DOCSLIB.ORG

SANE and the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963: Mobilizing Public Opinion to Shape

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
SANE and the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963: Mobilizing Public Opinion to Shape SANE and the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963: Mobilizing Public Opinion to Shape U.S. Foreign Policy A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts Erin L. Richardson November 2009 © 2009 Erin L. Richardson. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled SANE and the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963: Mobilizing Public Opinion to Shape U.S. Foreign Policy by ERIN L. RICHARDSON has been approved for the Department of History and the College of Arts and Sciences by Chester J. Pach Jr. Associate Professor of History Benjamin M. Ogles Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 ABSTRACT RICHARDSON, ERIN L., M.A., November 2009, History SANE and the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963: Mobilizing Public Opinion to Shape U.S. Foreign Policy (115 pp.) Director of Thesis: Chester J. Pach Jr. This thesis examines the role of the Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy (SANE) in building support for the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963. Focusing on SANE’s highly publicized newspaper advertisements shows how the organization succeeded in using the growing public fear of the potentially lethal effects of radioactive fallout from atmospheric testing to raise awareness of the nuclear test ban. SANE ads successfully sparked national interest, which contributed to a renewal of U.S. efforts to negotiate a treaty. It also strengthened SANE’s credibility and expanded the role of the organization’s co-chair and Saturday Review editor Norman Cousins in working with the Kennedy Administration. Ultimately, disagreement within SANE, the primary role of the Citizens Committee in garnering support for the treaty, and the administration’s decision to minimize SANE’s identification with the treaty out of the fear that the liberal association could inhibit efforts to broaden the treaty’s appeal resulted in SANE playing a peripheral role in gaining Senate approval. Incorporating extensive archival research including State Department documents and SANE archives, this thesis argues that SANE laid critical groundwork for the treaty’s approval, but ultimately lost its effectiveness prior to the Senate ratification of the treaty. 4 Approved: _____________________________________________________________ Chester J. Pach Jr. Associate Professor of History 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Chester Pach for his direction while overseeing this project, as well as Dr. John Brobst and Dr. Paul Milazzo for serving on my defense committee. I would also like to thank the Ohio University Department of History for providing the funds to conduct research at the National Archives and Records Association. I am especially grateful to the staff at the Swarthmore College Peace Collection for their wonderful assistance with the SANE Manuscripts, which made this thesis possible. A special thanks to my family for their unconditional love and support. I am indebted to my mother for her service as a research assistant, editor, and constant supporter. I am thankful for my sister Lauren’s patience, loving friendship, and sense of humor. Finally, I would like to thank Stephanie Adams for her enduring friendship and wit that provided invaluable support throughout the most difficult year of graduate school. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... 5 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER 1: Heightened Awareness: Fallout Fears and the Groundwork for a Test Ban Treaty ................................................................................................................................ 21 CHAPTER 2: Negotiating a Treaty: SANE’s Public Call to Action and American Diplomacy ......................................................................................................................... 42 CHAPTER 3: The Drive Toward Ratification: Presidential Initiative and SANE’s Ancillary Role ................................................................................................................... 80 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 95 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 103 APPENDIX A: NOVEMBER 15, 1957 ADVERTISEMENT ....................................... 110 APPENDIX B: APRIL 10, 1962 ADVERTISEMENT .................................................. 111 APPENDIX C: APRIL 16, 1962 ADVERTISEMENT .................................................. 112 APPENDIX D: JULY 5, 1962 ADVERTISEMENT ..................................................... 113 APPENDIX E: APRIL 7, 1963 ADVERTISEMENT .................................................... 114 APPENDIX F: AUGUST 2, 1963 ADVERTISEMENT ................................................ 