Written from a global perspective, The Institutions of Human Rights is a contributed volume that examines international human rights institutions, procedures, and select issues. Closely examining international human rights organizations including the International Labour Organization, the International Criminal Court, and the European Court of Human Rights, this text places a particular focus on how institutions function, arguing that to truly understand human rights' affairs one must also understand the politics and motivations at the core of these institutions. In addition to providing a comprehensive examination of key institutions, this volume also sheds light on the procedures at play when implementing new rights and discusses weighty issues such as the protection of refugee and labour laws. Featuring chapters written by high-profile scholars form Canada, the United States, and abroad, The Institutions of Human Rights breaks down important learning objectives, features key take-away messages, and uses discussion questions to promote critical thinking and engagement.

Author Biography

Gordon DiGiacomo is an Instructor in the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa, and editor of Human Rights: Current Issues and Controversies also published by University of Toronto Press in 2016. He obtained his doctorate in political science in 2010 from Carleton University. Most of his career, prior to entering the academic world in 2003, was devoted to working on issues pertaining to labour rights. His introduction to rights and rights instruments came in the early 1980s when, like other ministerial assistants at the time, he was engaged in the promotion of a constitutionally entrenched charter of rights for Canadians. Susan L. Kang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at City University of New York. Her research and teaching interests include international relations, international political economy, labor and human rights, and international law. She is the author of Rights and Solidarity: Trade Union Rights in the Global Economy (2012) and she has published articles in New Political Science, Human Rights Quarterly, and the Journal of Workplace Rights.