Minor Human Rights Studies

Human rights studies encompasses the eternal drive to improve the human condition, and attendant debates over the primacy of the individual within society and the universal versus relativist approach to rights, positive and negative freedoms. The Minor in Human Rights draws its curriculum from a variety of disciplines.

Students are responsible for satisfying their particular degree requirements. The superscript indicates credit value.

24 Minor in Human Rights Studies

6	PHIL 2413; POLI 2143
18	Chosen from ENGL 3693, 3803, 3823, 3833, 3873; FPST 3213; HIST 3153, 3593, 4773; HIST 3603 or SOCI 3673; JOUR 4423; PHIL 2323, 3423, 3433, 3453; POLI 3013, 3883; RELI 3103, 3123; SOCI 3803 or ANTH 3803, THEO 3433

NOTE: Students interested in registering for this program should contact the Department of Political Science.

Core Course Descriptions (6 credits needed)

PHIL 241 – Philosophy of Human Rights (3 credits)

This course investigates basic philosophical questions regarding human rights, such as their status between morality and law, their scope and the problem of relativism, the concept of human dignity, their relation to democracy, whether national or cosmopolitan, and the debate over the justifiability and feasibility of socioeconomic rights as human rights.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for this topic under a 298 number may not take this course for credit.

POLI 214 – Human Rights: An Overview (3 credits)

This course introduces students to the historical origins of the concept of human rights; the international regime and the acceptance of several generations of rights such as civil and political rights, economic rights, group rights, and women's rights; the critiques of universalism and the problems of implementation of human rights.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for this topic under a POLI 298 number may not take this course for credit.

Program Elective Course Descriptions (18 credits needed)

ENGL 369 – African-American Literature 1900 to Present (3 credits)

This course considers African-American literature from the renewal of southern segregation laws, through the Harlem Renaissance, the Civil Rights Movement, and contemporary writing, tracing the works of such writers as Toomer, Hurston, Hughes, Wright, Ellison, Giovanni, Reed, Walker, Dove, and Morrison.

ENGL 380 – First Nations/North American Native Literature (3 credits)

This course studies the native literature of Canada and/or the United States, from oral performance traditions, transcriptions and translations into English, and writing in English by such authors as Johnston, Campbell, King, Highway, Momaday, Erdrich, Allen, and Silko.

ENGL 382 – Postcolonial and World Literature (3 credits)

A survey of literature in English from formerly colonized regions such as Africa, South Asia, North America, the South Pacific, and Caribbean. Through an examination of representative texts, the course addresses such issues as the process by which English spread throughout the world as a result of British imperialism, and the development of writing in English both before and during the period of decolonization.

ENGL 383 – African Literature (3 credits)

This course considers how literature in English by writers from sub-Saharan Africa is embedded in the history and experience of colonization and decolonization. The course includes such auithors as Achebe, Soyinka, Saro-Wiwa, Emecheta, Okri, Armah, Aidoo, Farah, Dangarembga, Coetzee,and Gordimer. The focus is on the political and aesthetic issues raised by African writing in English.

ENGL 387 – South Asian Literature (3 credits)

The course studies literature from South Asia written in English by authors from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, such as Rushdie, Anand, Das, Narayan, Ghosh, Desai, Chaudhuri, Markandaya, Sahgal, Salvaduri, Sidhwa, Rao, and Mistry. The focus is on the significance of pre-colonial, colonial, and postcolonial socio-cultural concerns as expressed in a variety of literary genres. Attention is given to English as a tool of colonization as well as a means for critiquing cultural hegemony.

FPST 321 – First Peoples and Justice (3 credits)

Prerequisite: FPST 301. This course focuses on the relationship between First Peoples and the Canadian justice system. It looks specifically at how the Canadian legal, judicial, and penal system has dealt with First Peoples through time. The course also explores pre-contact forms of justice, tensions between European and indigenous conceptions of justice, First Peoples response to Canadian justice, and the emergence of alternative, indigenous mechanisms of judicial administration within communities in Quebec and Canada.

HIST 315 – Rights and Freedoms in Canadian Society (3 credits)

Prerequisite: See N.B. number (1). This course examines historical and contemporary aspects of Canada's culture of rights. Topics include the origins and workings of the Canadian Charter and critiques of rights culture.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for this topic under a HIST 398 or POLI 398 number may not take this course for credit.

HIST 359 (also listed as SOCI 366) – The History and Sociology of Genocide to 1920 (3 credits)

Prerequisite: See N.B. number (1). Through the comparative and historical examination of a number of cases, this course investigates the meaning of genocide and the processes that have led to it up to 1920.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for HIST 368 or SOCI 366 or 368 may not take this course for credit.

HIST 360 (also listed as SOCI 367) – The History and Sociology of Genocide from 1920 to the Present (3 credits)

Prerequisite: See N.B. number (1). Through the comparative and historical examination of a number of cases, this course investigates the meaning of genocide and the processes that led to genocide from 1920 to the present.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for HIST 368 or SOCI 367 or 368 may not take this course for credit.

HIST 477 – Advanced Study in the History of Human Rights and Justice (3 credits)

Prerequisite: See N.B. number (2). This advanced seminar focuses on a selected topic in the history of human rights and justice. The emphasis is on encouraging students to conduct historical investigation independently, under a professor's supervision. The specific content may vary from year to year.

