Post No. 3,334 - Legalistic human rights advocacy vs humanistic human rights advocacy (~720 words, ~5 minutes)

 

Photo by Tom Barrett on Unsplash 
(low cumulus clouds, grey backed against the light, rise on the right to storm-like column and bands of higher clouds in the distance, all offset by golden-orange beams of light coming from the upper left)  

 

This post is rushed and being written under stressful life circumstances, so please forgive the lower quality. 

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In the late 1990s when I was a foundingoco-convenoroatoTGV, we knew one of the major benefits of anti-discrimination laws (apart from being able to take legal action in pursuit of a remedy) was that it gave our efforts to educate people about the truth of being trans, gender diverse, and nonbinary (TGDNB - and what I wouldn't have given for the terminology we have now back then) more weight, and thus our efforts were more likely to be listened to properly and taken genuinely. 

It also gave ouro(oroourocommunity's)opoliticaloadvocacy (especially relevant to things like indirect discrimination) more weight as well. 

The gaining of impact/credibility was, in my opinion, the main benefit, as I would rather prevent people having to use expensive, stressful, and time consuming legal action by persuading people to be better versions of themselves. 

PS - this "educational weight" benefit is why protections MUST be based on terminology clearly related to the group of people being protected - using something else (such as physical features, which was suggested for TGDNB people at one point in the 90s) does NOT send a clear enough message.  

However, there were some, mostly people who had legal qualifications/training or associated with such people, who were amathiac enough to think human rights outcomes wereoonlyovalidoifotheyoresultedoinolegaloaction. 

As I just indicated, that was amathiac: it was also incompetent, and, IMO, reflected their personaloinadequacies at dealing with something outside their speciality - a pestilential plague in other professions as well.  

More importantly, on top of that, as I pointed out at the time, is that it allows people to continue hating, and that means they will inevitably get organised and push back, and we risk losing everything - as has been happening this year in the USA in particular, but also happens elsewhere (including, I suspect, in the Australian Public Service and medical areas with high proportions of conservative religion adherents). 

Ironically, this is an area where DEI committees & advocates in business are more likely to be successful, and to cause their businesses to be at the leading edge of society - although vulnerable to legal-political-social backlash, in part owing to our legal inadequacies around corporations, as I wrote about here. 

The point is, if we focus on what I am terming “legalistic human rights advocacy” (which considers that only court cases have validity and impact), rather than what I am terming “humanistic human rights advocacy” (which acknowledges the need for court cases in the last resort, but also focuses on education to counter myths, misinformation, lies, and centuries and millennia of perverted social conditioning), we are doomed to failure and the need to repeat advocacy to refine laws again and again and again ... 

As a lot of this ultimately comes down to how children are raised, a lot of those who favour legalistic human rights advocacy will point to a very valid concern: 

what the n_z_soinoGermanyoinotheo1930so&o40s, fascism/dictators/etc have done elsewhere and in other times (particularly nowoinotheoUSA), and colonists throughout history, to pervert the choices parents make about raising children and suppress/wipe out cultures and/or variations to human existence and/or resistance to invasion/colonisation. 

Those concerns are indeed valid, and those forms of perversion of parenting MUST be resisted ... but what must also be resisted is: 

(a) the failure to acknowledge centuries and millennia of patriarchal social engineering / perversion of parenting, including through the use of dogmatic, sterile, and unspiritual forms of religion (I am a Pagan Priestess, and thus claim the right to comment on such matters); and 

(b) the failure to recognise the rights of the child to be the best that they can - or even just what they wish to be, free of the abuses of snowflake/"mini me" style parenting. 

Parents do not have the right to teach their children to hate, and advocates who think they are being neutral by ignoring millennia of history are, in fact, actually choosing to be an active perpetuator of abuse - which shows, again, their personal and professional incompetence. 

Humanistic human rights advocacy does not go down n_z_ and others path as it relies on education, skill & capability building, and empowerment of parents so they can be better, more effective parents and do a better job of raising their children to be mature, independent adults who are fully capable of making decisions for themselves. 

This awareness has to be one of the many important lessons to come out of this current fight against fascism and other legacy outcomes of neoliberalism. 

 

PPS - another perspective I have had on this is that legalistic human rights advocacy operates within existing politico-economic-social power structures (i.e., what is), which is vitally necessary to help victims of those structures, but humanistic human rights advocacy operates without (i.e., outside of) any such strictures - i.e., what could be (fresh eyes, to borrow some jargon). One deals with the world as it is, the other works at creating the world as it could and should be. 

 

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This seems to be becoming a bit of a series, so here are this and the previous ... “episodes” (the starting point for the summaries are AI generated, but I have considerably rewritten those):  

• “Post No. 3,334 - Legalistic human rights advocacy vs humanistic human rights advocacy”   https://gnwmythr.blogspot.com/2025/11/post-no-3334-legalistic-human-rights.html   “One of the major benefits of anti-discrimination laws in Victoria in the late 1990s was that it significantly bolstered efforts to educate the public on transgender issues. While some believe that human rights outcomes are only valid through legal action, that sort of “legalistic” human rights advocacy actually, IMO, hinders accomplishing real, lasting, and effective social change, and makes backlashes of the types seen this century (and, arguably, at their most extreme in the USA) inevitable. “Humanistic” advocacy, which emphasises education and countering misinformation, addresses the long-standing and too often unacknowledged societal issues of patriarchal parenting, as well as promoting children’s rights to develop into their authentic selves - independent thinkers free from hate indoctrination, which should be achieved by prioritising education and empowerment of parents.”      

