Introductory description

This module examines, in depth, the situation of human rights violations and social justice in the Latin American Region and in the Spanish speaking Caribbean. In this module the students will acquire the necessary tools required to gain an in-depth understanding of the concepts of human rights and social justice, with a specific focus on the links with the UN sustainable development agenda and SDGs.

Module web page

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

The module will start with a general introduction on the concepts of Human Rights and Social Justice, and will then follow a combination of 1h Lectures and 2h Seminars to analyse scenarios from different parts of Latin America and the Caribbean. By providing the necessary context in the lecture and critically discuss a specific issue. in the seminars, the students will gain an understanding of Human Rights violation and interventions put in place to regain social justice in Latin America and/or the Spanish speaking Caribbean. The selected topics in this outline are indicative and might be updated to reflect the current situation.

Week 1: Lecture: What are Human Rights? What is Social Justice? What do you need to know about Latin America in general to understand Human Rights and Social Justice in this region? Why is this specific region of interest to study Human Rights and Social Justice? What are the links with the SDGs?
Week 2: Case Study 1: Dictatorships in the Southern Cone: Truth Commissions in Chile and Argentina
Week 3: Case Study 2: XXlst century socialism: Hugo Chavez and his Bolivarian Missions in Venezuela
Week 4: Case Study 3: The water war in Bolivia. Indigenous people and neo-colonialism
Week 5: Case Study 4: The persecution of homosexuals and intellectuals in Cuba under Castro's revolution. The case of Reinaldo Arenas
Week 6: Case Study 5: Gender Inequality: Feminicide in Latin America. The case of Honduras
Week 7: Case Study 6: The Liberation Theology: The case of Archbishop Oscar Romero in El Salvador.
Week 8: Case Study 7: The persecution of indigenous people in Guatemala. The case of Rigoberta Menchu.
Week 9: Individual NGO Pitch
Week 10: Individual NGO Pitch

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• By the end of the module, students will be expected to demonstrate a deep and detailed understanding of the history and politics of specific regions of Latin America and the Spanish speaking Caribbean.
• By the end of the module, students will be expected to demonstrate a deep and detailed understanding of the concepts of Human Rights and Social Justice.
• By the end of the module, students will be expected to demonstrate a critical approach to analysing human rights and other related social issues in contemporary Latin America and the Spanish speaking Caribbean.
• By the end of the module, students will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of the measures that have been put in place to address serious human rights/social justice related issues in the region.
• By the end of the module, students will be expected to demonstrate a thorough understanding of the links between human rights and social justice and the UN sustainable development agenda.
• By the end of the module, students will be expected to demonstrate an ability to generate original, well-researched and evidence-based suggestions to address one human rights/social justice related crisis in Latin America or the Caribbean.

