What are our human rights? What are their philosophical justifications and historical origins? Focusing on highly topical issues such as ...

New to this Edition:

• Brings the Bush Administration's approach to the war on terror up to date by referencing Obama's reversal of some policies
• Accounts for new issues of restrictions on speech and press freedom in the wake of the emerging concerns for privacy and cyberbullying
• Acknowledges issues related to climate change and the debate over 'climate justice' and 'climate refugees' that have generated a new dimension to the human rights debate
• Provides a more intense discussion of hate speech, islamophobia, and what is referred to as 'defamation of religion' in light of the situations in Libya and Syria

 
Today it is usually not long before a problem gets expressed as a human rights issue. Indeed, human rights law continues to gain increasing attention internationally, and must move quickly in order to keep up with a social world that changes so rapidly.

This Very Short Introduction, in its second edition, brings the issue of human rights up to date, considering the current controversies surrounding the movement. Discussing torture and arbitrary detention in the context of counter terrorism, Andrew Clapham also considers new challenges to human rights in the context of privacy, equality and the right to health. Looking at the philosophical justification for rights, the historical origins of human rights and how they are formed in law, Clapham explains what our human rights actually are, what they might be, and where the human rights movement is heading.