Knowra Negative and positive rights Negative and positive rights Negative rights protect people from interference, while positive rights entitle them to assistance or resources. The distinction concerns what duties a right imposes on others.
Rights : Normative claims or entitlements that impose duties on others or protect their holders’ interests. The distinction divides kinds of rights according to the duties they create.
State : A political organization that governs a territory through institutions and claims authority over its population. Public authorities enforce rights and commonly organize the services positive rights require.
Isaiah Berlin : A political philosopher known for distinguishing negative liberty from positive liberty. His influential account of liberty helped popularize a related distinction between freedom from and freedom to.
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights : A 1966 United Nations treaty protecting civil and political rights, including freedoms and fair-trial guarantees. Its protections are often treated as predominantly negative, though they also require state action.
Duty : A moral, legal, or institutional requirement to act or refrain from acting. Negative and positive rights differ chiefly in the duties they place on others.
Legal remedy : A court-ordered or legally recognized response to a violation of a right or other legal wrong. Remedies give practical force to duties associated with both kinds of rights.
Positive liberty : The capacity for self-direction or for acting on one’s considered purposes, rather than mere absence of interference. It is often confused with positive rights, though liberty and rights classify different things.
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights : A 1966 United Nations treaty recognizing rights to work, education, health, social security, and an adequate standard of living. It codifies many claims commonly described as positive rights.
Liberty : The condition of being free to act without coercion or undue restriction. Negative rights often protect liberties by requiring others not to obstruct them.
Public goods : Goods that are non-excludable and non-rivalrous, such as national defense or clean air. Providing some positive rights depends on collectively funded goods and institutions.
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