Food Is Not A Human Right
Politicians love to declare things “human rights.” In November 2025, Seattle’s Mayor‑elect Katie Wilson stated: “Access to affordable, healthy food is a basic right.” It sounds compassionate, but it collapses under scrutiny.
What Is a Right?
A real right is a negative right. It protects you from interference.
- Your right to free speech means others cannot silence you.
- Your right to property means others cannot steal from you.
- Your right to life means others cannot kill you.
These rights require nothing from anyone except restraint. They do not demand resources, labor, or money.
Positive “Rights” Are Entitlements
When politicians call food a “right,” they are not talking about negative rights. They are talking about positive rights — entitlements that require someone else to provide something.
- A “right to healthcare” means doctors must treat you.
- A “right to housing” means builders must construct homes for you.
- A “right to food” means farmers, grocers, or taxpayers must supply you with meals.
Positive rights are not rights at all. They are claims on other people’s labor and property.
The 1‑2‑3 People Argument
Let’s test the claim that food is a right with a simple thought experiment:
One person on Earth: If food is a right, who provides it? There is no one else. The person must grow or gather food themselves. Clearly, no “provider” exists.
Two people on Earth: If food is a right, are they each required to produce food for the other? That makes no sense — each is capable of feeding themselves. Rights don’t obligate mutual servitude.
Three people on Earth: Do two get to tell the third that they are the food provider? That would enslave one person to the others. Rights cannot exist by violating someone else’s liberty.
This is not how rights work. Rights protect freedom; they do not assign duties to others. The thought experiment proves that food is not a right. It is a necessity — something each person must secure for themselves or through voluntary cooperation.
Food Is a Necessity, Not a Right
Food is essential to survival. But being essential does not make it a right. Oxygen is essential, yet no one is obligated to provide you with air. Shelter is essential, yet no one is obligated to build you a house.
Food is a need, not a right. Needs are met through work, trade, charity, and community — not through government decrees that redefine rights into entitlements.
Closing Argument
Declaring food a “human right” is political theater. It confuses compassion with coercion. Real rights are negative rights — they protect freedom by requiring non‑interference. Positive “rights” are entitlements that demand someone else’s labor.
Food is not a right. It is a necessity, and necessities are met through responsibility, effort, and voluntary generosity. When politicians call food a right, they are not defending liberty. They are undermining it.