Fall/Winter Timetable
POL2212H1S L5101
Undergraduate Course Code: POL412H1S L5101
Human Rights Abuses and Transitional Justice
Themes
The twentieth century is often referred to as “the age of atrocity”, as it produced some of the bloodiest and most atrocious massacres in history. At the same time, human rights have become ubiquitous in the discourse of international and domestic politics, but this is a relatively new, post-World War II development. Often, we only come to know human rights when they are violated. What explains the importance of this topic? From where do such ideas come? What effect have human rights had on state policies and interactions? Why are they a topic of such intense controversy and violation, and yet there are those who believe that human rights is part of “the end of history?” This course will cover the theoretical and historical developments in human rights throughout the 20th century to the contemporary period, exploring specific human rights issues such as torture and collective rights. In addition, we will explore the attempts by states, international organizations, and non-state actors to protect human rights and how justice can be achieved in the aftermath of atrocity.
November 14, 2023
Congratulations to Madalyn Hay, a recipient of a 2023-2024 Connaught PhDs for Public Impact Fellowship. Madalyn, one of our doctoral students, holds a BAH in Contemporary Studies and Classics from the...
August 24, 2023
Congratulations to alumna Meaghan Williams, a recipient of the 2022-23 Governor General’s Gold Medal for Academic Excellence, the highest academic honour available to graduate students in Canada. Awarded annually by the Office of the...
June 14, 2021
Great news from the Canadian Political Science Association, which held its annual awards ceremony (online) over the weekend of June 12 & 13: Professor Stefan Rencken’s book "Private Governance and Public...
April 22, 2021
Congratulations to two political science alumni now teaching at U of T who have both won Superior Teaching Awards! Igor Shoikhedbrod and Khalid Ahmed will be celebrated on May 5th at...
August 6, 2020
Q&A with 2020 Vanier Scholar Yojana Miraya Oscco Congratulations to PhD student Yojana Miraya Oscco who has won a prestigious Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship (SSHRC). Launched in 2008, the program enables...
April 30, 2020
Congratulations to our graduate student Kevin Edmonds who has won New College's June Larkin Award for Pedagogical Development. A PhD candidate specializing in Caribbean political economy, histories of alternative/illicit development, foreign intervention and...