is a PhD Student in the Department of Philosophy at .
Recent protests, like the so-called 鈥�,鈥� have denounced government action in response to the COVID-19 pandemic by claiming that government mandates like mask and vaccine mandates .
But using the rights discourse in protests is not new.
Many slogans relating to rights and freedoms used by protestors are decontextualized from , which unfortunately oversimplifies what rights and freedoms really are. As a PhD student in philosophy, with a strong background in ethics and rights theory, I argue that while rights and freedoms language is politically and socially powerful, most people don鈥檛 understand what they are, which ones they are entitled to and the morally binding duties they require of others.
As April 17, 2022, marks the , it is important people learn what it means to have a right.
The history of human rights
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After the Second World War, with the goal of preventing future human suffering and atrocities of war.
In the development of the declaration, were used to articulate the kinds of rights that every person should be afforded. At the heart of this document is the right to human equality 鈥� 鈥�.鈥�
The Universal Declaration informed the rights legislation in many countries 鈥� including the .
And although formal human rights developments have helped governments and organizations understand what qualifies as basic human rights, the separation of rights from its has led to many misconceptions about rights and freedoms and, consequently, its misappropriation by protesters for their movements.
Limits to freedoms
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Recent protesters claim that because the government is forcing them to act against their will. They assume that, because we live in a free society, anyone can act however they want.
But this claim assumes that someone鈥檚 freedom to act trumps everyone else鈥檚.
Simply by being a member of a society, our rights and freedoms are limited. When someone鈥檚 actions have the potential to harm other people, as stated in , those actions are prohibited or punished.
For example, , but this fundamental freedom is limited as soon as people鈥檚 speech and expression becomes hateful and harmful to specific groups or individuals.
When an action 鈥� like hate speech or refusing to follow COVID-19 mandates 鈥� is deemed harmful to others, the government can limit one person鈥檚 freedom to protect the rights and freedoms of others.
The government declared because refusing to follow these recommendations puts others at risk of contracting the virus.
Obligations to protect the rights of others
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In some protests, arguing that one has a claim to a certain right obscures how those rights may infringe on someone else鈥檚. If we think that we have a right to something, we need to make sure that it seems plausible that .
This is further complicated by the question who is responsible for protecting these rights? Because, in short, . And this in the first place.
A key problem in rights theory is how and how these rights require us to act towards others.
Often, protesters leave obligations out of the picture 鈥� including the obligations they have to other people.
Although the rights and freedoms discourse used in protest is impactful, the failure to discuss these nuances increases polarization on controversial issues. For example, one protest may focus on one or two rights and freedoms and the desire to protect those, while another stakes a claim to different rights and freedoms.
When both claim their rights and freedoms are being violated, it becomes difficult to evaluate which side鈥檚 rights are worth protecting. And when this happens we often align with the side that .
Rights are not self-exceptional
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Instead of discussing who should be protecting people鈥檚 rights and freedoms and how they might conflict with the rights and freedoms of others, protest slogans end up perpetuating attitudes of and .
Rights and freedoms were formally established under the assumption that and that as a society, we need to ensure necessary protections of everyone鈥檚 rights. The language used in protests oversimplifies what rights and freedoms are and .
On the , it is important to reflect on the rights Canadians share and, more importantly, understand that these rights entail responsibilities to each other.
Perhaps if misunderstandings about rights and freedoms were clarified, there would be a greater sense of unity. And if they matter as much as protesters believe, then we need to evaluate how the support for some rights and freedoms might infringe on the rights and freedoms of others.
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