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Civic virtue is a bulwark against authoritarianism, but also against the worst excesses of democracy. It has been appropriated by the proponents of republicanism and communitarianism, focusing upon duties rather thanrights, and the collective rather than the individual. This paper demonstrates, however, that republicanism and community values are not mutually exclusive with the concept of universal individual humanrights. It considers traditional interpretations ofcivic virtue from both West and East, then introduces a conceptualization of (...) the relationship betweenrights and responsibilities which alienates neither the liberal concept of individuals as universal humanrights bearers, nor the communitarian perspectives. (shrink)

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The issue of votingrights for older children has been high on the political and philosophical agenda for quite some time now, and not without reason. Aside from principled moral and philosophical reasons why it is an important matter, many economic, environmental, and political issues are currently being decided—sometimes through indecision—that greatly impact the future of today’s children. Past and current generations of adults have, arguably, mortgaged their children’s future, and this makes the question whether (some) children should be (...) granted the right to vote all the more pressing. Should (some) children be given the right to vote? Moreover, does the answer to this question depend oncivic education, on whether children have been deliberately prepared for the exercise of that right? These are the questions that will occupy us in this article. Our answer to the first will be that older children—children roughly between 14 and 16 years of age1—ought to be given the right to vote. (shrink)

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Dagger argues for a republican liberalism that, while celebrating the liberal heritage of autonomy andrights, solidly places these within social relations and obligations, which while ubiquitous, are often obscured and forgotten.

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In this highly relevant and important contribution to the debate on the future of the welfare state, Stuart White reconsiders the principles of economic citizenship appropriate to a democratic society, and explores the radical implications of these principles for public policy.

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This book is about multiculturalism, broadly defined as the recognition, respect and accommodation of cultural differences. Teo proposes a framework of multicultural denizenship that includes group-specificrights and intercultural dialogue, by problematising three issues: a) the unacknowledged misrecognition of non-citizens within the scholarship of multiculturalism; b) uncritical treatment of citizens and non-citizens as binary categories and; c) problematic parcelling of group-specificrights with citizenshiprights. Drawing on the case of Singapore as an illustrative example, where temporary labour (...) migrants are culturally stereotyped, socioeconomically disenfranchised and denied access torights accorded only to citizens, Teo argues that understandings of multiculturalism need to be expanded and adjusted to include a fluidity of identities, spectrum ofrights and shared experiences of marginalisation among citizens and non-citizens.Civic Multiculturalism in Singapore will be of interest to students and scholars of multiculturalism, critical citizenship studies, migration studies, political theory and postcolonial studies. (shrink)

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Since Kenya gained independence from Britain in 1963, women’srights in the country have made slow gains and suffered some setbacks. However, therights of women and their guaranteed participation in politics was outlined in Kenya’s 2010 Constitution. This paper will survey some of those gains as well as describe the social backlash experienced by women leaders who have been trailblazers in post-colonial Kenyan politics.

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The rise of regional identities in Europe is a process largely welcomed by liberals and especially applauded by radical democratic and postcolonial theorists. Yet this trend towards post-nation-state identity is not only attractive to democratic and postcolonial theories, but is also an integral part of current neo-fascist ideologies. This article examines the intellectual origins of rightwing ethnoregionalism and the idea of ‘exclusionist multiculturalism’ through the works of Pierre Drieu La Rochelle and Alain de Benoist. It also compares the idea of (...) exclusionist ‘regional’ multiculturalism with liberal multiculturalism and defends a democratic,civic republicanism as an alternative to both. (shrink)

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Stephen Macedo; Multiculturalism for the Religious Right? Defending LiberalCivic Education, Journal of Philosophy of Education, Volume 29, Issue 2, 30 May 2006.

