1. people who are treated as if they do not exist or have no rights, especially by a government or authority
Usage: political; often refers to systematic denial of recognition

Examples

• The authoritarian regime declared political dissidents to be nonpersons.
• In the dystopian novel, criminals became nonpersons with no legal standing.
• The government’s policy effectively made refugees nonpersons in their own country.
• Historical records were altered to make the fallen leaders into nonpersons.
• The totalitarian state created a system where opponents became nonpersons overnight.
• Civil rights activists fought against laws that would make certain groups nonpersons.