The False Promise of Human
Rights
1st Edition
Ms Aileen Mccolgan
2000 352 pages (est.)
0582-29451-7 (Paperback)
Rights are frequently
regarded as a panacea against discrimination and disadvantage. Aileen McColgan's
powerfully argued book challenges this view. Using women as an example of a disadvantaged
group, the author questions the utility of entrenched rights to women in their roles as
workers, mothers and victims of violence.
Women Under the Law is of particular topical interest given the incorporation of the
European Convention on Human Rights into UK law by the Human Rights Act 1998. The Act is
widely seen as a progressive legal development. The author challenges the assumption that
incorporation will improve the position of women and of disadvantaged groups in general,
drawing attention to the unequal access to justice of the disadvantaged - a problem
reinforced by the proposed changes to Legal Aid. She also highlights the predominantly
individualistic nature of the rights incorporated and focuses on the increased judicial
power associated with the provision of legal `rights' which are, of their nature, abstract
and ill-defined.
In order to assess how the British courts might interpret and apply the rights
incorporated by the 1998 Act, the author considers the impact on women of entrenched
rights in a number of different legal systems. The primary focus is on Canada and the
United States, although Ireland and Germany are also examined in some detail.
Women Under the Law will be of interest to academics, students and legal practitioners in
the fields of human rights law, constitutional law, discrimination law, labour law and
family law. The strong political and social implications of the human rights debate will
also ensure a significant readership for the book among academics and students of social
policy, women's studies, sociology and politics.
* Topical book on a subject
of major contemporary debate
* First book in an important new series of books on controversial topics in law
* Comparative approach will encourage worldwide readership
* Author is well-regarded in this area
Preface
Table of Cases
Table of Legislation
Table of Treaties and Conventions
1. Entrenching 'Human Rights'
2. 'Bringing Rights Home'
3. Discrimination and the US and Canadian Constitution Provisions
4. Reproducing Women
5. Controlling Women
6. Securing Equality for Women at Work
7. Constitutional Rights and the Threat to Workplace Equality
8. Women as subjects of Criminal Law
9. Victimising Victims
10. Rights for Women?
Index
