ABSTRACT
Composed during the transition in the world system from colonialism to a postcolonial society of transnational corporations, global media, international political and economic arrangements, and high-speed information systems, the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights outlined basic rules for governing human conduct. Hurriedly planned and written after World War II to stop any new outbreaks of genocide, imperialism, and ethnocide, the Universal Declaration set the tone for future discussions about global rights. Later generations debated and elaborated on the justification and meaning of the human rights identified in the 1948 declaration.
