A Contextual and Dialogical Approach to Human Rights: Reconceptualizing Universality

Abstract

Universal human rights that are enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) are globally celebrated as a basis for global justice. Yet its claims to universality have been constantly contested by criticisms that point to its embeddedness in particular historical, cultural, and ideological traditions. To identify the conceptual tensions between moral and legal universalism when adapting human rights norms, this article analyzes the dilemma of universalizing human rights norms across very different socio-political and cultural landscapes. It interrogates the implication of cultural relativism, gendered hierarchies, and the structures of power for political legitimacy and applicability of human rights discourse. This study argues for the reconceptualization of universality as a process that is dynamic as well as context-sensitive, yet maintains an ethical core while permitting multiple perspectives. It does so through an interdisciplinary analysis of a nuanced approach toward the reconciliation of foundational human rights principles with the practical realities of a world that is interconnected yet culturally diverse. This article adds to these debates about human rights by addressing those theoretical and practical challenges to the adaptability and normative coherence of human rights in contemporary global governance contexts.