Human Rights Under Pressure: A Conversation with Kenneth Roth

About this episode

Kenneth Roth discusses the evolution of the human rights landscape and the challenges faced by advocates in the current geopolitical climate.

On this episode of Entitled, we sit down with Kenneth Roth, the longtime former executive director of Human Rights Watch and one of the world’s most prominent advocates for international human rights. Over nearly three decades leading Human Rights Watch, Roth helped shape the global human rights movement, documenting abuses, pressuring governments, and elevating the role of international law in holding leaders accountable. In this conversation, he reflects on how the human rights landscape has evolved—from the optimism of the post–Cold War era to today’s more complex environment marked by rising authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, and geopolitical competition. Flores and Ginsburg ask Roth how human rights advocates can remain effective when powerful states challenge international norms and institutions. They discuss the role of documentation and public pressure in exposing abuses, the growing influence of authoritarian governments on the global stage, and the ways civil society can still drive accountability even in hostile political climates.

People in this episode

Hosts: Flores, Ginsburg

Guest: Kenneth Roth

Topics covered

• human rights
• international law
• authoritarianism
• democratic backsliding
• geopolitical competition
• civil society
• accountability

Keywords

• human rights
• international norms
• authoritarianism
• documentation
• civil society
• accountability
• geopolitical competition

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Human Rights Watch

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