115 7 INTRODUCTION On 5 August 1963, the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom signed the Limited Test Ban Treaty. Nearly two months later, the United States Senate ratified the treaty. This treaty became the first significant arms control agreement during the Cold War that reduced the threat posed by nuclear weapons. Scholars have produced a significant body of research on President John F. Kennedy’s efforts to establish a nuclear test ban treaty and the effectiveness of the treaty, but little attention has been paid to the role of one of the most influential peace groups of the time, the Committee for a SANE Nuclear Policy (SANE), in the treaty’s success. This thesis will examine the role of SANE in raising public awareness of the Test Ban Treaty, especially through the organization’s highly publicized newspaper advertisements which ran throughout the United States. SANE’s advertisements in 1962, particularly one in April featuring the well- known pediatrician Dr. Benjamin Spock, focused widespread national attention on the test ban issue. It also strengthened SANE’s credibility and expanded the role of the organization’s co-chair and Saturday Review editor Norman Cousins in working with the Kennedy administration. This thesis argues that although SANE as a whole, performed a valuable function in raising public awareness about the test ban treaty, its chair, Norman Cousins, had a more influential role in ensuring the treaty’s success. SANE’s creation reflected the growing force of scientific, environmental, and social activism that had experienced a rebirth since the onset of the Cold War. The advancement of nuclear weapons and the technological revolution that followed World 8 War II led many members of the scientific community to recognize the need for greater caution and responsibility regarding the use of these innovations.1 The 1954 development of the hydrogen bomb and nuclear testing in the Pacific incited growing concern about safety. In July 1955, notable scientists Albert Einstein and Bertrand Russell issued a statement declaring that the power of nuclear weapons demanded governments consider the risk of disaster when evaluating the potential use of force. The Einstein-Russell appeal marked a serious outcry by the scientific community and raised international awareness of the issue.2 The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) had long been a forum for scientists to consider the effect of their work on society and to express their concerns to the public. By 1956, AAAS members, under the direction of Warren Weaver of the Rockefeller Foundation and Barry Commoner, a botany professor at Washington University in St. Louis, looked to provide stronger leadership in defining the responsibility of scientists to the general public.3 In a moving 1957 address at Washington University in St. Louis, prominent chemist at the California Institute of Technology Linus Pauling called for the end of nuclear weapons tests. In June, Pauling publicized the “Appeal by American Scientists” with the signatures of 11,038 scientists, including thirty-seven Nobel laureates, from forty-nine nations. That April, Albert Schweitzer, renowned Nobel Peace Prize 1 Michael Egan, Barry Commoner and the Science of Survival: The Remaking of American Environmentalism (Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2007), 15-19. 2 Lawrence Wittner, Confronting the Bomb: A Short History of the World Nuclear Disarmament Movement (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2009), 52-57, Ibid., 37-39. 3 Michael Egan, Barry Commoner and the Science of Survival, 31-36. 9 humanitarian and theologian, issued a similar public declaration.4 Still working with the AAAS and chairing its Committee on Science in the Promotion of Human Welfare, Barry Commoner co-founded the Committee for Nuclear Information (CNI) as a scientific organization focused more towards grassroots-activism in April 1958. Serving as an impartial source for scientific information in order to assist the public in making decisions on controversial social issues became the group’s primary goal. The group’s expertise on nuclear testing enabled it to pose a serious challenge to the pro-nuclear information distributed by the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC).5 In addition to SANE, other anti-nuclear groups emerged with the growth of non- violent resistance within the broader peace
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Wilderness Hero 3
    Arthur Carhart National Wilderness Training Center’s Wilderness Investigations High School Wilderness Hero #3 John F. Kennedy President John F. Kennedy; 35th U.S. President (No copyright indicated) Common Core Standard Connections Standards addressed will vary depending on how the teacher chooses to approach the lesson and/or activities. Instructions for the teacher: Rarely, if ever, is one individual responsible for the hard work and vision involved in bringing about wilderness legislation, specific wilderness designation, or wilderness management. The 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, was an important player in the ultimate success of the Wilderness Act of 1964 (signed into law the year after his untimely death). John F. Kennedy is the focus of this Wilderness Hero spotlight. To help students get to know this amazing wilderness hero, choose one or more of the following: • Photocopy and hand out Wilderness Hero Sheet #3 to each student. 143 o Based on the information found there, have them write a short news article about John F. Kennedy and his role in the story of designated wilderness. • From the list of wilderness quotes found within Wilderness Hero Sheet #3, have students select one or more, copy the quote, and then interpret what the quote(s) means to them. • Use the handout as the basis of a short mini-lesson about John F. Kennedy and wilderness. • Have students research John F. Kennedy’s presidency and from their findings create a timeline showing important events taking place during President Kennedy’s administration (January 1961 – November 1963). o This was a time of significant national and world events (Cuban Missile Crisis, civil rights movement, early Viet Nam War involvement, financial challenges, etc.).