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One prominent criticism of John Rawls’s The Law of Peoples is that it treats certain non-liberal societies, what Rawls calls ‘decent hierarchical societies’, as equal participants in a just international system. Rawls claims that these non-liberal societies should be respected as equals by liberal democratic societies, even though they do not grant their citizens the basicrights of democratic citizenship. This is presented by Rawls as a consequence of liberalism’s commitment to the principle of toleration. A number of critics (...) have claimed that Rawls’s treatment of these non-liberal societies is symptomatic of a more general problem with political liberalism, namely, its reliance on toleration as its ‘fundamental principle’. Against this view, I argue that the principle of toleration should not be understood as political liberalism’s ‘fundamental principle’. This is revealed through a consideration of the normative basis of what Rawls calls the ‘Liberal Principle of Legitimacy’. A correct understanding of political liberalism’s ‘fundamental principle’, which I claim is a principle of equal ‘civic respect’ for citizens, shows that Rawls’s toleration of non-liberal societies is in fact a misapplication of political liberalism to the global domain. Moreover, I explain that political liberalism must assert that the principle of equalcivic respect for citizens is the correct principle to govern the public political relations of citizens in all pluralist societies, and that most ‘decent hierarchical societies’ are pluralist in nature. Identifying political liberalism’s fundamental principle as that of equalcivic respect for citizens helps to render political liberalism, in both the domestic and international domains, a more coherent and compelling approach to thinking about fundamental political issues. Key Words:civic respect • international relations • justice • political liberalism • Rawls • toleration. (shrink)

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In this dissertation I seek to answer the question, “What are the virtues of the excellent citizen in a liberal democracy?" This question is important on three levels. First, ifcivic virtue is as important to the perpetuation of liberal democratic community as neo-liberal and communitarian thinkers have argued, then curiosity alone should motivate us. Second, if projects to foster the virtues are critical, then we must understand the virtues in order to foster them effectively and appropriately. Third, those (...) who wish to attain greater excellence in citizenship need to know what the virtues are so that they may pursue them. In Chapters One and Two, I argue that current accounts ofcivic virtue are deficient because they fail to explore its basis, nature, and constituents. To better understandcivic virtue, we must explore specific citizen virtues. To fulfill this aim, we require a citizen virtue catalog structured by an explanatory framework that is anchored in the role-based nature of citizen virtue. Such a framework provides the rationale for determining which virtues should be included in the catalog and which should not as well as a basis for comparing competing catalogs. As the role of citizen is to assist his state, the citizen virtues are those qualities that enable the citizen to assist the state in achieving its aims” in protecting, promoting, and realizing the liberal democratic ideals (namely, freedom, equality, self-government, collective cooperation, and stability). In the remaining chapters, I survey neo-liberal accounts of citizen virtue proposed by Richard Dagger, William Galston, David Jones, Mark Kingwell, Stephen Macedo, and Thomas Spragens, Jr. I apply the Chapter Two framework to assess the virtue candidates they propose. These chapters share a common format but differ in focus. Chapter Three takes up the citizen virtues that treat political community: cooperation, participation, vigilance, deliberative excellence, and obedience to law. Chapter Four, the liberal citizen virtues: allegiance to liberal democratic community, tolerance, and respect forrights. And Chapter Five, the citizen virtues relating to self-governance: autonomy, responsibility, and restraint. Chapter Six concludes. (shrink)

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Many democratic theorists hold that when a decision is collectively made in the right kind of way, in accordance with the right procedure, it is permissible to enforce it. They deny that there are further requirements on the type of reasons that can permissibly be used to justify laws and policies. In this paper, I argue that democratic theorists are mistaken about this. So-called public reason requirements follow from commitments that most of them already hold. Drawing on the democratic ideal (...) ofcivic equality, I show that it can successfully explain why political decision-making must have the right sort of procedure-independent justification. However, contra standard accounts of public reason, I argue that laws and policies need to be justified with convergence accessible, not shared, reasons. Public reasons are those that are accessible in light of evaluative standards shared by all, or in light of every citizen’s private evaluative standards. Since this will make the set of public reasons wider, it makes the theory more palatable to sceptics while retaining the framework’s justificatory potential. (shrink)

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This chapter presents a portrait of American children as situationally vulnerable and introduces the public emotion ofcivic tenderness as a response to the indifference that is routinely directed toward this vulnerability. Discussions of pro-social empathic emotions typically prioritize emotions like sympathy and compassion. While they are important in their own right, these pro-social emotions are responses to situations of current need.Civic tenderness is a response to situations of vulnerability. Insofar as a person or group is now (...) in a situation of need, they had to have first been vulnerable to experiencing that need. Since vulnerability is conceptually prior to need,civic tenderness is prior to these other pro-social emotions. Through the process that I call tenderization, I explain how tenderness for poor and impoverished children’s vulnerability can be expanded to a society’s members, institutions, and systems. (shrink)

