One Rights: Human and Animal Rights in the Anthropocene

Animals are the traditional blind spot in human rights theory, but this book argues that there are compelling reasons for modernizing the human rights paradigm and integrating animals into its protective mandate. It proposes the novel One Rights approach as a new (post-)human rights paradigm for the Anthropocene, which advances a holistic understanding of the indivisibility and interdependence of human and animal rights. This book explores how the systematic subjugation, exploitation, and extermination of animals contributes to social and environmental threats to human rights, and suggests that human and animal rights are best protected in concert.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 104 pages
Publication date: 25 December 2022
Publisher: Springer International Publishing AG

Animals have long been a blind spot in human rights theory, with the assumption that they do not possess the same rights and protections as humans. However, this book challenges that notion and argues that animals should be recognized as having their own set of rights, which are just as important as human rights.

The book brings together the seemingly disparate discourses of human and animal rights, exploring how emerging animal rights can be seen as new human rights. It examines the question of whether animals can and should have human rights through a comprehensive review of contemporary human rights philosophy, discussing both naturalistic and political justifications for human and animal rights.

On philosophical and practical grounds, the book argues that there are compelling conceptual, principled, and prudential reasons for modernizing the human rights paradigm and integrating animals into its protective mandate. It suggests that the novel One Rights approach, which advances a holistic understanding of the indivisibility and interdependence of human and animal rights, can provide a new (post-)human rights paradigm for the Anthropocene.

One Rights recognizes that the systematic subjugation, exploitation, and extermination of animals contribute to some of the gravest social and environmental threats to human rights, such as animalistic dehumanization and climate change. It proposes that human and animal rights are best protected in concert, recognizing the interconnectedness of all living beings and the need to address the systemic injustices that perpetuate harm to both humans and animals.

The themes of this book are part of a larger conversation about postanthropocentric legal paradigms emerging in the Anthropocene. The book argues that for human rights to survive in this era of anthropogenic crises, we need to abandon the toxic ideology of human exceptionalism and embrace a more inclusive version of (post-)human rights that tends to the nonhuman. It suggests that a holistic One Rights approach promises to achieve better rights-protective outcomes for all living beings, including animals.

In conclusion, this book is a groundbreaking contribution to the field of human rights, challenging the traditional notion that animals do not possess the same rights and protections as humans. It provides a comprehensive and compelling argument for integrating animals into the human rights paradigm and proposes the novel One Rights approach as a new (post-)human rights paradigm for the Anthropocene. By recognizing the indivisibility and interdependence of human and animal rights, we can work towards a more just and sustainable world for all living beings.

Weight: 191g
Dimension: 235 x 155 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783031192036
Edition number: 1st ed. 2023