    [Show full text]
  • REPORT 2D Session HOUSE of REPRESENTATIVES 104–582 "!
    104TH CONGRESS REPORT 2d Session HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 104±582 "! PROVIDING FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 3144, THE DEFEND AMERICA ACT OF 1996 MAY 16, 1996.ÐReferred to the House Calendar and ordered to be printed Mr. DIAZ-BALART, from the Committee on Rules, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. Res. 438] The Committee on Rules, having had under consideration House Resolution 438, by a nonrecord vote, report the same to the House with the recommendation that the resolution be adopted. BRIEF SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS OF RESOLUTION The rule provides for consideration in the House with two hours of debate divided equally between the chairman and ranking mi- nority member of the Committee on National Security. The rule waives all points or order against the bill and against its consider- ation. The rule also makes in order without intervention of any point of order one minority amendment in the nature of a substitute to be offered by Mr. Spratt or his designee and which is printed in this report. The rule provides that the substitute shall be debatable separately for one hour divided equally between the proponent and an opponent. Finally, the rule provides for one motion to recommit with or without instructions. THE AMENDMENT TO BE OFFERED BY REPRESENTATIVE SPRATT OF SOUTH CAROLINA, OR A DESIGNEE, DEBATABLE FOR 1 HOUR Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Ballistic Missile Defense Act of 1996''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress makes the following findings: 29±008 2 (1) Short-range theater ballistic missiles threaten United States Armed Forces wherever engaged abroad.
    [Show full text]
  • Kazakhstan Missile Chronology
    Kazakhstan Missile Chronology Last update: May 2010 As of May 2010, this chronology is no longer being updated. For current developments, please see the Kazakhstan Missile Overview. This annotated chronology is based on the data sources that follow each entry. Public sources often provide conflicting information on classified military programs. In some cases we are unable to resolve these discrepancies, in others we have deliberately refrained from doing so to highlight the potential influence of false or misleading information as it appeared over time. In many cases, we are unable to independently verify claims. Hence in reviewing this chronology, readers should take into account the credibility of the sources employed here. Inclusion in this chronology does not necessarily indicate that a particular development is of direct or indirect proliferation significance. Some entries provide international or domestic context for technological development and national policymaking. Moreover, some entries may refer to developments with positive consequences for nonproliferation. 2009-1947 March 2009 On 4 March 2009, Kazakhstan signed a contract to purchase S-300 air defense missile systems from Russia. According to Ministry of Defense officials, Kazakhstan plans to purchase 10 batteries of S-300PS by 2011. Kazakhstan's Air Defense Commander Aleksandr Sorokin mentioned, however, that the 10 batteries would still not be enough to shield all the most vital" facilities designated earlier by a presidential decree. The export version of S- 300PS (NATO designation SA-10C Grumble) has a maximum range of 75 km and can hit targets moving at up to 1200 m/s at a minimum altitude of 25 meters.
