ABSTRACT
This chapter examines human rights as a professional field: what human rights workers do, what they are confronted with, what kind of expertise is required of them, and how they deal with field experience. I especially explore the ambiguities and predicaments of the job, particularly in volatile environments. I also focus on human rights methods, such as interviews, investigation, data gathering, working with the local police and judicial system, and the management of cultural and religious differences. Finally, I explore the ambivalence of international human rights organizations when diplomatic interests are at stake. I use a personal tone: this is a personal narrative with a strong scholarly dimension, as I examine my own experience working in human rights. This examination comes from my having worked for a decade in human rights and development with the Organization of American States (OAS, which includes Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela), the United Nations, United Nations Development Programme, and various non-governmental organizations, including Viva Rio and IFES. I directed the Human Rights Education Fund in Haiti and was the political adviser to the OAS Chief of Mission in Haiti. My perspective on human rights work is grounded on sustained field experience.
