Negative justice: The case of the human rights museum

Abstract

This article analyzes the role of human rights museums in fostering a common public understanding of rights at the grassroots level. It explores how these museums engage with societal contradictions through museological techniques, exhibition narratives, and intense interactions with communities. The study also discusses how human rights museums form communities to create a ‘legal common sense’ around questions of marginality and disputes. By examining the societal influence, legal mandates and community-building initiatives, it is argued that human rights museums work to deepen our understanding of how cultural actions can make human rights accessible to the public through the notion of ‘negative justice’.