The 2025 CBC Massey Lectures

Universal: Renewing Human Rights in a Fractured World

Alex Neve

Universality is the core promise of the human rights order born out of the devastation of World War II and the Holocaust: these rights extend to everyone, everywhere, at all times, without exception. But the cruel reality is that the word universal also screams of our profound failure to keep the promise. Too often, human rights are applied selectively, withdrawn on the whims of political leaders, or ignored altogether.

This is not universality's finest hour. But it can be.

In the 2025 CBC Massey Lectures, human rights lawyer and former Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada Alex Neve lays out his vision for renewing the promise of universal human rights - both at home and abroad.

ABOUT THE MASSEY LECTURES: Since 1961, CBC Radio has been broadcasting the annual five-part Massey Lectures, bringing Canadians some of the greatest minds of our time, exploring the ideas that make us who we are and asking the questions that make us better human beings. The lectures are recorded on a cross-country tour. Past Massey Lecturers include Margaret Atwood, Martin Luther King Jr., Tanya Talaga and Stephen Lewis.

Tickets: Regular $20, Student/Senior/Children $15