Poverty and human rights intersect in interesting ways. Thomas W. Pogge (2003) argues that the experience of severe poverty is a human rights violation. The human rights violation argument is particularly the case when people do not have their basic needs met. Despite arguments like Pogge's, there is no consensus on whether access to basic needs is a human right. For the time being, the debate remains to which degree, if any, all human beings have the right to a certain living standard.

 

Resources

The Racialization of Poverty in Canada: Implications for Section 15 Charter protection

A Renewed Voice for Social Canada - Caledon Institute of Social Policy

Human Rights and Poverty Reduction Strategies: A Guide to International Human Rights Law and its Domestic Application in Poverty Reduction Strategies

Poverty as a Human Rights Violation

Flourishing Together: A Public Justice Approach to the Canadian Poverty Reduction Strategy

United Nations Universal Declaration of Human rights

International Human Rights and Strategies to Address Homelessness and Poverty in Canada: Making the Connection

CCR Concerns: Human Trafficking in Canada