Individualism regards man—every man—as an independent, sovereign entity who
possesses an inalienable right to his own life, a right derived from his nature
as a rational being. Individualism holds that a civilized society, or any form
of association, cooperation or peaceful coexistence among men, can be achieved
only on the basis of the recognition of individual rights—and that a group, as
such, has no rights other than the individual rights of its members.