Economic and Social Rights in a Neoliberal World

This multidisciplinary book examines the potential of economic and social rights to contest adverse impacts of neoliberalism on human wellbeing.

Gillian MacNaughton (Edited by), Diane F. Frey (Edited by)

9781108418157, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 28 June 2018

382 pages, 11 b/w illus. 11 tables
23.5 x 15.7 x 2.4 cm, 0.69 kg

'Economic and Social Rights in a Neoliberal World is essential reading for anyone interested in improving the realisation of economic and social rights, including all those working to achieve SDG Goal 1.' Gillian Moon, Australian Journal of Human Rights

The rise of neoliberal policy and practice simultaneous to the growing recognition of economic and social rights presents a puzzle. Can the rights to food, water, health education, decent work, social security and the benefits of science prevail against market fundamentalism? Economic and Social Rights in a Neoliberal World is about the potential of these rights to contest the adverse impacts of neoliberal policy and practice on human wellbeing. Cutting across several lines of human rights literature, the chapters address norm development, court decision making, policymaking, advocacy, measurement and social mobilization. The analyses reveal that neoliberalism infiltrates management practices, changes international policy goals, flattens public school curriculum and distorts the outputs of UN human rights treaty bodies. Are economic and social rights successful in challenging neoliberalism, are they simply marginalized or are they co-opted and incorporated into neoliberal frameworks? This multidisciplinary work by a geographically diverse group of scholars and practitioners begins to address these questions.

1. Introduction Gillian MacNaughton and Diane F. Frey
Part I. Economic and Social Rights under Neoliberalism: 2. Inequality, neoliberalism and human rights James Heintz
3. Neoliberalism's law in Peru: a model Felipe Ford Cole
4. Governing risky childhoods: how neoliberal governance prescriptions rule out social rights in Israel Asa Maron
5. Neoliberalism and the privatization of social rights in education James Murphy
6. Equality rights beyond neoliberal constraints Gillian MacNaughton
Part II. Economic and Social Rights in Times of Crisis: 7. A hierarchy of comfort? The CESCR's approach to the 2008 economic crisis Ben T. C. Warwick
8. Do metrics matter? Accountability for economic and social rights in post-revolution Egypt Allison Corkery and Heba Khalil
9. Contesting neoliberalism: bringing in economic and social rights to end violence against women in Mexico Ana María Sánchez Rodríguez
10. Challenging neoliberalism: making economic and social rights matter in the peacebuilding agenda Amanda Cahill-Ripley
Part III. Economic and Social Rights in Development: 11. Developmental states, neoliberalism and the right to food: Brazil and South Africa Sakiko Fukuda-Parr
12. Human rights informed the sustainable development goals but are they lost in New Zealand's neoliberal aid program? Carmel Williams and Alison Blaiklock
13. Neoliberal developmentalism in South Korea and the unfulfilled promise of economic and social rights Joo-Young Lee
Part IV. Accountability for Economic and Social Rights: 14. Social justice, neoliberalism and labor standards at the International Labour Organization Diane F. Frey
15. Neoliberal geographies and the justiciability of economic and social rights Jean Carmalt
16. Can human rights challenge neoliberal logics? Evidence from water and sanitation rulings in São Paulo, Brazil LaDawn Haglund
17. Conclusion Diane F. Frey and Gillian MacNaughton.

Subject Areas: International economic & trade law [LBBM], International law [LB], Human rights [JPVH]