American Transitional Justice: Writing Cold War History in Human Rights Litigation

In her book, Natalie Davidson explores how Alien Tort Statute litigation has been used as a transitional justice mechanism to address torture in Paraguay and the Philippines. She argues that US courts produced a whitewashed history of US involvement in repression, while in Paraguay and the Philippines, the distance from US courts allowed for a more critical narration of the lawsuits and their underlying violence.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 218 pages
Publication date: 03 November 2022
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Natalie Davidson presents a fresh perspective on Alien Tort Statute (ATS) litigation by delving into the two pivotal cases of Filártiga (filed in 1979) and Marcos (filed in 1986). These lawsuits, purportedly focused on torture in Paraguay and the Philippines, respectively, offer an alternative account of ATS litigation. Davidson's book combines legal analysis, archival research, and ethnographic methods to unveil how these cases functioned as transitional justice mechanisms, facilitating the transition of the United States and its allies out of the Cold War order. Through her comprehensive approach, Davidson demonstrates that US courts presented a sanitized history of US involvement in repression within the Western bloc. Conversely, in Paraguay and the Philippines, the distance from US courts allowed for a more critical narration of the lawsuits and their underlying violence, recognizing them as symptomatic of structural injustice. By exposing the political meanings of these legal landmarks for three societies, Davidson sheds light on the complex interplay between hegemonic and emancipatory implications of international human rights litigation in US courts. This insightful work contributes to our understanding of the evolving landscape of human rights law and its impact on global governance.

Weight: 334g
Dimension: 151 x 227 x 16 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781108702553