Poverty and Human Rights
Watching the Four Corners report ‘Growing up poor’ gave me a glimpse into the utter hopelessness faced by kids in one of Australia’s most disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Childhood, which should be carefree, was marked by pervasive fear. Instead of dreaming of a bright future, kids twelve years of age accepted that the fate of their parents – jobless and in abusive relationships, would be their own future. Because of their impoverished circumstances, these kids lack the choices available to others in life. They do not have the structural support to be anything they want to be. The life choices they realistically have available to them are confined to what is known to their community. To suggest otherwise is fantastical and ignores the bonds of hopelessness and poverty in which they live. The lack of options available to these kids is an infringement on their autonomy and dignity.
From its birth, the concept of dignity has been the cornerstone of the human rights movement. The opening words of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights speak of the dignity and equality of all persons. Article 1 asserts that ‘all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights’. This cannot merely be referring to bare status equality, as Moyn asserts, because status equality is insufficient to enable persons to enjoy dignity on an equal footing. Dignity can only be realised where economic and social rights, as well as civil and political ones are respected. Poverty blocks the realisation of all these rights, and thus violates the right of individuals to dignity.
To create a society which respects the dignity of all people, we need to start treating economic and social rights as human rights. If conceived as rights, rather than mere interests and goals, there must be a corresponding obligation, namely, an obligation on the State to take measures to enable progressive realisation of those rights. This could conceivably conflict with the current government’s small government, greater individual liberty and autonomy approach. This approach is not appropriate however unless it operates on a level playing field. Where poverty exists, positive government action is required to enable persons affected to access the full range of life choices available to those unaffected by poverty. This is the only way to enable all persons to enjoy liberty and dignity on an equal footing.
