How do we relate to one another, with all our differences in temperament and ability?
There has been a growth in the last half century of Human Rights as the fundamental rule-book for governing the way we organise and relate socially, especially regarding minorities or those who are more vulnerable. But this has not been without questioning; It has produced some odd outcomes and often seems only to emphasise the competition and opposition of different human rights or the rights of different groups.
The first push back against this way of thinking has probably been to look to the other end of the spectrum and think about human Responsibilities. It does seem to answer some objections; it suggests a less self-centred and more communal and other orientated ethic; and it seems more empowering of people, making them active agents rather than passive recipients or potential victims.
However, Responsibility also has problems; not least in defining what such responsibilities are. And, it has the danger of putting the weight of decision and action on one side. This could, itself, disempower others – if you take up the mantle of responsibility where does that leave those you may feel responsible for?
There is perhaps a third way of looking at this; a recognition that each person is a human being in their own right – so that their principal right is to be treated as such, and their principal responsibilities are to act as such and treat others similarly. It is what is recognised (at least in part in the caring professions as Dignity.
Another way of expressing this would be in the second great commandment ‘love one another as yourself‘
It does not give easy answers that can be codified in legal detail, as the idea of Human Rights does. It does not privatise the answers in the way that Human Responsibility does. It require dialogue, conversation and negotiation. It require really listening to one another and recognising the competing viewpoints of different people and the need to seek for something that can be construed as the common good – a tempered ‘common good’ that listens to individuals.
Perhaps, in the end, all three are required:
- Dignity – to recognise the common and equal humanity of each person
- Rights – to be treated with Dignity
- Responsibility – to treat others with Dignity and to live that Dignity in yourself.
It’s only a starting point, but the alternatives are shortcuts and lose much of what they purport to be seeking.