    [Show full text]
  • Ten Nobel Laureates Say the Bush
    Hundreds of economists across the nation agree. Henry Aaron, The Brookings Institution; Katharine Abraham, University of Maryland; Frank Ackerman, Global Development and Environment Institute; William James Adams, University of Michigan; Earl W. Adams, Allegheny College; Irma Adelman, University of California – Berkeley; Moshe Adler, Fiscal Policy Institute; Behrooz Afraslabi, Allegheny College; Randy Albelda, University of Massachusetts – Boston; Polly R. Allen, University of Connecticut; Gar Alperovitz, University of Maryland; Alice H. Amsden, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Robert M. Anderson, University of California; Ralph Andreano, University of Wisconsin; Laura M. Argys, University of Colorado – Denver; Robert K. Arnold, Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy; David Arsen, Michigan State University; Michael Ash, University of Massachusetts – Amherst; Alice Audie-Figueroa, International Union, UAW; Robert L. Axtell, The Brookings Institution; M.V. Lee Badgett, University of Massachusetts – Amherst; Ron Baiman, University of Illinois – Chicago; Dean Baker, Center for Economic and Policy Research; Drucilla K. Barker, Hollins University; David Barkin, Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana – Unidad Xochimilco; William A. Barnett, University of Kansas and Washington University; Timothy J. Bartik, Upjohn Institute; Bradley W. Bateman, Grinnell College; Francis M. Bator, Harvard University Kennedy School of Government; Sandy Baum, Skidmore College; William J. Baumol, New York University; Randolph T. Beard, Auburn University; Michael Behr; Michael H. Belzer, Wayne State University; Arthur Benavie, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill; Peter Berg, Michigan State University; Alexandra Bernasek, Colorado State University; Michael A. Bernstein, University of California – San Diego; Jared Bernstein, Economic Policy Institute; Rari Bhandari, University of California – Berkeley; Melissa Binder, University of New Mexico; Peter Birckmayer, SUNY – Empire State College; L.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 3: the Rise of the Antinuclear Power Movement: 1957 to 1989
    Chapter 3 THE RISE OF THE ANTINUCLEAR POWER MOVEMENT 1957 TO 1989 In this chapter I trace the development and circulation of antinuclear struggles of the last 40 years. What we will see is a pattern of new sectors of the class (e.g., women, native Americans, and Labor) joining the movement over the course of that long cycle of struggles. Those new sectors would remain autonomous, which would clearly place the movement within the autonomist Marxist model. Furthermore, it is precisely the widening of the class composition that has made the antinuclear movement the most successful social movement of the 1970s and 1980s. Although that widening has been impressive, as we will see in chapter 5, it did not go far enough, leaving out certain sectors of the class. Since its beginnings in the 1950s, opposition to the civilian nuclear power program has gone through three distinct phases of one cycle of struggles.(1) Phase 1 —1957 to 1967— was a period marked by sporadic opposition to specific nuclear plants. Phase 2 —1968 to 1975— was a period marked by a concern for the environmental impact of nuclear power plants, which led to a critique of all aspects of nuclear power. Moreover, the legal and the political systems were widely used to achieve demands. And Phase 3 —1977 to the present— has been a period marked by the use of direct action and civil disobedience by protesters whose goals have been to shut down all nuclear power plants. 3.1 The First Phase of the Struggles: 1957 to 1967 Opposition to nuclear energy first emerged shortly after the atomic bomb was built.
    [Show full text]
  • The National Data Center Proposal of 1965 and Its Descendants
    Statistical Déjà Vu: The National Data Center Proposal of 1965 and Its Descendants by Rebecca S. Kraus, Ph.D. History Staff U.S. Census Bureau For presentation at the Joint Statistical Meetings Miami Beach, FL, August 1, 2011 This paper is to inform interested parties of ongoing research and to encourage discussion. Any views expressed on historical issues are those of the author and not necessarily those of the U.S. Census Bureau. Abstract Issues concerning sharing of statistical information, linking data sets, and storing and preserving data collected by the federal statistical agencies have long sparked debate. This paper focuses on the National Data Center proposal of 1965, ensuing public concern over its privacy implications, and the response of the Bureau of the Budget and the U.S. Census Bureau. The purpose of this study is to identify the issues leading to the development of the proposal, as well as the consequences of the proposal, in order to inform current policy decisions, particularly in regard to the U.S. Census Bureau. Examples of subsequent efforts at statistical consolidation and data sharing highlight the persistent theme of statistical déjà vu. The author would like to thank the following staff of the U.S. Census Bureau for their review and comment on the contents of this paper: Francis Grailand Hall, Division Chief, Administrative and Customer Services Division (ACSD); Claudette Bennett, Assistant Division Chief, Product Development and Publications Services, ACSD; Bill Maury, Chief, History Staff, ACSD; Nick Birnbaum, History Staff, ACSD; Nancy Gordon, Associate Director for Strategic Planning and Innovation; Mary Frazier, Privacy Office; and Kathleen Styles, formerly of the Policy Office.
