Jan Eckel – författare

The Ambivalence of Good examines the genesis and evolution of international human rights politics since the 1940s. Focusing on key developments such as the shaping of the UN human rights system, decolonization, the rise of Amnesty International, the campaigns against the Pinochet dictatorship, the moral politics of Western governments, or dissidence in Eastern Europe, the book traces how human rights profoundly, if subtly, transformed global affairs.Moving beyond monocausal explanations and narratives prioritizing one particular decade, such as the 1940s or the 1970s, The Ambivalence of Good argues that we need a complex and nuanced interpretation if we want to understand the truly global reach of human rights, and account for the hopes, conflicts, and interventions to which this idea gave rise. Thus, it portrays the story of human rights as polycentric, demonstrating how actors in various locales imbued them with widely differentmeanings, arguing that the political field evolved in a fitful and discontinuous process. This process was shaped by consequential shifts that emerged from the search for a new world order during the Second World War, decolonization, the desire to introduce a new political morality into world affairs duringthe 1970s, and the visions of a peaceful international order after the end of the Cold War. Finally, the book stresses that the projects pursued in the name of human rights nonetheless proved highly ambivalent. Self-interest was as strong a driving force as was the desire to help people in need, and while international campaigns often improved the fate of the persecuted, they were equally likely to have counterproductive effects.The Ambivalence of Good provides the first research-based synopsis of the topic and one of the first synthetic studies of a transnational political field (such as population, health, or the environment) during the twentieth century. Based on archival research in six countries, it breaks new empirical ground concerning the history of human rights in the United Nations, of human rights NGOs, of far-flung mobilizations, and of the uses of human rights in state foreign policy.

The Ambivalence of Good examines the genesis and evolution of international human rights politics since the 1940s. Focusing on key developments such as the shaping of the UN human rights system, decolonization, the rise of Amnesty International, the campaigns against the Pinochet dictatorship, the moral politics of Western governments, or dissidence in Eastern Europe, the book traces how human rights profoundly, if subtly, transformed global affairs.Moving beyond monocausal explanations and narratives prioritizing one particular decade, such as the 1940s or the 1970s, The Ambivalence of Good argues that we need a complex and nuanced interpretation if we want to understand the truly global reach of human rights, and account for the hopes, conflicts, and interventions to which this idea gave rise. Thus, it portrays the story of human rights as polycentric, demonstrating how actors in various locales imbued them with widely differentmeanings, arguing that the political field evolved in a fitful and discontinuous process. This process was shaped by consequential shifts that emerged from the search for a new world order during the Second World War, decolonization, the desire to introduce a new political morality into world affairs duringthe 1970s, and the visions of a peaceful international order after the end of the Cold War. Finally, the book stresses that the projects pursued in the name of human rights nonetheless proved highly ambivalent. Self-interest was as strong a driving force as was the desire to help people in need, and while international campaigns often improved the fate of the persecuted, they were equally likely to have counterproductive effects.The Ambivalence of Good provides the first research-based synopsis of the topic and one of the first synthetic studies of a transnational political field (such as population, health, or the environment) during the twentieth century. Based on archival research in six countries, it breaks new empirical ground concerning the history of human rights in the United Nations, of human rights NGOs, of far-flung mobilizations, and of the uses of human rights in state foreign policy.

The Ambivalence of Good examines the genesis and evolution of international human rights politics since the 1940s. Focusing on key developments such as the shaping of the UN human rights system, decolonization, the rise of Amnesty International, the campaigns against the Pinochet dictatorship, the moral politics of Western governments, or dissidence in Eastern Europe, the book traces how human rights profoundly, if subtly, transformed global affairs. Moving beyond monocausal explanations and narratives prioritizing one particular decade, such as the 1940s or the 1970s, The Ambivalence of Good argues that we need a complex and nuanced interpretation if we want to understand the truly global reach of human rights, and account for the hopes, conflicts, and interventions to which this idea gave rise. Thus, it portrays the story of human rights as polycentric, demonstrating how actors in various locales imbued them with widely different meanings, arguing that the political field evolved in a fitful and discontinuous process. This process was shaped by consequential shifts that emerged from the search for a new world order during the Second World War, decolonization, the desire to introduce a new political morality into world affairs during the 1970s, and the visions of a peaceful international order after the end of the Cold War. Finally, the book stresses that the projects pursued in the name of human rights nonetheless proved highly ambivalent. Self-interest was as strong a driving force as was the desire to help people in need, and while international campaigns often improved the fate of the persecuted, they were equally likely to have counterproductive effects.The Ambivalence of Good provides the first research-based synopsis of the topic and one of the first synthetic studies of a transnational political field (such as population, health, or the environment) during the twentieth century. Based on archival research in six countries, it breaks new empirical ground concerning the history of human rights in the United Nations, of human rights NGOs, of far-flung mobilizations, and of the uses of human rights in state foreign policy.

