The Foundations of Personhood: A Blueprint for the Human Right to Housing

Abstract

In this thesis, I offer a novel justification for housing as a human right and use my justification to specify the content of that right. Chapter 1 offers a background theory of human rights, building on the account given by James Griffin in his 2008 book On Human Rights. Chapter 2 applies that theory to argue for housing as a human right grounded in personhood and practicalities and to delimit the right. Chapter 3 evaluates alternative accounts of human rights and explains why housing advocates still have good reason to prefer mine. I conclude by refuting the skeptical claim that advocates ought not follow a human rights framework at all. The result of this work is a justification for the human right to housing that is animated in equal measure by the philosophical literature, the goals of housing advocates, and the needs of those without adequate housing.