ABSTRACT
A human rights-centered sociology must directly address the questions of war and peace. Indeed, it can be argued that security is a human right and that no lasting peace is conceivable without the realization of justice and human rights. In an age of nuclear weapons and the globalization of violence, no social problem is more pressing than war and no need more urgent than peace. Yet, surprisingly, mainstream sociology has largely overlooked both issues. In a study of American and European main sociological journals, Garnett (1988) found that war is not perceived as an important research topic in sociology. Fortunately, there has been a recent resurgence of interest among a specialized circle of sociologists in the study of violence and war (Collins 2008; Giddens 1985; Joas 2003; Kestnbaum 2009; Malesevic 2010; Mann 1988; Shaw 2000; Skocpol 1979; Tilly 1992).
