Human Rights Law Commons^™

Kabwe’S Crisis: Toxic Lead Waste Poisoning Zambia’S Children, Jasmyn Hardin

Immigration and Human Rights Law Review

Kabwe, Zambia is among the most polluted cities, the result of nearly a century of lead mining and smelting. Despite the mine’s closure in 1994, an estimated 6.4 million tons of lead-contaminated waste continues to expose thousands of children to life-altering—and often irreversible—health consequences. This Article examines the Zambian government’s failure to remediate the environmental harm and protect children’s rights, analyzing both domestic legal obligations and international human rights treaties. It argues that the State’s pursuit of economic gain through continued lead processing has come at the expense of safeguarding the right to health and a healthy environment. Through an …

Free, Prior, Informed Consent And Power Imbalances: Upholding Indigenous Rights On The Anniversary Of Undrip, Cardozo Law Institute In Holocaust And Human Rights (Clihhr), Fernanda Frizzo Bragato

2025 Event Invitations

Guest Speaker: Fernanda Frizzo Bragato - Professor of Law at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) and a CNPq-funded researcher.

On the anniversary of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), this discussion addresses its crucial role in reshaping Indigenous rights across the Americas. Adopted in 2007, UNDRIP marked a historic shift by affirming Indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination, autonomy, and free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) — challenging centuries of assimilationist policies. Yet, 17 years later, gaps persist. While UNDRIP inspired regional frameworks like the 2016 OAS Declaration, its promises often clash …

Free, Prior, Informed Consent And Power Imbalances: Upholding Indigenous Rights On The Anniversary Of Undrip, Cardozo Law Institute In Holocaust And Human Rights (Clihhr)

2025–2026 Flyers

On the anniversary of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP), this discussion address its crucial role in reshaping indigenous rights across Americas.

Tradition, Critque, And The Modern Moral Lingua Franca: A Lutheran Articulation Of Human Rights Language, Christian B. Dollar

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

The language of subjective, individual rights has become the primary way of speaking about the rights and wrongs of human life together. Since the end of World War II, one subset of this language—that of human rights—has achieved a global influence. The various Christian traditions of the west have, in large part, adopted this language of human rights to articulate and supplement their assorted social teachings. Yet, the adoption of human rights language has been contested by a dedicated cadre of Roman Catholic and Protestant theologians concerned about the potentially anti-Christian implications inherent in the grammar of rights. Christian rights …

Canada's Foreign Fighter Problem: How Should The Federal Government Manage Suspected Isis Members Held In Syria?, Mira Stephenson

Dalhousie Journal of Legal Studies

Since the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) fell in 2019, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) has arbitrarily detained tens of thousands of accused ISIS fighters and their families in Northern Syria. Among those detained are Canadian citizens. Although Canada has repatriated Canadian women and children from AANES custody, its policy approach to date has been inadequate.

Canada must take action to develop a cohesive policy for the approximately 17 Canadians remaining in AANES custody. In this paper, I will evaluate four potential policy options available to the Canadian government. First, that Canada could take …

Volume 48 Masthead

Seattle University Law Review

Volume 48 Masthead

Keynote Address: Community Over Constitution, Riddhi Mukhopadhyay

Seattle University Law Review

In this keynote address, Riddhi Mukhopadhyay challenges the veneration of the U.S. Constitution by highlighting its origins in exclusion and its continued failure to protect marginalized communities. Drawing from her experience in civil legal aid and gender justice, she argues that the Constitution was drafted to consolidate power among white, wealthy men and continues to reflect that legacy through racial, gender, and class-based inequities. While acknowledging the significance of constitutional amendments and landmark cases, Mukhopadhyay emphasizes that meaningful change has always come from community-led action, not top-down reform. Additionally, Mukhopadhyay calls on lawyers and legal advocates to center community, practice …

The Lost Child: A Critique On Transracial Adoption Rhetoric, Hallie Conyers-Tucker

