Can Human Rights Help Social Movement Activists Frame Inequality as an Injustice? Lessons From Mining Affected Communities in South Africa

Whether or not human rights are equipped to confront socioeconomic inequality, particularly its structural dimensions, has become the topic of much debate among scholars and activists in recent years. This article brings a sociological perspective to this debate. It offers an in-depth case study conducted in collaboration with social movement activists from mining affected communities in South Africa that explores the cognitive processes through which activists make sense of and give meaning to their reality. In so doing, it decenters dominant forms of human rights praxis, to instead learn from those engaged directly in redistributive struggles.