Public attitudes to human rights - Literature review

Bell, K.; Cemlyn, S.; Morgan, K.; Murray, R.

Abstract

n the UK, human rights have, for some time, been susceptible to difficulties of misunderstanding, lack of public awareness, misleading and inaccurate media coverage and political manipulation. The Human Rights Act, 1998 (HRA), in particular, has been under attack in the media since its inception, with newspaper headlines such as ‘Rip up the INhuman Rights Act’ (sic) (Sun, 2007) and ‘Good for crooks, bad for human rights’ (Daily Telegraph, 2006) typical of the inflammatory rhetoric. Alongside this, there has been a lack of Government information about human rights, and some misinformation, especially regarding the rights of minorities and other disadvantaged people (Gies, 2011b; Liberty, 2011a). Currently, and perhaps a more serious threat to the HRA, is the Government’s recent proposal to create a ‘home-grown’ UK Bill of Rights (Commission on a Bill of Rights, 2011), which may replace the HRA. Therefore, it is important to understand public opinion on human rights in order to develop effective information strategies to counter the on-going challenges to human rights principles and practice. Public attitudes can have a major impact on policy (Coe et al., 2005) and so it is important that they are based on accurate information and rational thinking, as far as possible. Those that work for human rights in the UK can help the public in this, but only by building their campaigns and educational programmes on current perceptions and with an understanding of how these views can change (ibid.). Thus, this overview of the literature on public attitudes to human rights, by identifying and reviewing current knowledge in this area, should help to guide future strategies that protect and enhance human rights.

Citation

Bell, K., Cemlyn, S., Morgan, K., & Murray, R. (2012). Public attitudes to human rights - Literature review

• Report Type: Project Report
• Publication Date: Jun 1, 2012
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Keywords: human rights, equality, diversity, public attitudes
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/946566