Seattle University Law Review

Transracial adoption in the United States reflects a deeply rooted history of colonialism, cultural assimilation, and racial hierarchy, masked by rhetoric focused on the “best interest of the child.” The author critiques that rhetoric and traces how adoption practices and policies, both domestic and international, have evolved to reinforce systemic inequities. Through historical analysis of the forced adoption of Native American, Black, and Asian children, it reveals how the best interest standard has been wielded not to protect children but to uphold political and racial ideologies. The author argues that the prevailing adoption framework relies on child-saving and color-blind narratives …

A Global Reconstruction: Black Internationalism And The Human Rights Regime, Britta Redwood

Seattle University Law Review

Black American advocates for civil, political, and economic rights have long taken an internationalist approach and fostered connections with international organizations and transnational movements. This engagement has also been a generative force and played role in shaping international law. Beginning in the early years of the twentieth century, Black intellectuals and leaders, spearheaded by the NAACP and the UNIA, focused on human rights as a means for addressing and repairing the harms wrought by slavery, Jim Crow, and racism. From the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Genocide Convention, and the drafting of …

The Gap: Addressing The Missing Piece In HawaiʻI’S Anti-Discrimination Laws On Credit And Lending, Wendy Mun

Seattle University Law Review

This author addresses the significant gap in Hawaiʻi’s anti-discrimination laws, specifically the lack of explicit protections for LGBTQ+ individuals against credit and lending discrimination. Although federal laws like the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and recent interpretations by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) extend some protections, they remain vulnerable to shifting federal priorities and interpretations. The author explores how other states, particularly California and Washington, have enacted robust statutory protections that clearly prohibit credit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. They argue that Hawaiʻi, despite its large LGBTQ+ population, must amend its credit protection laws to reflect …

The U.S. Drug Policy Hamster Wheel: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Seattle’S New Drug Ordinance, Hallie Conyers-Tucker

Seattle University Law Review

The author critically examines Seattle’s new drug ordinance using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to reveal how legislative language influences the policy's actual effect. Although the ordinance claims to prioritize diversion and community health, the use of permissive language such as “may” and “shall” grants broad discretionary power to law enforcement and undermines the stated intent. The author situates the ordinance within a broader historical context, highlighting how drug policy in the United States has consistently been shaped by racialized and stigmatizing narratives. Additionally, the author argues that meaningful reform requires reframing the discourse around substance use to support public health …

Something Concrete: How Labor Advocates Can Best Respond To The Ambiguity Of Glacier Northwest, Ateş Serifsoy

Seattle University Law Review

The Supreme Court’s much-anticipated decision in Glacier North-west, Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local No. 174 (Glacier) marked a critical moment for workers’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the longstanding practice of Garmon preemption. Yet, initial fears of a significant rollback of workers’ rights, driven by sensational headlines, were met with an unexpectedly narrow Court opinion. This Comment examines Glacier’s implications for Gar-mon preemption and the right to strike. It offers the historical background of the doctrine of labor law preemption before Glacier; presents a detailed analysis of Glacier itself, including its …

Table Of Contents

Seattle University Law Review

Table of Contents

Can The Law Protect My Craft? How Gaps In Copyright Of Knitting Patterns Symbolize A Greater Struggle For Protecting Traditionally Feminine Forms Of Intellectual Property, Kysa Walzer

Seattle University Law Review

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the application of intel-lectual property rights within the context of copyright protection of knit-ting patterns. The article will discuss the underutilization of copyright pro-tection for knitters and crafters and its larger impact upon craft and indus-try traditionally comprised of women. Part I introduces knitting patterns and a short history of copyright protections. Part II discusses the specific areas within knitting patterns and the knitting community which give rise to legal grey areas for copyright protection. Part III discusses the larger implications of copyright and intellectual property in spaces where women traditionally make …

A New Exclusionary Rule To Protect Bodily Integrity And Discourage Pretext Stops, Josephine Ross

Seattle University Law Review

The author proposes a novel state-level exclusionary rule to reduce racial profiling and protect bodily autonomy during police encounters. The current Fourth Amendment jurisprudence fails to deter pretextual stops and frisks because the exclusionary rule often turns on officer fault and "good faith," allowing racially motivated practices to go unchecked. As federal rollbacks on diversity and data collection hinder efforts to track racial bias, the author argues for a statutory evidentiary rule that automatically excludes drug evidence found during (1) traffic stops, (2) pat-downs for weapons, and (3) consent searches, regardless of an officer’s intent or the legality of the …