• “Post No. 3,333 - The problem of this world being cold hearted ... and a counter to that (~670 words, ~4 minutes)”   https://gnwmythr.blogspot.com/2025/11/post-no-3333-problem-of-this-world.html   “In addressing the cold-heartedness of contemporary society, I highlight the detrimental impact on individuals’ self-esteem, particularly those affected by CSA, SA, neurodivergence, and marginalised  identities. This societal rigidity can lead to significant health issues, aggravated by stress and the pressure to secure employment. Reflecting on my personal experiences, I revisit the Telepathy Tapes, which I initially perceived with scepticism owing to my fears of exploitative narratives around disability. However, as a result of listening to a recent interview, I now am satisfied the Telepathy Tapes are genuine investigations into nonphysical capabilities, although there are still some genuine disability concerns. This knowledge could help with the changes needed to combat the pervasive negativity of neoliberal ideologies - the nurturing of individual healing may provide a pathway to broader societal change.”      

• “Post No. 3,331 - Changes (~370 words, ~3 minutes)”   https://gnwmythr.blogspot.com/2025/11/post-no-3331-changes-370-words-3-minutes.html   “There is a critical need for political parties to genuinely address the concerns of young people regarding the climate crisis, inequality, and housing affordability, as highlighted by Kos Samaras's article on the decline of the post-World War II political framework. My view is that the current political establishment is failing and that more innovative electoral structures, like larger multi-member electorates, could better represent diverse voices. The impact of a toxic neoliberal culture on youth confidence and mental health is profound, necessitating a reevaluation of political responses and societal structures. As mainstream parties decline, new political entities will likely emerge - for better or for worse - to fill the void, reflecting the shifting dynamics of contemporary democracy.”      

• “Post No. 3,327 - Political survivability, or human survivability? (~340 words, ~ 2 minutes)”   https://gnwmythr.blogspot.com/2025/11/post-no-3327-political-survivability-or.html   “In this post, I write about concerns about political changes in Australia, focused on inequality driven by large corporations that prioritise financial decisions over social and environmental issues, and warn that future generations will hold the current older generation accountable for our inaction, particularly regarding food scarcity and climate change. Urgent legislative action is needed to allow corporate decision-making that considers the survival of the human species, countering the impending disaster scenario. I emphasise the dire consequences if these changes are not made, likening potential future crises to genocide, and urge politicians to choose the long-term survival of their children (and constituents) over short-term political gains.”      

• “Post No. 3,323 - A rant: the problem of incompetence at being human (~1,020 words; ~ 7 minutes)”   https://gnwmythr.blogspot.com/2025/11/post-no-3323-rant-problem-of.html    “One major issue in industrialised societies is the pressure to justify one’s existence through constant busyness, which I criticise as a distortion of humanity linked to neochristianity and particularly Calvinism. This pressure, driven by ultra-rich neoliberals and patriarchal conditioning, creates an obligation to remain busy, often with trivial tasks. Additionally, the fear of being “different” leads to conformity and bigotry, especially regarding gender roles. Toxic alpha personalities, often in positions of power, perpetuate gender inequality and misogyny, including among women who emulate these traits. Addressing unmanaged unconscious bias is crucial for improving diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts in workplaces, as current hiring practices often favour candidates who fit biased moulds. Political reforms are needed to ensure that leadership embodies accountability beyond wealth interests, including my call for bans on property ownership among MPs involved in housing debates, to restore balance between corporations and citizens.”      

Possible flaws 

Where I can, I will try to highlight possible flaws / issues you should consider: 

• there may be flawed logical arguments in the above: to find out more about such flaws and thinking generally, I recommend Brendan  Myers’ free online course “Clear and Present Thinking”;  
• I could be wrong - so keep your thinking caps on, and make up your own minds for yourself.
  

 

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Remember: we generally need to be more human being rather than human doing, to mind our Mӕgan, and to acknowledge that all misgendering is an act of active transphobia/transmisia that puts trans+ lives at risk & accept that all insistence on the use of “trans” as a descriptor comes with commensurate use of “cis” as a descriptor to prevent “othering” (just as binary gendered [men’s and women’s] sporting teams are either both given the gender descriptor, or neither).

#PsychicABetterWorld   and  

Note that I am cutting back on aspects of my posts - see here, and Gnwmythr is pronounced new-MYTH-ear  

Copyright © Kayleen White 2007-2025     NO AI   I do not consent to any machine learning aka Artificial Intelligence (AI), generative AI, large language model, machine learning, chatbot, or other automated analysis, generative process, or replication program to reproduce, mimic, remix, summarise, or otherwise  replicate any part of this post or other posts on this blog via any means. Typo’s may be inserrted deliberately to demonstrate this is not an AI product.     Otherwise, fair and reasonable use is accepted under Creative Commons 4.0 on an Attribution-ShareAlike basis https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/