Human Rights in International Relations (Themes in International Relations) - Softcover

Reviewed with Jack Donnelly's book Realism and International Relations: " The authors' skill and influence in the study of international relations, international theory, and human rights are indisputably relevant. Both volumes offer scholarship that is of great value to activists, academics, and policymakers with an interest in issues no less important than power on the world stage." Human Rights Quarterly

"The book contributes significantly to our broader understanding of international human rights and the way in which such rights can be promoted in the evolving and highly complex politics of the post-Cold War period." Human Rights Quarterly

This new textbook provides an introduction to human rights in international relations at the turn of the twenty-first century. The book examines the policy-making process that establishes and tries to apply human rights norms through the United Nations, regional organizations, state foreign policy, human rights groups, and transnational corporations. Four themes permeate the book: that human rights are here to stay in international relations, that state sovereignty is being transformed by the human rights discourse, that the 'soft' law of diplomacy is as important as the 'hard' law of court judgments, and that private actors are highly important in international human rights developments. The book documents the many changes in international human rights during the past half-century, and considers the future of universal human rights. Containing chapter-by-chapter guides to further reading and discussion questions, this book will be of interest to all undergraduate and graduate students of human rights, and their teachers.