JOUR 442 – International Journalism (3 credits)

Prerequisite: Sixty credits or permission of the Department. This course examines cross-cultural journalism practices as they pertain to both international news coverage and local reportage in a multicultural setting. The course asks students to apply basic theoretical concepts to concrete case studies of the news.

PHIL 232 – Introduction to Ethics (3 credits)

Philosophical discussions of ethics have both practical significance (What should one do?) and theoretical interest (What does it mean to say "That's the right thing to do"?). In this course, students are introduced to some representative approaches to ethical thought and action. General questions about the nature of ethical reasoning are also considered. For example: Are there objective ethical truths or are ethical judgements merely relative to social norms? An effort is made to incorporate those ethical issues which are of specific importance to contemporary society.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for PHIZ 232 may not take this course for credit.

PHIL 342 – Political Philosophy (3 credits)

Prerequisite: Three credits in Philosophy or Political Science, or permission of the Department. This course provides an historical introduction to and critical analysis of political-philosophical concepts. These concepts may include tolerance, violence, separatism, racism, and nationalism.

PHIL 343 – Philosophy of Law: General Jurisprudence (3 credits)

A philosophical study of natural law, legal positivist, and legal realist replies to the question of what law is. Contemporary and classical replies are criticized and are applied to cases. The associated issues of legal moralism, legal justice, legal obligation and its limits, and legal reasoning are treated.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for PHIL 357 may not take this course for credit.

PHIL 345 – Legal Philosophy: Legal Rights and Duties (3 credits)

A philosophical study of the nature, sources, and functions of rights and duties. Attention is given to the particular rights associated with contract and property, and their abuse; to duties arising by law alone; to excuses and justifications for failure to fulfil duties; and to enforcement, punishment, and compromise.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for PHIL 358 may not take this course for credit.

POLI 301 – Social Movements and Protest Politics (3 credits)

This course surveys the politics of selected contemporary movements such as environmentalism, peace, human rights, and feminism. It also provides a comparative analysis of the politics of dissent.

POLI 388 – Human Rights and International Justice (3 credits)

This course surveys normative questions comprising human rights discourse, with an emphasis on international efforts to promote human rights standards. Topics include the role of the United Nations, the North-South debate, environmental security, the obligation of individuals and states, women's rights and the work of non-governmental organizations. Special consideration is given to the controversy between the universal and particular applications of human rights.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for POLZ 388 may not take this course for credit.

RELI 310 – Self and Other: Exploring Value Choices in Personal and Interpersonal Relations (3 credits)

This course considers ethical issues arising in the context of personal and interpersonal relations, families and friendships, and health and medical care. These issues are discussed in relation to traditional and contemporary moral perspectives, both religious and non-religious. Topics covered may vary from year to year, but may include discussions of conscience and career, privacy, sexual relations, harassment, substance abuse, abortion, euthanasia, and gay and lesbian relations.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for RELI 331 or RELZ 310 may not take this course for credit.

RELI 312 – Justice and Social Conflict in a Globalized World (3 credits)

This course considers ethical issues arising in the context of social, legal, and political relations. These issues are discussed in relation to both traditional and contemporary moral perspectives, both religious and non-religious. Topics covered typically include discussions of social and economic inequality, welfare, poverty, just punishment, business ethics, public ethics, economic development, and sustainable development.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for RELI 332 or RELZ 312 may not take this course for credit.

SOCI 380/ANTH 380 – Contemporary Issues in Human Rights (3 credits)

Prerequisite: See N.B. numbers (1) and (3). The course develops, through case analysis, insight into the differing priorities and competing concepts of human rights and human dignity in "non-Western" cultural traditions as well as in "Western" societies. It explores the significance of religious and other ideological positions in the use and abuse of human rights by governments, extra-governments, international bodies, as well as the general public. The course also examines topics such as women's human rights, sexuality and human rights, and human rights in development, the limits of sovereignty, and state accountability.

NOTE: Students who have received credit for ANTZ or SOCI 380 may not take this course for credit.

THEO 343 – Religion and Politics (3 credits)

Focusing on the relationship between church, state, and democracy, this course examines the intersection of religion and politics by studying the connections between moral values and political beliefs in different settings around the world. It explores how religious beliefs have shaped politics and have impacted democratization, education, and citizenship. At the same time, it reflects on the way in which politics has affected religious life and religious organizations.

History N.B. numbers (1) and (2) prerequisites

(1) 300-level courses are generally open only to students who have successfully completed 24 credits. Students who do not have this prerequisite may register with the permission of the Department.

(2) 400-level courses are generally open to Honours and Specialization students, or students of high academic standing with the permission of the Department.

Sociology and Anthropology N.B. numbers (1) and (3) prerequisites

(1) 300-level courses are open to students who have successfully completed SOCI 203 or equivalent, plus at least three credits of 200-level Sociology courses. Students in related disciplines who wish to take cognate courses in Sociology may apply to the Sociology undergraduate advisor for waiver of prerequisites on the basis of equivalent background.

(3) Entry requirements for Sociology/Anthropology cross-listed courses depend on the discipline through which the course is entered. Once students have taken a cross-listed course under one disciplinary designation they may not take the course under the corresponding designation in the other discipline for credit.