Prof. Joshua Kassner's Book, A New Philosophy of Human Rights, Shines Light on Practical Ways to Achieve Progress in Defining and Maintaining Human Rights in a Changing World
November 21, 2024
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Joshua J. Kassner, professor and director of the philosophy program at The University of Baltimore and the author of several works covering ethics, social justice, international human rights and more, has written a new book that is being called an important step forward in understanding what human rights are, how that knowledge can be practically applied in a variety of settings and cultures, and what it takes to overcome presumptions about this crucial part of human existence. A New Philosophy of Human Rights: The Deliberative Account, released on Nov. 22 by the Rowman & Littlefield publishing house in the U.K., offers a strong argument for a reassessment of the study of human rights, from a number of different vantage points.
"The philosophy of human rights has, in recent years, revolved around a supposed dilemma. On the one hand, some contend that the normative system of human rights should be understood from a moral point of view that is independent of conventional practice of human rights. Others contend that the normative system of human rights should be understood from a point of view that is internal to the practice of human rights," the publisher writes. "A New Philosophy of Human Rights: The Deliberative Account takes on the ambitious task of offering a new philosophy of human rights grounded in the proposition that the current debate is centered on a mistaken assumption."
Dr. Kassner's book makes the case for stepping back from orthodox ideas about the study of and desire for progress on such an existential topic. It calls for "a more hopeful and constructive future for the philosophy of human rights," and includes ideas for "institutional design and reform to transform the promise into reality."
Dr. Kassner says that for years now, those who focus on the core problem of how to define, establish and maintain human rights have struggled with a key dilemma: Can these rights be understood from multiple perspectives at once—philosophical and practical; systemic and situational, etc.? This problem, he says, has become a sticking point that works against real progress.
"We need to think of these distinct ways of thinking about human rights as different points of view in a mutually dependent deliberative process instead of as mutually exclusive theoretical competitors in some internecine dispute," Prof. Kassner says. "We can engage in constructive deliberations across these divides. Doing so will allow us to better understand and institutionalize the rights we all have as human beings."
Acclaim for the work is growing, especially among those who agree that there are improvements to be made in grasping what people mean by human rights, and where the break points are in that worldwide effort.
"A New Philosophy of Human Rights innovatively contributes to the study of human rights," writes Deen Chatterjee, professor in the S.J. Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah. "Moving beyond the binary of orthodox and political perspectives, Kassner taps into diverse perspectives within a deliberative framework in the practice of human rights. With a focus on public reasoning within the deliberative account and an understanding of the limitations of institutional and social practices as they are in the world rather than looking for a top-down idealized abstraction, this book is geared toward achieving a real-world understanding of the normativity of human rights. One important implication is that human rights discourse can remain true to its universal norms while being responsive to cultural complexities and differences, that it can be both substantive and negotiable as it faces the increasingly vocal challenges of diversity. Kassner also explores several leading philosophical ideologies and competing ethical theories with admirable clarity, impressive depth, and sharply contested arguments. He sets the tone and direction of this important area of scholarship for years to come."
More information about A New Philosophy of Human Rights is available here.
Learn more about Dr. Joshua J. Kassner and the B.A. in Philosophy, Law and Ethics program at The University of Baltimore.