Human Rights Approach to Disability

The Human Rights Approach to Disability provides a thorough examination of issues relating to disability from a human rights perspective.

The book analyses how social theory concepts such as the social model of disability and disablism need to inform our interpretation of philosophical and legal principles, such as freedom and human dignity, which we need to apply in order to protect the rights of persons with disability. The book’s analysis covers a range of human rights questions, which start even before birth and continue throughout the life journey of a person with disability. The book draws from extensive examples in international human rights law, such as the CRPD and the ECtHR, as well as national law, such as the UK Equality Act and the American with Disabilities Act, in order to argue how specific disability issues should be approached from the viewpoint of human rights. The argumentation is multi-disciplinary and encompasses a range of legal, (bio)ethical and philosophical considerations, which inform this human rights approach.

The book will be of relevance to students and practitioners in law, sociology, disability studies, social work and healthcare.