Abstract
This article argues for a greater focus on human rights as practice through understanding the complex dynamics of collective action to secure rights-based entitlements and freedoms. This is particularly pertinent in contexts where certain social groups do not enjoy their socio-economic rights due to the unequal distribution of available livelihood resources. Drawing on two case studies of Dalit women's struggles for livelihood entitlements in rural Tamil Nadu, South India, this article reveals the factors and processes that enable and constrain these women's ability to collectively organise and claim needed livelihood resources. The case studies argue for a focus on how multiple structural axes such as caste, class and gender mutually construct each other and shape multiple power relations within specific socio-historical contexts. These complex power dynamics, embedded in social and institutional norms and practices, condition and, in turn, are conditioned by Dalit women's collective action. These dynamics also influence how the women's claims are dealt with by formal (State) institutions, and point to the relationship between formal and informal institutions. The article then indicates some key implications for operationalising rights-based development strategies targeting socially excluded groups.