Human Rights Culture and Advocacy

Flashcards covering key vocabulary related to barriers to human rights culture, the importance of advocacy and education, corporate influence, criminal justice issues, and theoretical concepts from the lecture notes.

"Good for Corporation, Good for Country" Ideology

A prevailing ideology, dating back to at least 1650, asserting that corporate interests align with national well-being and shaping public perception through corporate influence.

Non-robust Rights Culture

A societal condition where there is resistance to the idea that collective action and wealth redistribution can benefit the working class, often seen in a disdain for unions and collective advocacy.

"Rugged Individualism"

A mentality, particularly prominent in the United States, that emphasizes self-reliance and prioritizes individual immediate concerns over the concept of a collective good.

Second-Generation Rights

Social, cultural, and economic rights, contrasting with first-generation civic and political rights, that often benefit from collective advocacy.

Ethnocentric Perspective

A viewpoint specific to the West and the United States, where certain cultural norms or ideologies (like rugged individualism) are considered paramount, hindering a robust rights culture.

Permanent Government (Harry Glasby)

A concept by Harry Glasby referring to powerful corporations and Fortune 500 companies that maintain constant influence, have the ear of the government, and shape policy, often pushing for deregulation.

Provisional Government (Harry Glasby)

A concept by Harry Glasby referring to elected political parties and leaders (e.g., Justin Trudeau) who come and go with political changes.

Deregulation

Policies often framed as economically beneficial, but which can severely impact Indigenous communities, Indigenous rights, and third/fourth-generation environmental rights.

Neoliberal Capitalism/Neoliberal Globalization

An economic structure where capital flows fluidly to areas of least regulatory resistance, often the Global South, leading to social, economic, and environmental exploitation.

"Toxic Capitalism" (Thomson's Peers)

A concept used to describe the exploitative nature of the global economy, linked to neoliberal globalization and its societal costs.

Ethnocentric Techniques of Neutralization

Ideological frameworks in Western societies that neutralize moral concerns and allow for the acceptance of exploitation in other regions, facilitated by social or cognitive distance.

Rana Plaza Example (Bangladesh)

The collapse of a sweatshop where Jo Fresh clothes were made, resulting in thousands of deaths and injuries, highlighting the human cost of exploitation in the Global South.

"Tough on Crime" Policies

Reforms like harsher bail policies that benefit the criminal justice system (e.g., increased revenue) but exacerbate inequities by disproportionately impacting those unable to pay bail.

Systemic Discrimination

Discrimination present at all levels of the justice system (e.g., police targeting) that acts as a significant barrier to a robust rights culture.

Fear-Uncertainty-Doubt (FUD) Mongers

Media and politicians who exploit insecurity to sell security, often by perpetuating a 'master narrative of crime.'

Master Narrative of Crime

A widely communicated media narrative portraying crime as consistently rising, primarily violent, and perpetrated by marginalized individuals, often diverging from reality and fueling moral panics.

Penal Welfare

A 1970s approach in criminal justice that viewed society as a cause of crime and focused on rehabilitation.

"Nothing Works" Approach

A neoliberal shift in criminal justice that disregards offenders' biographies and focuses purely on who, what, when, where of crime, portraying criminals as deranged or morally bankrupt.

Bottom-Up Advocacy and Education

Approaches to building human rights culture through solidarity and collective action that are essential for enacting aspirational rights and fostering genuine social justice.

Human Rights Culture

A culture of equity that actively addresses structural inequalities, nurtured through education and advocacy.

Colonization as an Ongoing Process

The understanding that the impacts of historical colonization, slavery, redlining, and systemic racism continue to affect society and are crucial for developing an equity-focused human rights culture.

Inalienability Principle (of Human Rights)

The principle stating that even convicted individuals retain fundamental human rights.

"If you don't commit a crime, you have nothing to worry about" mentality

Problematic thinking, revealed in survey data, that presupposes guilt and justifies the erosion of rights for those accused or convicted.

Categorical Suspicion

The belief that it is reasonable to restrict an entire group's rights if a member of that group abuses the wider community's rights, inviting systemic bias and racial profiling.

"Banopticon" (Didier Biego)

A concept describing a surveillance assemblage that disproportionately targets those who embody 'categorical suspicion,' limiting their mobility to facilitate the free flow of the hegemonic male.

"States of Exception" (Giorgio Agamben)

A practice that creates socio-political contexts where certain marginalized groups have their rights removed during emergencies or prolonged conflicts, essentially living in a 'permanent state of exception.'

Human Rights Education

Necessary and complementary corollary to human rights laws, aiming to improve knowledge and foster social change beyond mere legislation.