Indicative reading list

A module reader will be collated and its readings published on Talis Aspire. A sample of the reading is provided below:
Arenas, R. (2001). Before night falls. London: Serpent's Tail.
Boff, L. et al. (1987). Introducing Liberation Theology. Tunbridge Wells: Burns & Oates.
Cardenas, S. (2010). Human Rights in Latin America. A Politics of Terror and Hope. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Carrington, K. (2015). Feminism and Global Justice. New York: Routledge.
Chomsky, A. (2015). A History of the Cuban Revolution. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.
Cleary, E. L. (1997) The Struggle for Human Rights in Latin America. Westport, Conn. / London: Praeger.
Comision Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (accessed online)
Comision Nacional de Verdad y Reconciliacion. Gobierno de Chile. "Informe Rettig." (accessed on
line)
Comision Nacional sobre la Desaparicion de Personas (CONADEP). "Informe Nunca mas."
(accessed on line)
Dangl, B. (2007). The price of fire: resource wars and social movements in Bolivia. Edinburgh / Oakland, CA: AF Press.
Desai, V. & Potter, R. B. (2014). The Companion to Development Studies. Abingdon, Oxo: Routledge.
Donnelly, J. (2013). Universal Human Rights in Theory and Practice. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.
Eckel, J. and Moyn, S. Eds. (2014). The Breakthrough. Human Rights in the 1970s. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Esteban, A. and Panichelli, S. (2010). Fidel and Gabo. The portrait of a friendship. New York: Pegasus Books.
Ferrara, A. (2015). Assessing the long-term impact of truth commissions: the Chilean truth and reconciliation commission in historical perspective. New York: Routledge.
Freeman, M. (2017). Human Rights (3d. ed.). Cambridge: Polity Press.
Gott, R. (2005). Hugo Chavez and the Bolivarian Revolution. London/New York: Verso.
Hoffman, S.-L. (Ed.) (2011). Human Rights in the Twentieth Century. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Hopper, P. (2015). Understanding Development. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Lewis, P. H. (2002). Guerrillas and generals: the "Dirty War" in Argentina. Westport, Conn.: Praeger.
Menchu, R. (2009). 1, Rigoberta Menchu: an Indian woman in Guatemala. London: Verso.
Mendez, J. E. (2011) Taking a Stand: The Evolution of Human Rights. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Moyn, S. (2012). The last Utopia: Human Rights in History. Cambridge, Mass.: Bleknap Press of Harvard University Press.
Muaddi Darraj, S. (2009). The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. New York: Chelsea House Publishers.
Nouzeilles, G. & Montaldo. G. (2002). The Argentina Reader: History, Culture, Politics. Durham: Duke University Press.
Panichelli-Batalla, S. (2016). El testimonio en la Pentagonia de Reinaldo Arenas. Woodbridge (UK) / Rochester (NY, US): Tamesis Books.
Reichert, E. (2006). Understanding Human Rights. An Exercise Book. London: Sage Publications.
Sachs, J. D. (2015). The Age of Sustainable Development. New York: Columbia University Press.
Sen, A. (2000). Development as Freedom. New York: Anchor Books.
Skaar, E. (2011). Judicial Independence and Human Rights in Latin America: Violations, Politics and prosecution. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Stamos, D. N. (2016). The Myth of Universal Human Rights. London/New York: Routledge.
Tambien la Iluvia, 2010 [Film] Directed by Iciar Bollain. Madrid: Morena Films.
Tombs, D. (2002). Latin American Liberation Theology. Boston: Brill Academic Publishers.
Quay Hutchison, E. et al. (2014). The Chile Reader: History, Culture, Politics. Durham: Duke University Press.
UN (2006)., "Social Justice in an Open World. The Role of the United Nations" (accessed online)
UN Sustainable Development Goals and Targets (accessed online)
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (accessed online)
Winter, J. & Prost, A. (2013). Rene Cassin and Human Rights. From the Great War to the Universal Declaration. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

View reading list on Talis Aspire

Research element

Research skills are embedded into the teaching strategy of the module. Specifically, this module, requires students to produce original, well-researched and evidence-based suggestions to address one human rights/social justice related crisis in Latin America or the Spanish speaking Caribbean. Hence, they are expected to read and critically analyse scholarly papers written from a variety of perspectives and to undertake other relevant secondary research.

Interdisciplinary

This is an optional module on the Global Sustainable Development course which adopts an interdisciplinary approach spanning the arts, humanities, social and natural sciences fields in order to engage with the major global challenges facing contemporary society, explore these 'big problems,' from a variety of perspectives and consider a range of possible solutions.

International

This is an optional module on the Global Sustainable Development course which offers a unique trans-disciplinary and international learning experience that allows students to achieve breadth and depth of knowledge.

Subject specific skills

Ability to:

• critically assess and analyse sustainability issues that need to be addressed, including real-life examples
  use and apply established frameworks and methodologies for analysing the impact(s) of a behaviour or process
  generate and evaluate different models of sustainable development to assess their likely impact
• actively implement or contribute to changes that promote sustainable development within the scope of own learning experience
• engage with real-life problems relevant to sustainable development
• use historical knowledge and an understanding of the consequences of past actions to envision how futures may be shaped
• identify the importance of empowering individuals and organisations to work together to create new knowledge
• employ leadership for sustainable development by challenging assumptions and negotiating alternatives to unsustainable current practices
• identify the opportunities to support and develop a progressive and resilient culture that encourages citizens, professions and institutions to put learning into practice

Transferable skills

Written communication skills
Oral communication skills
Self-reflection
Problem solving
Information technology
Numeracy
Research across various disciplines
Working with others