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Although a number of aspects of earlier experiences correlate with latercivic engagement (Sherrod 2007), the role of different factors in driving the level of young people’s engagement is not clearly understood. This qualitative study set out to understand those factors in Turkey. Eight focus groups were conducted with 55 young Roma and Turkish people, with different groups being conducted according to participants’ ethnicity, gender and age (16–18 year olds vs. 20–26 year olds). Analysis revealed specific themes in terms (...) of the political andcivic engagement of different sub-groups. However, almost all participants expressed that they did not have enough information about theirrights and obligations as citizens. They also identified the different barriers which they perceived as impeding their political involvement and participation. (shrink)

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Whether religious and other voluntary associations should reflect public values is a subject of controversy. Corey Brettschneider argues that the state should assert its own values of free and equal citizenship, deliberately attempting to transform the beliefs of illiberal groups through court decisions and through selective withdrawal of tax exemptions. I argue, however, that as long as individuals and groups comply with the law, it is not the business of the state to change their beliefs. Moreover, public authority itself does (...) not always exemplify his preferred values. Second, although I oppose direct funding for organizations that oppose public values, determining which organizations espouse the “right” values accords too much power to public authority. Moreover, many associations evolve over time. Finally, the true threat lies in practices that voluntary associations may seek to impose on the larger community. (shrink)

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The article is devoted to the research ofcivic engagement processes, which are gaining more and more publicity in world political science. Applying modern professional approaches, the author offers an explanation of the recruitment of civil advocacy through a clear political goal and connection with the current situational context. The article reveals and describes the main components of measuring the involvement of political activists within the framework of modern civil advocacy campaigns. The author reveals the mechanisms of expressing views (...) and positions, protecting one’srights and influencing decision-making processes at different levels of management. It is emphasized that civil advocacy covers a wide range of activities aimed at participation in political processes. The text examines advocacy campaigns in the political practice of consolidated democracies as organized events aimed at drawing attention to specific problems and achieving policy changes or raising public awareness. In the work, an appeal was also made to the qualification requirements and job duties of the leaders of civil campaigns. The article analyzes the actualization of the issue of civil advocacy in social and political innovations at the current stage. It is noted that in developed democratic countries a tendency to pay attention to social public innovations is outlined. It has been established that the development of civil society in Ukraine involves the development of a national model of engaging citizens in conducting advocacy campaigns. Attention is paid to attracting new active participants, for whom public advocacy campaigns become a factor in forming an environment of collaboration and expanding the circle of social communication. Emphasis is placed on the continuous inclusion of individuals and groups in activities aimed at improving the public environment and forming conscious public leadership and an atmosphere of social success. In the final part of the article, the author emphasizes that effective public involvement involves a variety of approaches. It was concluded that the decisive factor that prompts citizens to take a proactive position and participate in civil advocacy campaigns are pragmatic needs and ideas about achieving a state of satisfaction of requirements. (shrink)

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In Professional Ethics andCivic Morals , Emile Durkheim outlined the core of his theory of morality and socialrights which was to dominate his work throughout the course of his life. In Durkheim's view, sociology is a science of morals which are objective social facts, and these moral regulations form the basis of individualrights and obligations. This book is crucial to an understanding of Durkheim's sociology because it contains his much-neglected theory of the state as (...) a moral institution, and it provides an understanding of his critique of anomie and egoistic individualism. The growing interest in cultural revolution and moral regulation make this edition of Durkheim's classic work especially timely. The new preface by Bryan Turner sets the book in its intellectual and historical context, and illustrates the relevance of this work to present day debates on the state, society, and moral regulation. (shrink)

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How should the notion of civics be rethought in the digital age and within the infosphere? The commentary addresses this question by focusing on two main issues. The first part delves into the effects of the dynamics of “surveillance capitalism” and datafication processes on the possible developments of the idea of civics in the digital sphere. It stresses the need to set the issue of users’ datarights at the center of digitalcivic initiatives. The second part explores (...) the notions of political community and membership that should underpin the idea of digital civics. It argues that the diverse range of values and virtues which shape civics on a global scale should be taken into consideration to define the spatial scope—or political geography—of the community to which digitalcivic initiatives are addressed. (shrink)

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This paper argues that liberalism provides democracy with the experience ofcivic reformism. Without it, democracy loses any tie-argumentative or practical-to a coherent design of public policy endeavoring to provide the resources for the realization of democratic citizenship. The case for liberalism rests on an argumentative reconstruction of the function it performs before the rise of a world economic order and, more specifically, in the creation of the welfare state after the Second World War. Accordingly, liberalism defines a reformist (...) political program: it is an emancipatory political project by virtue of its struggle for an egalitarian and universalist extension of citizenshiprights. This is but a formulation of the modern idea of citizenship, conceived of as a universalizable contract ofrights. At the same time, liberalism embraces a socioeconomic emancipatory project that endeavors to provide the conditions, within the institutional framework of modern societies, for the accomplishment of citizenshiprights. (shrink)

