Localizing Human Rights: Modeling Human Rights Cities

Abstract

In recent years, increasing numbers of cities have begun addressing global threats to human rights. By cultivating a local version of citizenship (city-zenship), cities foster a collective ethos shaped around universal principles of freedom, equality, and dignity, declaring themselves human rights cities. However, despite its varied manifestations, this label remains broad, accommodating a range of interpretations. This study distinguishes between two primary models, which I conceptualize as thin and thick human rights cities, and two nested sub-models. The models encompass the efforts of city-zens and local political actors to assimilate the human rights ethos within the city through both declarative and practical approaches. Subsequently, the typology is applied to characterize the South Korean city of Gwangju, renowned as a pioneering human rights city. Drawing on documents and interviews conducted in the city, I illustrate how the specific mechanisms via which a city engages with human rights can be classified into a model, facilitating comparison with other cities.