Course Information

AcademicYear : 2024-2025

LAW 517 : Human Rights Activism I

Language Of Instruction	Turkish
Type of Course Unit	Elective
Level of Course Unit	Graduate
Name of Lecturers	Turgut Tarhanlı, Prof. (Fall)
Course Description	This course aims to analyze and discuss the meaning and function of the different forms of social organizations which are dealing with to protect and promote of human rights. Today, the activities which are called as ‘activism’ and realized by society organizations or NGOs have an important role in parallel with the traditionally established remedies with having an impact even over those remedies to transform their characteristics. In this context, an activism study with such priorities, it is crucially important to discuss the conceptual framework which is mainly based on the post-war social thought. So, this course gives an opportunity to the students to present and share their educational background with others and accelerates the interdisiciplinary output. New social movements, post-colonialist rights discourse, human rights – civil rights discussion, “regarding the pain of others” (Susan Sontag), activism and philanthropy, are among the topics which will be discussed in this course.
Learning Outcomes of the Course Unit	Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to; Identifies the characteristics of activism, spesifically the human rights activism. Discusses similarities and differences between the human rights activism and the other ways of opposition, individual or the social. Analyzes the problematic of humanistic approach in the light of the studies produced during the post-colonial era. Criticizes the sources and methods regarding legal, social and natural spheres with a special emphasis whether they were used or not in the context of the human rights activism. Applies a category of means and methods in direction to empower the rights when in dealing with human Rights problems. Makes an assessment on the situations which are under the influence of factors like historical, social, political, etc., when discussing the sutbject-matter, ‘regarding the pain of others’.
Mode of Delivery	Face to Face
Prerequisites And Co-Requisites
Required Reading
Recommended Reading	Toplumsal hareketler, insan hakları-yurttaş hakları The Blackwell Companion to Social Movements, Ed. David A. Snow, Sarah A. Soule ve Hanspeter Kriesi, Blackwell Publishing, 2004, s. 3-16. Manuel Castells, Kimliğin Gücü (Enformasyon Çağı: Ekonomi, Toplum ve Kültür), İkinci Cilt, Ebru Kılıç, İstanbul Bilgi Üniversitesi Yayınları, 2006. Tim Jordan, Eylemci, Çeviren: Gül Çağalı Güven, Kitap Yayınevi, 2002. Alain Caille, Faydacı Aklın Eleştirisi, Çeviren: Devrim Çetinkasap, İletişim, 2007. Alain Touraine, Eşitliklerimiz ve Farklılıklarımızla Birlikte Yaşayabilecek miyiz? Çeviren: Olcay Kunal, 3. Baskı, YKY, 2005. Fatmagül Berktay, Politikanın Çağrısı, İstanbul Bilgi Üniversitesi Yayınları, 2010. Jeremy Brecher, Tim Costello ve Brendan Smith, Aşağıdan Küreselleşme: Dayanışmanın Gücü, Türkçesi: Berna Kurt, Zeynep Kutluata, Şirin Özgün ve Aysel Yıldırım, Aram, 2002. Malcolm X, “The Ballot or the Bullet”, (Speech delivered on April 3, 1964, Cleveland, Ohio). Etyen Mahçupyan, “Sivil Anayasa Girişimi”, Toplumsal Hareketler Konuşuyor! Yayına Hazırlayan: Leyla Sanlı, Alan, 2003, s. 71-94. Ahlaki protesto, bilim ve haklar David Resnik, Bilim Etiği, Çeviren: Vicdan Mutlu, Ayrıntı, 2004, s. 207-241 (“Toplumda Bilim Adamı”). Albert Bayet, Bilim Ahlâkı, Çeviren: Vedat Günyol, İkinci Baskı, Yorum Yayınları, 1993. Ioanna Kuçuradi, Etik, Türkiye Felsefe Kurumu, 1999. Alain Badiou, Etik: Kötülük Kavrayışı Üzerine Bir Deneme, Çeviren: Tuncay Birkan, Metis, 2004. Başkalarının acısına bakmak Susan Sontag, Fotoğraf Üzerine, Çeviren: Osman Akınhay, Agora, 2008. (Sontag’ın, ‘başkalarına bakmak’ teması üzerinden, ilk düşüncelerine yer verdiği çalışması olması ve bu kitaptaki bazı düşüncelerini, daha sonra, size tavsiye ettiğim kitabında geliştirmesi nedeniyle önem taşır). Edward W. Said, Şarkiyatçılık: Batının Şark Anlayışları, 5. Basım, Çeviri: Berna Ülner, Metis, 2010. Victoria Holbrook, “Şarkiyatçılık”, Virgül, Sayı 8, Mart 2000. David Le Breton, Acının Antropolojisi, Türkçesi: İsmail Yerguz, Sel Yayıncılık, 2005. Nurdan Gürbilek, Mağdurun Dili, Metis, 2008. Partha Chatterjee, Mağdurların Siyaseti, Çevirmen: Veysel Fırat Bozçalı, İletişim, 2006. Partha Chatterjee, Milliyetçi Düşünce ve Sömürge Dünyası, İletişim, 1996. Partha Chatterjee, Nation and Its Fragments: Colonial and Postcolonial Histories, Princeton University Press, 1993. Upendra Baxi, “Suffering Between Movements and Markets”, Global Social Movements içinde, Ed. Robin Cohen ve Shirin M. Rai, Continuum, 2000, s. 33-45. Kamusal aydın, entelektüellerin sorumluluğu Edward W. Said, “The Public Role of Writers and Intellectuals”, The Public Intellectual, Ed. Helen Small, Blackwell Publishing, 2002, s. 19-39. Noam Chomsky, Entelektüellerin Sorumluluğu, (Söyleşi: Michael Albert), Türkçesi: Nuri Ersoy, bgst Yayınları, 2005. Arundhati Roy, Sokaktaki İnsanın ‘İmparatorluk’ Rehberi, Türkçesi: Kemal Ülker, Angora, 2005, s. 35-55 (“Noam Chomsky’nin Yalnızlığı”). Edward W. Said, Entelektüel: Sürgün, Marjinal, Yabancı, Çeviren: Tuncay Birkan, Ayrıntı, 1995. (Representation of the Intellectual) Edward W. Said, Kültür ve Direniş, Çev. …, Agora, 2009. Entelektüeller Gerekli mi? Cogito, Sayı: 31, Bahar 2002 (Özel Sayı). Selâhattin Hilav, Entelektüeller ve Eylem (düşünceler – tartışmalar – söyleşiler), Hazırlayan: Sema Rifat, YKY, 2008, s. 11-15 (“Entelektüeller ve Eylem”). Richard Sennett, Kamusal İnsanın Çöküşü, İngilizceden çevirenler: Serpil Durak ve Abdullah Ylmaz, 3. Basım, Ayrıntı, 2010. Antonio Gramsci, Aydınlar ve Toplum, Çevirenler: V. Günyol / F. Edgü / B. Onaran, Alan, 1985. Mİchel Foucault, Doğruyu Söylemek, İngilizce’den çeviren: Kerem Eksen, Ayrıntı, 2005. Émile Zola, Suçluyorum, Fransızca aslından çeviren: Tahsin Yücel, Can Yayınları, 2007. Sivil itaatsizlik Henry David Thoreau, Civil Disobedience and Other Essays, Dover Thrift Editions, 1993, s. 1-18 (“Civil Disobedi
Planned Learning Activities and Teaching Methods	Study time for Theoretical Lectures (Lecture), Participation, Assignments, Final exam, Study time for final exam
Available for undergraduate students	Yes
Consent	Requires consent of instructor Except students from following programme Human Rights Law , Human Rights Law (without thesis) , Law , Law (without thesis)
Requirement and Policies	Students are required to be diligent about the reading and research assignments. Students are expected to actively participate in class discussions.