Navahine V. HawaiʻI Dept. Of Transportation: The Keiki Will Lead Us, Catherine Smith

Seattle University Law Review

The author analyzes the landmark case Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation, which culminated in the world’s first constitutional climate settlement. Catherine Smith, serving as an expert for the youth plaintiffs, situates the case within Hawaiʻi’s legal tradition of prioritizing children’s rights and intergenerational equity. She explores the evolution of children’s constitutional protections, contrasting Hawaiʻi’s progressive jurisprudence with the dominant adult-centric legal framework on the mainland. She critiques four recurring analytical missteps in U.S. courts that marginalize children’s interests and highlights Hawaiʻi’s public trust doctrine and cultural values, such as the Aloha Spirit, as models for addressing climate-related harms. …

Constitutional Futurism As Pedagogy, Jeremiah Chin

Seattle University Law Review

Constitutional Law has transformed from a course on history to a discussion of current events. Cases like Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard College, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, and Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo reveal that the study of constitutional law is not a static, or even linear, discussion of constitutional text and history. Law is a shifting, changing enterprise that reflects social constructions of power, authority, and identity. How do we teach, learn, and understand constitutional law that is so laden with history, riddled with theories of consistency and adherence to precedent, but ultimately subject …

Report Of The Special Rapporteur On The Implications For Human Rights Of The Environmentally Sound Management And Disposal Of Hazardous Substances And Wastes, Marcos Orellana - Military Activities And Toxics, Marcos Orellana

PEEL Faculty Scholarship

Implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes

Note by the Secretary-General

The Secretary-General has the honour to transmit to the General Assembly the report of the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes, Marcos Orellana, in accordance with Human Rights Council resolution 54/10.

Guidelines On Access To Justice And Effective Remedies In The Context Of Toxics, Marcos Orellana

PEEL Faculty Scholarship

Guidelines on access to justice and effective remedies in the context of toxics

Report of the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes, Marcos Orellana.

Ben Ferencz’S Pioneering Transitional Justice Legacy, Including And Beyond Accountability, Federica D'Alessandra

Cardozo International & Comparative Law Review

The article argues that Benjamin Ferencz was a foundational figure in the field of transitional justice, extending beyond his recognized contributions to international criminal justice. His work laid the groundwork for the four pillars of transitional justice: truth, accountability, reparation/restitution, and memorialization. Ferencz’s efforts in investigating war crimes, prosecuting perpetrators, advocating for victim-centered justice, and preserving historical records demonstrate his pivotal role in shaping modern transitional justice frameworks.

Child/Youth Climate Litigation: Tracking Children’S Rights And Children’S Impact, Aoife Daly, Liesl Muller

Washington and Lee Law Review

Children and youth have been engaging extensively in climate action around the world. They have been doing this by protesting in the streets, talking with governments, and most recently by taking climate litigation against governments and companies. In this Article, these climate cases are considered from a children’s rights perspective. Using the Youth Climate Justice database, fifty cases are analyzed to consider two aspects of climate litigation—the children’s rights involved in the case, and the significance of the outcomes of the cases. It is concluded that climate cases are a new form of child participation in society, and that child …

The Procedural Architecture Of Climate Justice: Comparative Lessons From Regional Human Rights Courts, Indira Boutier

National Law School Journal

Climate change, once narrated through scientific data and economic costs, is now unavoidably framed as a question of rights and justice. This article examines how litigation before the African, European, and Inter-American human rights courts makes the procedural dimensions of climate justice visible. Procedural justice here is understood capaciously and includes not only rules of access, standing, and evidence, but also the recognition of corporations as duty bearers in transnational accountability regimes. A comparison of the three regions shows how colonial legacies, institutional architectures, and political economies shape the channels through which communities can contest climate harm. Litigation emerges less …

Benjamin Ferencz In The Cold War, Noah Weisbord

Cardozo International & Comparative Law Review

The article explores Benjamin Ferencz's advocacy for international law and his role in shaping the legal frameworks of the post-World War II era, particularly his efforts to define aggression and establish the International Criminal Court. It contrasts Ferencz's idealism with the pragmatic approaches of Henry Kissinger and the diplomatic strategies of Dag Hammarskjold, highlighting the challenges of the Cold War international order and its failure to address individual threats, exemplified by A.Q. Khan's nuclear proliferation.

