In Search of a Better World

304 pages

English language

Published April 11, 2017 by House of Anansi Press.

ISBN:: 978-1-4870-0200-8

(1 review)

A work of memoir, history, and a call to action, the CBC Massey Lectures by internationally renowned UN prosecutor and scholar Payam Akhavan is a powerful and essential work on the major human rights struggles of our times.

Renowned UN prosecutor and human rights scholar Payam Akhavan has encountered the grim realities of contemporary genocide throughout his life and career. He argues that deceptive utopias, political cynicism, and public apathy have given rise to major human rights abuses: from the religious persecution of Iranian Bahá’ís that shaped his personal life, to the horrors of ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia, the genocide in Rwanda, and the rise of contemporary phenomena such as the Islamic State. But he also reflects on the inspiring resilience of the human spirit and the reality of our inextricable interdependence to liberate us, whether from hateful ideologies that deny the humanity of others or an empty consumerist culture …

A work of memoir, history, and a call to action, the CBC Massey Lectures by internationally renowned UN prosecutor and scholar Payam Akhavan is a powerful and essential work on the major human rights struggles of our times.

Renowned UN prosecutor and human rights scholar Payam Akhavan has encountered the grim realities of contemporary genocide throughout his life and career. He argues that deceptive utopias, political cynicism, and public apathy have given rise to major human rights abuses: from the religious persecution of Iranian Bahá’ís that shaped his personal life, to the horrors of ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia, the genocide in Rwanda, and the rise of contemporary phenomena such as the Islamic State. But he also reflects on the inspiring resilience of the human spirit and the reality of our inextricable interdependence to liberate us, whether from hateful ideologies that deny the humanity of others or an empty consumerist culture that worships greed and self-indulgence.

A timely, essential, and passionate work of memoir and history, In Search of a Better World is a tour de force by an internationally renowned human rights lawyer.

2 editions

Sean Bala reviewed In Search of a Better World by Payam Akhavan

Review of 'In Search of a Better World' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

A eloquent, passionate, and thought-provoking work. When I listened to this year's CBC Massey lectures, I was awestruck at the erudition, compassion, and intelligence of Mr. Payam Akhavan, a former UN Prosecutor and currently a professor of International Law at McGill University in Montreal.

This book is about more than human rights and genocide. The lectures weave memories, theory, and reflections into a profound narrative that touches upon so many facets of our daily lives. At the root of the lectures is the idea that human rights are rooted in everyday empathy and justice is rooted in the idea of suffering. It is only through being touched by suffering that we can understand and witness to the suffering of others. A mystical message one does not often hear in International Relations circles.

Through the five lectures, Mr. Akhavan takes readers from his childhood in Iran feeling persecution to Canada to …

A eloquent, passionate, and thought-provoking work. When I listened to this year's CBC Massey lectures, I was awestruck at the erudition, compassion, and intelligence of Mr. Payam Akhavan, a former UN Prosecutor and currently a professor of International Law at McGill University in Montreal.

This book is about more than human rights and genocide. The lectures weave memories, theory, and reflections into a profound narrative that touches upon so many facets of our daily lives. At the root of the lectures is the idea that human rights are rooted in everyday empathy and justice is rooted in the idea of suffering. It is only through being touched by suffering that we can understand and witness to the suffering of others. A mystical message one does not often hear in International Relations circles.

Through the five lectures, Mr. Akhavan takes readers from his childhood in Iran feeling persecution to Canada to Bosnia, Rwanda, New York, and finally Iraq and Syria. He shows how so many of the world's crises stem from a lack of empathy for others that ignores the fundamental oneness of humanity. Ultimately, building a better world comes through everyday interactions and witnessing to the suffering of others. I was deeply moved by this work and I have thought about many of his insights afterwards.

One thing I would like to note is that the lectures on the CBC were highlights of the talks. In many places, sentences from different paragraphs of the book were spliced together and overall, the audio of the talks lost the deep richness one can find in the book. I highly recommend this work and think that it might just change the way you see yourself and your role in the world.

Subjects

Human rights
International law

Lists

Massey Lectures