International Human Rights Law in Context

3 credits · Undergraduate

(3 hrs Lecture) This course studies the major international human rights conventions and instruments composing the treaty-based global human rights monitoring system. The course draws upon historical, legal, and political perspectives to offer an interdisciplinary analysis of international human rights law. For each of the major human rights conventions, the course engages in: 1) backward-looking analysis of the contextual factors and debates that led to the creation of the convention; 2) analysis of the content of existing conventions, the effectiveness of their treaty-body monitoring systems; 3) forward-looking critical analysis of the legitimacy and effectiveness of human rights conventions.