The Instrumentalization Of The Unprivileged Combatants By Western Countries Aimed To Oppress National Liberation Wars, Fares Mahmoud Def-Allah Abdelhamid

Theses and Dissertations

The goal of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) is purported to be the humanization of wars. Nonetheless, the atrocities committed in wars and the war criminals’ impunity suggest the failure of IHL. Notwithstanding, some voices call for reforming and developing IHL. In contrast, this thesis argues that IHL should be rejected entirely since the distinction between privileged and unprivileged combatants indicates that IHL is biased against anti-colonizers. It is biased in three senses. Firstly, IHL, particularly the distinction between privileged and unprivileged combatants, is dominated by Western rationality, which can be noticed in the domination of the civilization concept with its …

A Tragedy Of Incommensurability: Indigenous Rights And The Limits Of Human Rights Law, Zeina Ali

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the tragedy of incommensurability between indigenous rights and international human rights law. Despite the emergence of frameworks like the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), indigenous calls for sovereignty remain fundamentally unintelligible within a liberal order structured to preserve settler-state legitimacy. Tracing the historical and theoretical evolution of indigenous advocacy, this study critiques the strategic shift from demands for self-determination to claims of cultural rights. It argues that this shift offers no real alternative: self-determination and cultural rights are functionally equivalent, as both are ultimately filtered through legal and political frameworks that cannot …

Exploiting Vulnerability: Human Trafficking As A Tool Of Genocide, Madison Bryant

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

This thesis examines the relationship between human trafficking and genocide, arguing that when trafficking is used with the intent to destroy a targeted group, it should be understood and prosecuted as an act of genocide. While international law traditionally treats genocide and human trafficking as distinct crimes, historical and contemporary evidence reveals significant overlap in their mechanisms, motivations, and outcomes. Through a thematic analysis of three case studies, this research demonstrates how trafficking has been systematically employed to further genocidal objectives, including displacement, exploitation, cultural erasure, and the destruction of communities. The case studies are the genocide of Indigenous peoples …

Funding Repression: How The Eu Migration Agreements With Libya And Tunisia Circumvent Non-Refoulement And Enable Human Rights Violations, Emma Soltis

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

In 2023, the European Union and Tunisia entered into a Memorandum of Understanding, which outlined cooperation between the parties on several issues, including migration and mobility. Consistent with the European Union’s broader externalization agenda, the Memorandum of Understanding primarily allocates monetary and technical support to Tunisia and its authorities for migration management. In particular, Tunisian authorities are enabled to patrol the coast and intercept migrants and refugees attempting to irregularly migrate from North Africa to Europe across the Mediterranean Sea. The European Union sponsored a similar Memorandum of Understanding between Italy and Libya in 2017. Critics have widely denounced the …

Whose Truth Commission, Lehlohonolo January

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

It is often said that the victor always dictates the narrative and thus dictates how history is represented. The end of Apartheid in South Africa wasn’t a result of an outright victorious defeat of the Apartheid State together with its institutions of coercion but rather came about as a result of a culmination of a series of events. If this adage holds true, then why is it that the narrative seems to paint a picture of a victor’s perspective? This assertion is not made lightly but is no less reflective of how the facts seem to portray themselves in that …

Legitimacy Throughlines In The Structural Design Of International & "Internationalized" Criminal Tribunals, Michael J. Kelly

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

Today, the rather surprising and sudden surfeit of prosecutions for international crimes by states utilizing universal jurisdiction as we open the second decade of the 21^st Century may represent a preference for domestic over international criminal prosecution altogether. Yet, the legitimacy quotient remains a key part of the discussion. For example, as discussed in section V below, with respect to the crime of Russian aggression against Ukraine, opinion is divided as to whether prosecution for this crime should proceed from a newly created international tribunal or from an “internationalized” court within the Ukrainian judicial system.[1] Ukraine backs the …

Volume 15, Issue 1 - Full Issue, Notre Dame Journal Of International & Comparative Law Volume 15

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.