In Defense of Economic and Social Human Rights

‘Christiansen provides an original and insightful account of the vicissitudes of efforts to ensure that economic and social rights have been taken seriously within the international human rights. He sheds valuable new light on the vital role of Global South actors in those endeavours.’ Philip Alston, NYU‘Weaving together diverse stories of how differently situated human rights advocates contested global inequality, this book provides a rich tapestry of how rights frameworks have been mobilised and imagined. In our contemporary moment, characterised by obscene levels of global inequality and ecological crisis, this intellectual history contains important resources for working towards redistributive justice.’ Julia Dehm, La Trobe Law School‘Christian Christiansen’s far-reaching study represents a major revision to human rights history and points the way toward a new vision for how economic and social rights might still be reclaimed in the struggle to more equitably share what he beautifully describes as the cumulative fruits of humanity’s progress.’ Mark Goodale, author of Reinventing Human Rights‘Christian Olaf Christiansen has provided scholars with a new road map for the global intellectual history of human rights and given a timely reminder of the ways in which modern human rights emerged as a criticism of material inequality and poverty. The book´s insights into global intellectual histories of topics including distributive justice, limitarianism, and solidarity, offer lessons for today´s unequal world.’ Julia McClure, University of Glasgow‘Comprehensive, enlightening, nuanced. Christiansen makes a powerful and persuasive case: Ideas matter. Human rights matter. The UN’s efforts to defend economic and social rights matter.’ Thomas G. Weiss, The CUNY Graduate Center

Christian Olaf Christiansen is an Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy and History of Ideas at Aarhus University. He is an intellectual historian focused on historicizing issues of pressing contemporary concern, including human rights.