Theories of human rights: between relativism and universalism of the right of resistance to oppression

Abstract

The article tries to trace the birth of the doctrines of human rights in Western culture, in their eagerness to identify under whose inspiration they were built to face the traditional debate between proponents of universalism and relativism of human rights. On these pillars, it investigates if the right of resistance to oppression can be characterized as a human right and, if so, whether it can be considered universal right. Therefore, a brief overview about the typology of the right of resistance will be taken and then the reasons for the United States and other Western nations have offered so much opposition to the inclusion of this right in the body of Universal declaration of Human rights will be investigated. With this, the universal character of this law and its compatibility with the democratic constitutional state will be assessed, and also how such right could be used, without undermining the democratic model of state organization.