Course Content

1 .Week	Human rights activism (meeting and discussion)
2 .Week	A discussion about 'human rights', 'activism' and 'activist'
3 .Week	"New social movements": basic characteristics and human rights activism: a discussion line for activism
4 .Week	"Human rights" - "civil rights" and new social movements:
5 .Week	Who are the activists? Culture and biography in human rights activism
6 .Week	Truth, morality and opposition in the light of natural sciences and social sciences: why did nuclear scientist John Gofman become an activist?
7 .Week	Off-campus visit and discussion.
8 .Week	"Regarding the Pain of Others": a discussion in the context of Sontag's book
9 .Week	"Regarding the Pain of Others": case studies
10 .Week	Individual opposition and activism: public intellectual or the opponent
11 .Week	Disobedience and activism: "civil disobedience" theory and practice and human rights activism
12 .Week	Resistence and human rights activism: civil disobedience today
13 .Week	Philanthropy and human rights activism
14 .Week	Does human rights activism stand against philanthropy?
15 .Week	"Human rights defenders": a new space for individual rights or a tool for defending rights?
16 .Week	Preparation for the exam
17 .Week	Final exam

Assesment Methods And Criteria	Quantity	Percentage (%)
Participation	1	20
Assignments	1	40
Final exam	1	40
Total (%)		100

Offered In Elective Lists

MA in IR List

Human Rights Law List

Course List for Exchange Students - All

MA in History Full List

Ma in Int. Political Economy List

Ma in Int. Political Economy List (Full List)

Information and Technology Law Full List

LAW Full List

Civil Society Studies, Man. of Nongover. Org.List

Law List

Academic Integrity

Any test, assignment, paper, or report submitted by you and that has your name on it is presumed to be your own original work that has not previously been submitted for credit in another course or has not been written partially or completely by another person. In all of your assignments, you may use words or ideas written by other individuals in publications, web sites, or other sources, but only with proper attribution as explained in your course. If you are not clear about the expectations for completing an assignment or taking a test or examination, be sure to seek clarification from your instructor. Finally, you should keep in mind that as a member of the campus community, you are expected to demonstrate integrity in all of your academic endeavors and will be evaluated on your own merits.. The consequences of cheating and academic dishonesty is a formal discipline punishment as regulated by the Turkish Higher Educational Council.

Educational Support for Disabled Students

If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an accommodation, you are encouraged to contact both your instructor and Bilgi Accessible Education Unit as early as possible in the term. Bilgi Accessible Education Unit will verify your disability and determine reasonable accommodations for this course. For more information, visit http://step.bilgi.edu.tr/en/ogrenci-destek-merkezi/bilgi-accessible-education-unit/