The Politics of Rights: Lawyers, Public Policy, and Political Change

by Stuart A. Scheingold

Stuart A. Scheingold's landmark work introduced a new understanding of the contribution of rights to progressive social movements, and thirty years later it still stands as a pioneering and provocative work, bridging political science and sociolegal studies. In the preface to this new edition, the author provides a cogent analysis of the burgeoning scholarship that has been built on the foundations laid in his original volume. A new foreword from Malcolm Feeley of Berkeley's Boalt Hall School of Law traces the intellectual roots of The Politics of Rights to the classic texts of social theory and sociolegal studies.

"Scheingold presents a clear, thoughtful discussion of the ways in which rights can both empower and constrain those seeking change in American society. While much of the writing on rights is abstract and obscure, The Politics of Rights stands out as an accessible and engaging discussion."
-Gerald N. Rosenberg, University of Chicago

"This book has already exerted an enormous influence on two generations of scholars. It has had an enormous influence on political scientists, sociologists, and anthropologists, as well as historians and legal scholars. With this new edition, this influence is likely to continue for still more generations. The Politics of Rights has, I believe, become an American classic."
-Malcolm Feeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley, from the foreword
Stuart A. Scheingold is Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the University of Washington.

Genres: Law, Politics, Nonfiction

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

Reviews

[Nigel Tskitishvili]

how the field and practice of law has been captured (or always was captured) by dominant status quo forces

[Scott Holstad]

Historically important and indeed, a seminal work when it was published, it's sadly now almost beyond transparent, or perhaps its message is, and its tenants are widely accepted as givens, yet Scheingold was among the first to put this message out there so deserves some credit for that. It's a shame when a groundbreaking book (or work of some sort) is no longer considered so because it's become the accepted norm. That shouldn't demolish the fact that it was "x" author to first introduce such important matter. Yet that happens all too commonly, and such is the case with this text. Still, foundationally important, so recommended.

[Quentin Heuvel]

Had to read this for school and it was a slog but I’ll be damned if I don’t get credit for it on my yearly goal

[Adrien]

Dense, tough to absorb easily (constantly re-reading pages) -- making it a bit of a slog. But very interesting/stimulating.

[Asterix]

Have you ever heard of the 'Seinfeld is unfunny' trope? A lot of people say they don't find Seinfeld funny because, to them, the humor in it is old hat. The things used to get laughs in Seinfeld were original in their own time, but have since become stale because other comedy makers have borrowed so heavily from the show. Therefore a lot of people see Seinfeld itself as an uncreative, unfunny show--even though it was fantastically original in its own time.

By way of tortured analogy, The Politics of Rights feels a bit to me like Seinfeld does to some modern comedy viewers. The ideas Scheingold advances--that rights aren't all that powerful in themselves, that our democracy has a 'myth of rights' that does not comport with reality, and that the main value of rights is their ability to mobilize political action--are today taken for granted. Most everyone recognizes that our legal system protects entrenched interests more than it advances the rights of the underprivileged, and that the bias of the law is towards the status quo. Scheingold does not tell the modern reader much s/he is not already aware of. However, it was Scheingold himself--among others--who developed this view of rights that is so standard today.

Scheingold's work clearly has a lot of historical importance in establishing our modern view of political rights, but that does not necessarily mean this book is worth the time for the modern reader. Like I said, most modern readers already accept Scheingold's views instinctively, so it seems unlikely that many people will learn much from the book. It's not easy to read and relies on data now over 40 years out of date. A large part of the book is devoted to an examination of the 'activist lawyer' community that litigates on rights issues--an examination that is hopelessly dated and only of interest to law school deans.