As social work students and practitioners encounter the term "human rights" with greater frequency, there is a pressing need for them to understand its meaning, especially in contradistinction to the related concept of "social justice." This book is an overview of human rights ideas and laws for social workers that stresses the importance of human rights in all types of social work policy and practice. The volume first traces the history and development of human rights from the passage of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 and subsequent international documents. In particular, Social Work and Human Rights addresses issues relating to vulnerable groups, including women, children, disabled persons, the HIV- or AIDS-infected population, gays and lesbians, victims of racism, and older persons. The book concludes with indispensable case studies that illustrate the application of human rights theory in real-life settings. These case studies demonstrate how to identify relevant human rights issues and then connect these issues to ethical responsibilities in order to form an appropriate intervention scenario with the client.
- Contents
- Foreword
- Introduction
- 1 Development and History of Human Rights
- 2 Universal Declaration of Human Rights
- 3 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
- 4 International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights
- 5 Diversity Within a Human Rights Perspective
- 6 Human Rights and Children, Persons with Disabilities, Persons with HIV-AIDS, Gays and Lesbians, Older Persons, and Victims of Racism
- 7 International Aspects of Human Rights
- 8 Applying Human Rights to the Social Work Profession
- Conclusion
- Appendix A Universal Declaration of Human Rights
- Appendix B International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
- Appendix C Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
- Appendix D Resolution Adopted by the General Assembly
- Appendix E Suggested Internet Websites for Further Research
- Index