Stephen Mintz, University of Texas, writing in Inside Higher Education: “The history of rights is often depicted in Whiggish terms as a steady progression toward justice, rooted in the growing acceptance of certain universal moral principles. However, this narrative is wrong. It is fundamentally ahistorical. Rights are won, not given—they emerge through struggle, resistance, and negotiation. Rather than viewing the growth of rights as driven mainly by the unfolding of abstract ideas, it’s essential to recognize that ideas do not evolve in a vacuum but are the product of material conditions, power struggles, and human agency. It is not merely the expression of intellectual shifts; today’s consciousness of rights reflects the influence of economic forces, social hierarchies, and political conflicts.”