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Within modern liberal political philosophy, discussions on justice have been centered upon an individualism-based distributive justice and the ‘fair share’ due to each person. According to the liberal theory of justice, the individual is an entity of rational reason and moral autonomy and considers the interests of others and of the community from a viewpoint that is focused on one’s own interests. As practical principles of justice, the principle of desert has attempted to separate the individual’s natural and inherent abilities (...) (merit) from the individual’s intentional efforts (desert); while the principle of needs has transmuted into a set of minimum exclusivityrights to protect the individual’s autonomy from serious harm and injury. Procedural justice theorists such as Rawls have attempted to invalidate the merit of the individual in an attempt to establish the identity of individuals whom are independent of the community, in the effort to promote their ideas on how to mitigate the social inequality that results from natural arbitrariness. The requirement to finalize this logical process is astrong moral reason equipped individual with the capacity of rational action. However, paradoxically, the logic of excessive reason has created an individual who isexclusive-rights-empowered but becomes ‘isolated and selfish’. The issues resulting from this situation are, first, the rational individual who is equipped with moral autonomynow becomes hidden behind a system-guaranteed set of exclusiverights; and second, the individual who should have been a rational actor and actively participating in cooperation and reciprocal relationships, does not find it easy to overcome the temptations of becoming a strategically located but passive and selfish actor within the mass market order. The result is that individuals easily relinquish their moral autonomy and exhibit a tendency to focus on personal gain. This has resulted in an increase in the polarization of society, and an increase of conflict between classes; and has engendered a crisis in the common good of the family and the political community. The true ‘good life’ and the ‘well-ordered community’ cannot be obtained by individuals who are only interested in their ‘share’, but requires ‘good citizens’ who are concerned about the happiness of others and of the society. When we are able to understand that the rational and selfish individual is necessarily non-self-sufficient; and acknowledge that there is a need for mutual philia with others, we will then be able to overcome rational reason and embracecivic friendship. The good citizen of a healthy community that is based oncivic friendship, is an individual who has assimilated the virtue of justice, and will be able to aid inovercoming the limitations of modern liberalism, assist in the resolution of the pressing societal and individualistic crises and contribute to theestablishment of a ‘well-ordered community’. (shrink)

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This article considers the connection between Milton's republicanism and his use of naturalrights language. Based on Milton's understanding of man's dignity, it claims that naturalrights andcivic virtue are articulated consistently. Inextricably linked to his being created free, the dignity of man is central both in the description of the birth of political society and in the defence of the inalienable right to liberty against tyrannical government. Thus, while not an end in itself,civic (...) virtue nevertheless has an irreducible moral value, for being a virtuous citizen means first of all exercising one's own freedom in a way that complies with the natural dignity of man. (shrink)

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Explores and partially defends Hegel's claim that freedom is most fully realized through membership in the modern state. It contrasts Hegel's ‘civic humanist’ understanding of this claim with the social contract theory's view of the relationship between freedom and the state. The chapter also argues against those commentators who see something sinister in the Hegelian association of freedom with the state. In developing its interpretation, the chapter considers Hegel's distinction between state and civil society and it offers an overview (...) of the basic structure of Hegel's main work of political philosophy—the Philosophy of Right. (shrink)

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It is a commonplace that there are limits to the ways we can permissibly treat people, even in the service of good ends. For example, we may not steal someone’s wallet, even if we plan to donate the contents to famine relief, or break a promise to help a colleague move, even if we encounter someone else on the way whose need is somewhat more urgent. In other words, we should observe certain constraints against mistreating people, where a constraint is (...) a moral principle that we should not violate, even when that is the only way to prevent further, similar violations or other, greater evils. But, despite its intuitive appeal, the view that there are constraints has drawn considerable criticism, and attempts to provide a rationale for constraints have been, at best, substantially incomplete. In this paper, I develop a novel rationale for constraints that fills important gaps left by views in the literature. The account helps make sense of constraints by identifying a morally significant relation that we bear to people when, and only when, we observe certain constraints against mistreating them. