Islamic Voices and the Definition of Human Rights

Given the active participation and support of Muslim representatives in the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR; 1948), the observation that universal human rights are capable of incorporating Islam should not raise as much controversy as it does.1 Muslim voices helped to fashion—and overwhelmingly approved—the most iconic statement on human rights in existence today. What we understand as human rights developed out of a process that included multiple political, philosophical, and religious perspectives, including those of Islam. To ask the question of whether Islam can support human rights ignores a decisive chapter in the history of human rights. Yes, of course, Islam, or rather, Muslims did (and do) support human rights. Muslims, many would be surprised to know, helped to create the UDHR. The more accurate inquiry, which takes into account an awareness of the history of the UDHR, questions whether human rights adequately represent Islamic views. The answer to that question, however, is probably not.

Declaration · Human rights · Islam · Islamic studies · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Statement (logic) · Theology · Islamic Studies and History · Law · Philosophy