A Human Rights´ Tale of Competing Narratives

A human rights´ tale of competing narratives explores the different human rights narratives at play within the context of the Inter-American System today. On the one hand, it analyses the universalistic narrative of Ius Constitutionale Commune and, in the other, the less explored story of member states resisting compliance with Inter-American decisions. This paper shows that the prevalence of the unidirectional and institutionalist narrative of Ius Constitutionale Commune may also contribute to the current challenges experienced within the Inter-American System. Member states have rebelled in recent times against this universal approach. However, the Inter-American institutions continue to be nonresponsive to this backlash. This paper argues that rather than treating states as entities to be kept under strict surveillance and mistrust, the Inter-American System should be changed and reimagined through dialogue and a deeper consideration of domestic contexts of member states.