By being effective, intimate advocates for marginalized communities, social
entrepreneurs have much to teach the practice of human rights, the formal conception of
which may be a Eurocentric idea devoid of input from the ‘subaltern’ (Rajagopal, 2007).
A new, fruitful dialectic can be established between social entrepreneurs, who use
pragmatic, locally specific knowledge and human rights, which may provide “a clear
ethical and legal basis for the work of the development community.” (Uvin, 2004, p. 49).
The definition and discourse of human rights is always a moving target that is reshaped
by political debate (Uvin, 2004). Due to their intimate connection with their customers,
social enterprises seem to be aptly poised to influence this debate on the part of the
marginalized and overcome the Eurocentric notions of the classical human rights regime.