Date of Award
5-10-2026
Date Published
June 2026
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
History
Advisor(s)
Yael Zeira
Keywords
Cold War;Decolonization;Human Rights;Maghreb;Self-Determination;Western Sahara
Abstract
“Human Rights Deferred: The Carter Administration and Continuity of U.S. Policy Regarding Western Sahara” examines Western Sahara as one of the most enduring cases of unfinished decolonization in the postwar international order, focusing on U.S. policy during the Jimmy Carter administration. Despite clear legal affirmation of Sahrawi self-determination through the United Nations and the 1975 International Court of Justice advisory opinion, its implementation was persistently deferred. Drawing on declassified documents and congressional hearings, I argue that this outcome reflects a broader pattern of institutionalized deferral, in which normative commitments are formally recognized while their enforcement is postponed through procedural and diplomatic mechanisms. This project demonstrates that the 1970s human rights “turn,” often associated with Carter, did not fundamentally alter U.S. strategic priorities. Instead, human rights discourse was expanded and institutionalized—particularly through congressional activism—while the Carter administration sought to preserve strategic commitments to Morocco and maintained flexibility in enforcement. Situating Western Sahara within the strategic hierarchy of the Cold War and the procedural frameworks of international institutions, this thesis demonstrates that legal clarity did not produce political resolution. Rather, enforcement remained contingent on geopolitical alignment. By placing Western Sahara in conversation with broader historiographies of decolonization, Cold War governance, and human rights, this study highlights how international norms can be affirmed while their realization is systematically deferred.
Access
Open Access
Recommended Citation
Kinne, Adrienne, "HUMAN RIGHTS DEFERRED: THE CARTER ADMINISTRATION AND CONTINUITY OF U.S. POLICY REGARDING WESTERN SAHARA" (2026). Theses - ALL. 1015.
https://surface.syr.edu/thesis/1015
