natural rights

1. Rights that people supposedly have under natural law. The Declaration of Independence of the United States lists life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as natural rights.

Example Sentences

Mr. Persico sides with scholars who find the rudiments of natural rights in the medieval period.

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Leaning heavily on Jeffersonian rhetoric, the Browns called on the “oppressed” populace to rise and assert “their natural rights” as “citizens of a free republic.”

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It points to their experience with artificial hierarchies, arbitrary violations of natural rights and freedoms, and abuses of political power by a tyrannical governing authority.

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For Locke, the state of nature’s material bounty meant that governments were required to respect the “natural rights” of individuals, including the right to own private property.

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The independent Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor said at the time: "Iraqi authorities' detention and conviction of several social media content creators on vague charges that do not justify the restriction of natural rights is extremely concerning."

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Related Words

• freedom 
• freedom of religion 
• freedom of speech 
• human rights