalous, seditious and treasonable talk finally gained protection as "the birthright of an Englishman." The lively and accessible work of a prize-winning social historian, it offers fresh insight into pre-modern society, the politics of language, and the social impact of the law.

The volume New Politics of Decisionism aims to add a new dimension to the literature of populism. It deals with what Carl Schmitt famously coined as 'decisionism' - a form of politics based on the rule of a personal will, which is opposed to the rule of impersonal norms of constitutional law. The new politics of decisionism has gained a new form of populism, and it is equally noticeable in old and new constitutional democracies. The contributions follow the Schmittian idea of legally unbounded politics, usually justified with reference to exceptional circumstances - be that global financial crisis, transnational terrorist threats or massive immigration inflows - which require exceptional measures, and address the following issues: what is populism; how do the new politics of decisionism affect democratic processes and institutions; are constitutional democracies equipped to deal with these sort of challenges; can these politics be curtailed by the involvement of other political actors? New Politics of Decisionism consists of three parts. The first part offers theoretical explanations of the concept of populism and the challenges it poses to liberal democracy. The case studies included in the second part serve to explore the origins, forms, and dynamics of populism in contemporary societies. The third part consists of case studies that explore the general issue of whether courts can confront populism.