The New Colonialism: the American Model of Human Rights

Based on IHRC’s conference of the same name, this book presents nine contributions from scholar-activists looking at how human rights as theory and practice have been co-opted by the US as part of a brutal, racist and colonial foreign and domestic policy. This book is a must-read for anyone concerned not just with US double standards but also the adulteration of the ideals of human rights as transformative discourse.

With papers from Saied R. Ameli, Laurens de Rooij, Mary K. Ryan, Saeed A. Khan, Tasneem Chopra, Sandew Hira, Ramon Grosfoguel, Rajeesh Kumar and Sohail Daulatzai.

Reviews:

“The promotion of human rights would be deemed a noble, constructive pursuit, ostensibly intended to create and promote universal standards of justice, equality and dignity. But the reality is often misaligned with the rhetoric when in the name of human rights, hegemonic forces seek to dehumanize and devalue societies and peoples.

“This volume explores the American weaponization of human rights, as a discourse and a system of policies, as it institutionalizes racism, injustice and inequality, through the codification and imposition of Eurocentric frames of power that are, in fact, antithetical to both the principles and promise of human rights, i.e. a new expression of colonialism.”

- Saeed Khan, Senior Lecturer, Near East & Asian Studies and Global Studies, Wayne State University.

 “The New Colonialism: The American Model of Human Rights should be essential reading for those who seek to understand how the promotion of human rights has been a tool for American and Western colonisation of the physical space, cyberspace, and cultural imperialism.”

- Mohideen Abdul Kader, Universal Justice Network.