Grassroots visions, global standards: assessing local human rights institutions in the deep south through the Paris principles

This article evaluates local human rights institutions (HRIs) in the Deep South of the United States through the lens of the Paris Principles, originally developed to guide national HRIs. Using a grounded theory approach, interviews were conducted with local human rights practitioners in the US States of Louisiana and Mississippi. Although an analysis combining institutional assessment using the Paris Principles and interviews interpreted via grounded theory reveals that the local HRIs in this region fall short in their mandates, independence, and resource sufficiency, the institutional visions articulated by interviewees reflect many of the same priorities originally reflected in the standards, suggesting that the Paris Principles have resonance. This suggests that these and other similar standards may function not only as a tool for institutional design, but also as a counterhegemonic tool in realising human rights outcomes. The findings further contribute to debates on U.S. human rights exceptionalist behaviour by introducing white hegemony as a force that shapes the limits of rights implementation. By integrating normative evaluation with grounded insight, this article advances the study of local human rights practice.