A Generation of Human Rights: Looking Back to the Future

The author traces the development of human rights in North America since the Second World War, and examines the socio-political environment in which these developments took place. In examining what appears to be an existing backlash against the earlier vigorous pursuit of rights for disadvantaged groups, the author distinguishes between civil liberties and human rights, and focuses on how a preoccupation with civil liberties is impeding the ability to promote human rights. She concludes by discussing the evolution of human rights for women this generation, and observes that while there have been significant gains, especially numerically, there has also been increasing resistance to further fundamental change