Lancaster University Law School presents From the Utopianism of Human Rights to the Primacy of the Political Nov. 7-8, 2008. The call for papers deadline is Sept. 30, 2008.
Everywhere it seems that human rights are being overwhelmed by political expediency and brute power. Indeed, the efficacy of human rights, and the ability of the human rights movement and human rights law to deliver over the long-term, is being challenged. While some commentators argue that human rights are merely the pliant weapons of first world nations and neo-liberalism, others point up the ways that a noble cause is easily perverted by lofty aspiration.What is, and should be, the relationship between human rights and politics? Does international and humanitarian activism have any practical and political credibility in the twenty-first century?
This conference will bring together academics, judges, practitioners, policy makers and activists from a wide range of fields and disciplines, offering a rare opportunity to confront and reflect upon one of the most relevant and challenging concerns of our age.
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