Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 April 2024
In Chapter 4, I take up two problems. The first problem focuses on “noninstitutional” violations of people’s rights. The second problem focuses on affluent people’s positive obligations in the face of slow-moving institutional change. In response, I develop an account of negative and positive interpersonal obligations. I first argue that while we have a primary obligation to advance institutional justice, we also have interpersonal obligations that constrain our interpersonal behavior. If human rights norms don’t apply to interpersonal interactions, then a human rights theory won’t be able to account for noninstitutional violations. In response to the second problem, I draw from Peter Singer’s shallow pond example and the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37). Building on these examples, I argue that affluent people have greater obligations to severely poor people than commonsense judgments suggest.
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