What are human rights? How has the concept of human rights evolved? How and why have human rights been violated, both in the United States and abroad? How have people struggled against human rights violations and with what success? What protections against violations of human rights exist, and how can these protections be enhanced and made more effective? These are the type of questions that human rights students are encouraged to pursue.
The Gladstein Family Human Rights Institute offers students the opportunity to major or minor in human rights at UConn. Our major must be pursued as a second program of study, so students are required to select a primary major in a different discipline. We provide interdisciplinary instruction in theoretical, comparative, and historical perspectives on human rights through classroom courses and gain valuable practical experience in the human rights field through a supervised internship.