Human rights in the United States
In the United States, human rights comprise a series of rights which are legally protected by the Constitution of the United States (particularly the Bill of Rights),[1][2] state constitutions, treaty and customary international law, legislation enacted by Congress and state legislatures, and state referendums and citizen's initiatives. The Federal Government has, through a ratified constitution, guaranteed unalienable rights to its citizens and (to some degree) non-citizens. These rights have evolved over time through constitutional amendments, legislation, and judicial precedent. Along with the rights themselves, the portion of the population granted these rights has expanded over time.[3] Within the United States, federal courts have jurisdiction over international human rights laws.[4]
The United States is ranked highly[5][6] on human rights by various organizations. For example, the Freedom in the World index lists the United States 53rd in the world for civil and political rights, with 83 out of 100 points as of 2023;[7][8] the Press Freedom Index, published by Reporters Without Borders, put the U.S. 55th out of 180 countries in 2024,[9] the Democracy Index, published by the Economist Intelligence Unit, classifies the United States as a "flawed democracy".[8] Despite its high rankings, human rights issues still arise.[10][11][12]
Further assessments[edit]
The Polity data series generated by the Political Instability Task Force, a U.S. government-funded project, rating regime and authority characteristics, covering the years 1800–2018, has given the US 10 points out of 10 for the years 1871–1966 and 1974–2015. The US score declined to 8 in 2016, 2017, and 2018.[313]
According to the Economist Magazine's Democracy Index (2016), the US ranks 21 out of 167 nations. In 2016 and 2017, the United States is classified as a "Flawed Democracy" by Democracy Index and received a score of 8.24 out of 10.00 with respect to civil liberties.[314] This is the first time the United States has been downgraded from a "Full Democracy" to a "Flawed Democracy" since The Economist began publishing the Democracy Index report.[315][316]
According to the annual Worldwide Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders, due to journalist harassment and public distrust in mainstream media, the U.S ranked 44 out of 197 countries for press freedom.[317]
According to the annual Corruption Perceptions Index, which was published by Transparency International, the United States ranked 25th out of 180 countries with of 67/100 for political transparency.[318]
According to the annual Privacy International index of 2007, the United States was ranked an "endemic surveillance society", scoring only 1.5 out of 5 privacy points.[319]
According to the annual Democracy Matrix, which is published by the University of Würzburg, the US was a "working democracy" in 2019, which is the highest category in that index, although it is the third-lowest ranking country in that category (36th overall).[320]
According to the Gallup International Millennium Survey, the United States ranked 23rd in citizens' perception of human rights observance when its citizens were asked, "In general, do you think that human rights are being fully respected, partially respected or are they not being respected at all in your country?"[321]
Other issues[edit]
In the aftermath of the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina, criticism by some groups commenting on human rights issues was made regarding the recovery and reconstruction issues[322][323] The American Civil Liberties Union and the National Prison Project documented mistreatment of the prison population during the flooding,[324][325] while United Nations Special Rapporteur Doudou Diène delivered a 2008 report on such issues.[326] The United States was elected in 2009 to sit on the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC),[327] which the U.S. State Department had previously asserted had lost its credibility by its prior stances[328] and lack of safeguards against severe human rights violators taking a seat.[329] In 2006 and 2007, the UNHCR and Martin Scheinin were critical of the United States regard permitting executions by lethal injection, housing children in adult jails, subjecting prisoners to prolonged isolation in supermax prisons, using enhanced interrogation techniques and domestic poverty gaps.[330][331][332][333]
On 28 October 2020, Amnesty International raised concerns over the condition of human rights in the United States, and decided to monitor and expose the human rights violations related to protests during and after the 3 November United States elections.[334]
On 9 November 2020, during the 3.5 -hour session at the UN's main human rights body, the United States came under scrutiny for the first time in five years, regarding the detention of migrant children and the killings of unarmed Black people during Donald Trump’s tenure. The US critics, including Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Russia and China, raised concerns on the United States human rights records that followed up on an August report about past rights records of the US.[335]
Deaths of migrant people in US custody at the border are one of the important issues that raised concerns about human rights in the United States.[336]
The Kino Border Initiative tracked 78 complaints from migrants between 2010 and 2022, of which it says 95 percent did not lead to any investigation or proper disciplinary action.[337]
Criticism of the US human rights record
US Human rights abuses
Organizations involved in US human rights
People involved in US human rights
Notable comments on US human rights