    [Show full text]
  • FOR a FUTURE of Peketjiktice
    WDMENS ENCAMPMENT FOR A FUTURE OF PEKEtJIKTICE SUMMER 1983'SENECA ARM/ DEPOTS 1590 WOMEN OF THE H0TINONSIONNE IROaiMS CONFEDERACY GATHER AT SENECA TO DEMAND AN END TO MMR AMONG THE NATIONS X 1800s A&0LITI0NIST5 M4KE SENECA COUNTY A MAJOR STOP ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD HITO HARRIET TUBMAW HOUSE NEAR THE PRESENT DAI ARMV DEPOTS EARL/ FEMINISTS HOLD FIRST WDMENS RIQHTS CONVENTION AT SENEGA FALLS ID CALL FOR SUFFRAGE & EQUAL MPTICJMTION IN ALL OTHEP AREAS OF LIFE ' TOD/W URBAN & RURA. WOMEN JOIN TOGETHER IN SENECA G0UNI7 TO CHALLENGE "ME NUCLEAR THREAT TO UFE ITSELF^ WE FOCUS ON THE WEAPONS AT 1UE SENECA ARMY DEPOT TO PREVENT DEPU)yMENT OF NATO MISSILES IN SOUDARITY WITH THE EUPOPE/W PEACE MO^MENT^ RESOURCE HANDBOOK Introduction The idea of a Women's Peace Camp in this country in solidarity with the Peace Camp movement in Europe and the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp, in particular, was born at a Conference on Global Feminism and Disarmament on June 11, 1982. The organizing process began with discussions between Women's International League for Peace and Freedom and women in the Upstate Feminist Peace Alliance (NY), to consider siting the camp at the Seneca Army Depot in Romulus, NY. The planning meetings for the Encampment have since grown to include women from Toronto, Ottawa, Rochester, Oswego, Syracuse, Geneva, Ithaca, Albany, New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, and some of the smaller towns in between. Some of the tasks have been organized regionally and others have been done locally. Our planning meetings are open, and we are committed to consensus as our decision making process.
    [Show full text]
  • An Examination of the Presidency of John F. Kennedy in 1963. Christina Paige Jones East Tennessee State University
    East Tennessee State University Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University Electronic Theses and Dissertations Student Works 5-2001 The ndE of Camelot: An Examination of the Presidency of John F. Kennedy in 1963. Christina Paige Jones East Tennessee State University Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.etsu.edu/etd Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Jones, Christina Paige, "The ndE of Camelot: An Examination of the Presidency of John F. Kennedy in 1963." (2001). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 114. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/114 This Thesis - Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Works at Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE END OF CAMELOT: AN EXAMINATION OF THE PRESIDENCY OF JOHN F. KENNEDY IN 1963 _______________ A thesis presented to the faculty of the Department of History East Tennessee State University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Arts in History _______________ by Christina Paige Jones May 2001 _______________ Dr. Elwood Watson, Chair Dr. Stephen Fritz Dr. Dale Schmitt Keywords: John F. Kennedy, Civil Rights, Vietnam War ABSTRACT THE END OF CAMELOT: AN EXAMINATION OF THE PRESIDENCY OF JOHN F. KENNEDY IN 1963 by Christina Paige Jones This thesis addresses events and issues that occurred in 1963, how President Kennedy responded to them, and what followed after Kennedy’s assassination. This thesis was created by using books published about Kennedy, articles from magazines, documents, telegrams, speeches, and Internet sources.
    [Show full text]
  • From Wilderness to the Toxic Environment: Health in American Environmental Politics, 1945-Present
    From Wilderness to the Toxic Environment: Health in American Environmental Politics, 1945-Present The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Thomson, Jennifer Christine. 2013. From Wilderness to the Toxic Environment: Health in American Environmental Politics, 1945- Present. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University. Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:11125030 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA From Wilderness to the Toxic Environment: Health in American Environmental Politics, 1945-Present A dissertation presented by Jennifer Christine Thomson to The Department of the History of Science In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the subject of History of Science Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts May 2013 @ 2013 Jennifer Christine Thomson All rights reserved. Dissertation Advisor: Charles Rosenberg Jennifer Christine Thomson From Wilderness to the Toxic Environment: Health in American Environmental Politics, 1945-Present Abstract This dissertation joins the history of science and medicine with environmental history to explore the language of health in environmental politics. Today, in government policy briefs and mission statements of environmental non-profits, newspaper editorials and activist journals, claims about the health of the planet and its human and non-human inhabitants abound. Yet despite this rhetorical ubiquity, modern environmental politics are ideologically and organizationally fractured along the themes of whose health is at stake and how that health should be protected.