Between the 1960s and the 1980s, the human rights movement achieved unprecedented global prominence. Amnesty International attained striking visibility with its Campaign Against Torture; Soviet dissidents attracted a worldwide audience for their heroism in facing down a totalitarian state; the Helsinki Accords were signed, incorporating a "third basket" of human rights principles; and the Carter administration formally gave the United States a human rights policy.The Breakthrough is the first collection to examine this decisive era as a whole, tracing key developments in both Western and non-Western engagement with human rights and placing new emphasis on the role of human rights in the international history of the past century. Bringing together original essays from some of the field's leading scholars, this volume not only explores the transnational histories of international and nongovernmental human rights organizations but also analyzes the complex interplay between gender, sociology, and ideology in the making of human rights politics at the local level. Detailed case studies illuminate how a number of local movements-from the 1975 World Congress of Women in East Berlin, to antiapartheid activism in Britain, to protests in Latin America-affected international human rights discourse in the era as well as the ways these moments continue to influence current understanding of human rights history and advocacy. The global south-an area not usually treated as a scene of human rights politics-is also spotlighted in groundbreaking chapters on Biafran, South American, and Indonesian developments. In recovering the remarkable presence of global human rights talk and practice in the 1970s, The Breakthrough brings this pivotal decade to the forefront of contemporary scholarly debate.Contributors: Carl J. Bon Tempo, Gunter Dehnert, Celia Donert, Lasse Heerten, Patrick William Kelly, Benjamin Nathans, Ned Richardson-Little, Daniel Sargent, Brad Simpson, Lynsay Skiba, Simon Stevens.

Between the 1960s and the 1980s, the human rights movement achieved unprecedented global prominence. Amnesty International attained striking visibility with its Campaign Against Torture; Soviet dissidents attracted a worldwide audience for their heroism in facing down a totalitarian state; the Helsinki Accords were signed, incorporating a "third basket" of human rights principles; and the Carter administration formally gave the United States a human rights policy.The Breakthrough is the first collection to examine this decisive era as a whole, tracing key developments in both Western and non-Western engagement with human rights and placing new emphasis on the role of human rights in the international history of the past century. Bringing together original essays from some of the field's leading scholars, this volume not only explores the transnational histories of international and nongovernmental human rights organizations but also analyzes the complex interplay between gender, sociology, and ideology in the making of human rights politics at the local level. Detailed case studies illuminate how a number of local movements-from the 1975 World Congress of Women in East Berlin, to antiapartheid activism in Britain, to protests in Latin America-affected international human rights discourse in the era as well as the ways these moments continue to influence current understanding of human rights history and advocacy. The global south-an area not usually treated as a scene of human rights politics-is also spotlighted in groundbreaking chapters on Biafran, South American, and Indonesian developments. In recovering the remarkable presence of global human rights talk and practice in the 1970s, The Breakthrough brings this pivotal decade to the forefront of contemporary scholarly debate.Contributors: Carl J. Bon Tempo, Gunter Dehnert, Celia Donert, Lasse Heerten, Patrick William Kelly, Benjamin Nathans, Ned Richardson-Little, Daniel Sargent, Brad Simpson, Lynsay Skiba, Simon Stevens.

Did emphasizing human rights prove to be truly an effective principle for fighting repression and violence – or did human rights remain only an unredeemed ideal put to use in the service of purely political interests?In the course of the 20th century human rights received international attention and became a hotly contested arena of political conflict. Untold groups and whole countries invoked the cause of helping others in order to protect themselves, their interests and their political goals. That caused this approach to become one of the decisive venues of international politics.This volume addresses for the first time the development of the international politics of human rights since the 1940s. It examines the many projects that were undertaken in the name of human rights, the dramatic controversies that ensued, and the ambivalent consequences that this path had for the remainder of the 20th century. This is an important and indispensable book for our understanding of the history of the past century and for developing a competent political discussion in the future.

The volume deals with the global rise of human rights in the »long« 1970s, discussing if the decade can be considered a new departure in the history of the idea. The authors deal with a broad panoply of topics, ranging from apartheid and South American dictatorships to U.S. foreign policy and Eastern European dissidence.

Menschenrechte erlangten im 20. Jahrhundert eine globale Ausstrahlung und verwandelten sich in eine umkämpfte Arena des politischen Konflikts. Unzählige Gruppen und Staaten beriefen sich auf sie, um anderen zu helfen, sich selbst zu schützen oder ihre politischen Ziele zu rechtfertigen. Das machte sie zu einer entscheidenden Sprache der internationalen Politik.Erstmals wird in diesem Buch die Entwicklung der internationalen Menschenrechtspolitik seit den 1940er Jahren dargestellt. Unerlässlich für das historische Verständnis und für eine kompetente politische Diskussion, untersucht es empirisch die vielfältigen Projekte, die im Namen der Menschenrechte verfolgt wurden, die dramatischen Auseinandersetzungen, die sie auslösten, und die ambivalenten Folgen, die sie für die Geschichte des 20. Jahrhunderts hatten.

