Man's Rights in Objectivism


One thing that many people agree upon these days is that man possesses rights. What the vast majority of people disagree on is what exactly man's rights are. Objectivism holds that man's rights are individualistic, as in his rights are his, and cannot infringe upon another person's rights; nothing more and nothing less.

An individual right thus is defined as those rights that men have and do no infringe upon another person's rights. The right of dissenting speech is a right in most cases. To trespass onto another person's property to express your dissenting views on the government invalidates your dissenting speech right, because you harmed another person's rights by trespassing. But it should be made clear you still have your right of dissenting speech, you are only barred from violating another person's right when performing that action.

For those activities that require another person to perform, such as a protest, the word