ABSTRACT

This chapter discusses the way rights are fundamental to activists' struggles and more broadly, about the moral foundations of political activism. It considers with the notion of 'fundamental rights', drawing much on the interviews the author was asked to do for the Larzac 2003 radio project and on conversations, particularly with activist intellectuals, about a notion that is ubiquitous. The chapter argues that the notion of a fundamental right draws on both the categories of nature and society, and on ideas of morality and truth. It explores the processes by which activists on the Larzac produce this moral truth through evenings in which 'witnesses' testify to the truth of oppression and domination. In meetings for the preparation of Larzac 2003, rights were presented as the common thread linking the diverse political forums together. One meeting in Paris, involving twenty activists from a dozen associations, was devoted to deciding on themes for four or five large forums.