    [Show full text]
  • August 1963 M
    University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Turf Bulletin Turf Program 1963 August 1963 M. A. McKenzie E. S. Pira Joseph A. Keohane A. Kacperska-Palacz Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/turf_bulletin Part of the Plant Breeding and Genetics Commons, and the Weed Science Commons McKenzie, M. A.; Pira, E. S.; Keohane, Joseph A.; and Kacperska-Palacz, A., "August 1963" (1963). Turf Bulletin. 7. Retrieved from https://scholarworks.umass.edu/turf_bulletin/7 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Turf Program at ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Turf Bulletin by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Massacnusetts Turf and Lawn Grass Council INCORPORATED BETTER TURF THROUGH RESEARCH AND EDUCATION (urf J6ulleti11 Vol. 2, No. 2 August, 1963 Shade Tree Laboratories Why Irrigate? M. A. McKenzie, Experiment Stat'ion, UMass. E. S. Pira, Assistant Prof. The Shade Tree Laboratories at the University Agricultural Engineering Dept. of Massachusetts occupy a building which was Univers·ity of Massachusetts completed in 1948 to provide facilities especially The question of whether supplemental irriga­ designed for the particular needs of basic and ap­ tion is needed in Massachusetts seems to plague plied research in shade tree problems. At that us especially after a period of drought ocurring time the current tree program had already been during the growing season. For example, the year in operation for 13 years in the Experiment Sta­ 1957; interest in supplemental irrigation reached tion with a major interest in the Dutch elm dis­ a peak.
    [Show full text]
  • Government 90 (Xx) Human Rights and World Politics
    Prof. Andrew Moravcsik Harvard University Spring 2002 Wednesdays 2:15 – 4:00 PM Government 90cl HUMAN RIGHTS AND WORLD POLITICS This course analyzes international human rights—their philosophical basis, their emergence and legal recognition in the post-World War II world, and their enforcement by unilateral, multilateral, domestic and non-governmental means. We read works by political scientists, policy analysts and legal academics—including a leading international human rights law casebook. The course is designed to assist students in writing a major research paper on the world politics of human rights. The specific questions we shall examine include: What valid basis is there for the assertion of universal rights? Which rights can be so justified and which cannot? Why have governments accepted formal obligations and established international mechanisms to monitor and enforce those obligations, even at considerable sacrifice of domestic sovereignty? In what way have rights been translated into major international legal obligations under the United Nations, regional human rights conventions, and various treaties? Which governments resist this trend and why? What is the relative importance of interstate coercion (intervention, sanctions, financial inducement), institutional design (the nature of international judges and officials, the form of international tribunals and standards), domestic political commitment (the interests of national governments and their constituencies, the role of domestic courts) and idealistic persuasion (the power of NGOs, public opinion, transnational diffusion, and analogical reasoning)? Under what circumstances are international tribunals, military intervention, sanctions, truth commissions, domestic litigation, idealistic persuasion, or public shaming effective means to enforce human rights? What has been the role of groups in civil society—NGOs, political parties, lawyers and judges—in promoting observance of human rights? The reading load totals approximately 150-225 pp.
    [Show full text]
  • August 28, 1963: Building Community Through Collective Discourse
    UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones 5-1-2012 August 28, 1963: Building Community through Collective Discourse Jennifer Nestelberger University of Nevada, Las Vegas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/thesesdissertations Part of the African American Studies Commons, Rhetoric Commons, Social Influence and oliticalP Communication Commons, and the Speech and Rhetorical Studies Commons Repository Citation Nestelberger, Jennifer, "August 28, 1963: Building Community through Collective Discourse" (2012). UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones. 1602. http://dx.doi.org/10.34917/4332583 This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Scholarship@UNLV with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Thesis in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones by an authorized administrator of Digital Scholarship@UNLV. For more information, please contact [email protected]. AUGUST 28, 1963: BUILDING COMMUNITY THROUGH COLLECTIVE DISCOURSE by Jennifer Lynn Nestelberger Bachelor of Arts University of Nevada, Las Vegas 2010 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Communication Studies Department of Communication Studies Greenspun College of Urban Affairs The Graduate College University of Nevada Las Vegas May 2012 Copyright by Jennifer L.
    [Show full text]