Which statement best captures the relationship between human rights and respect for persons?

• A. Human rights require ignoring respect for persons
• B. Human rights rely on respect for persons; discrimination violates dignity
• C. Respect for persons is independent of human rights
• D. Human rights exceed respect for persons but are unrelated

Answer: (B)

Human rights are grounded in the inherent dignity and equal worth of every person. Because of that, the protections and freedoms we call human rights exist to safeguard how we ought to treat each person as an end in themselves. Respect for persons is the foundation of those rights; when we discriminate, we treat some individuals as less worthy, which undermines their dignity and violates their rights.

So the best statement expresses that human rights rely on respect for persons and that discrimination violates dignity. The other options conflict with this idea: rights aren’t about ignoring respect, they aren’t independent of respect, and they aren’t unrelated or merely “exceeding” respect.