Abstract

This article takes issue with the development, at the dawn of 21st century, of a new legal tool, which I will refer to as "millennial rights". I make the claim that the political impact of the unprecedented socio-political dynamics triggered by the penetrating jargon typical of these rights goes often unnoticed. I first provide both a historical reconstruction and theoretical account of millennial rights. Then I draw on Ian Hacking's conception of human kinds to explore the semantic activity that such legal rights carry out at an individual, social and political level. I conclude the article by discussing the risks that inhere in the uncontrolled expansion of such an effective legal tool.