Human rights are fundamental freedoms and protections that every person is entitled to, regardless of who they are or where they live. Human rights cover civil, cultural, economic, political and social issues. They are inalienable, meaning they can never be taken away. Indivisible, interdependent and interrelated, they cannot be ranked in order of importance, as enjoyment of one right depends on the enjoyment of many others and no single right is more important than another.
The idea that people have inalienable human rights is not a Western creation or 20th-century invention, but has roots in the beliefs and traditions of all cultures and civilizations. It is based on the twin observations that all humans require diverse values and capacities for well-being, and that these are frequently frustrated by exploitation and oppression.
In the 19th and 20th centuries, these ideas began to be articulated at the international level. Early international agreements focused on issues like slavery, serfdom, brutal working conditions and child labour. In the 21st century, major violations of human rights continue to occur on a huge scale around the world, involving many different groups of people. The mass detentions of more than a million Uyghur people in Xinjiang, for example, is a major human rights violation, as are the widespread and systematic restrictions on the freedoms of religion, expression, association and culture that affect this population.
Despite these achievements, the human rights agenda remains a complex and challenging undertaking. In addition to protecting the dignity of all individuals, it must also address a variety of competing priorities, which can create tensions and conflicts. Some of these are inherent to human nature, such as the need for freedom and privacy, while others are more specific to certain populations or societies, such as the need for education, health care and housing.
It is important to promote human rights within groups. Individuals often have limited time and energy for this work, but when people work together they can support each other and pool resources to promote their causes. Groups can also raise awareness and funds for their work, as well as recruit new members with specialized skills.
Another challenge is to avoid rights inflation, which occurs when the number of rights increases rapidly and without sufficient justification. To prevent this, scholars have proposed various tests for a given right: it should protect some very important good, be necessary and proportionate in terms of the burden on the addressees (Cranston 2004; Shue 1996; and Talbott 2005), and not conflict with other human rights.
This website provides a wealth of information about human rights, including data and visualizations on how these rights have evolved over time, how they differ between countries and between groups of people, such as women or LGBT+ people. It is a valuable tool for researchers and activists who are committed to promoting and protecting human rights worldwide.