Hans Rothfels (1891-1976) war einer der einflußreichsten Historiker der frühen Bundesrepublik. Seine geschichtswissenschaftliche Tätigkeit erstreckte sich vom Ersten Weltkrieg bis in die sechziger Jahre. Dabei vollzog sie sich unter verschiedenen politischen Systemen und aus unterschiedlichen akademischen wie biographischen Positionen heraus. In der Weimarer Republik machte er als nationaler Junghistoriker eine aufstrebende Karriere, bis er nach dem Januar 1933 aus rassistischen Motiven ausgegrenzt wurde. Im amerikanischen Exil führte er seine Beschäftigung mit der deutschen Geschichte fort und kehrte 1951 mit einer hohen moralischen Reputation nach Deutschland zurück. Die vielfachen politischen und lebensgeschichtlichen Brüche, die Rothfels erlebte, führten dazu, daß er in seiner Historiographie immer wieder neue historische Anschlüsse herzustellen versuchte, um den Verlauf der jüngsten Geschichte jeweils sinnvoll deuten zu können. An Rothfels'' Beispiel wird damit eine spezifische wissenschaftliche Reaktion auf den historischen Wandel des 20. Jahrhunderts greifbar. Jan Eckel analysiert in einem diachronen Längsschnitt die Bedingungsfaktoren von Rothfels'' wissenschaftlicher Produktion und verortet seine Geschichtsschreibung im Fachzusammenhang. Vor diesem Hintergrund wird seine Historiographie als eine Form der intellektuellen Verarbeitung von gegenwärtigen Beobachtungen und Erfahrungen interpretiert.

Aneignungen und Funktionalisierungen des Holocaust in den letzten 50 Jahren.Seit den sechziger Jahren des 20. Jahrhunderts wurde die Beschäftigung mit dem Mord an den europäischen Juden weit über Deutschland und Israel hinaus zu einem wichtigen Gegenstand nationaler Geschichtsdebatten. Ereignisse wie der Eichmann-Prozess oder die Schulddebatten der neunziger Jahre lösten internationale Auseinandersetzungen mit dem Thema aus. Schließlich nahmen einzelne Gruppen auf das historische Geschehen Bezug, um einen Opferstatus zu reklamieren oder die internationale Aufmerksamkeit auf aktuelle Verbrechen oder Diskriminierungen zu lenken. Diese Thematisierungen haben dazu geführt, dass der Holocaust am Ende des 20. und Anfang des 21. Jahrhunderts als ein globaler Referenzpunkt erscheint, der von verschiedenen Akteuren mit heterogenen Bedeutungen versehen wird.

Die komplexen Wandlungen der Menschenrechte in der jüngsten Zeitgeschichte.Nach 1990 gewannen Menschenrechte national wie international ein wohl vorher nie erreichtes Gewicht. Immer mehr Akteure begriffen gesellschaftliche Probleme als Menschenrechtsfragen. Der Universalanspruch erfuhr weltweite Zustimmung und beförderte eine Vielzahl neuer interventionistischer Praktiken über nationalstaatliche Grenzen hinweg. Nicht zuletzt machten zahlreiche wissenschaftliche Disziplinen Menschenrechte, in einer vielschichtigen Wechselwirkung mit den gleichzeitigen politischen Veränderungen, zum Gegenstand der Forschung. Die Phase zukunftsgewisser Aufbrüche endete jedoch bereits vor der Jahrhundertwende. Zugleich sah sich die Idee universal gültiger Rechte heftigen Anfechtungen und Gegenentwürfen ausgesetzt.Dieser Band will eine neue empirische Grundlage für das Nachdenken über die jüngste Menschenrechtsgeschichte legen, indem zentrale Entwicklungen der letzten dreißig Jahre beleuchtet werden. Dabei bewegen sich die Beiträge über dichotomische Deutungsangebote von einerseits Triumph und Erfolg, andererseits Scheitern und Niedergang hinaus und schärfen den Blick für komplexe Wandlungsprozesse und gegenläufige Entwicklungen.Der Band erscheint vollständig in englischer Sprache._____The complex trajectory of human rights in the history of the past three decades.The 1990s saw an extraordinary surge in the significance that various actors attributed to the concept of human rights. A growing number of activists and politicians began framing their concerns as human rights issues. The universal claim of human rights received unprecedented support and spurred new interventionist practices across national borders. Numerous academic disciplines made human rights a subject of research, both reflecting on and influencing the emerging human rights policies. Yet the moment of enthusiastic new departures waned even before the advent of the new century. At the same time – and often as a direct consequence of its new prominence – critics opposed the idea of universal rights with an unprecedented fierceness. This volume breaks new ground in examining important developments that have unfolded in human rights history over the past thirty years. In situating these events, the volume looks beyond dichotomous interpretations of either triumph and success or failure and decline, sharpening our view of complexities and contradictions.The volume is published entirely in English.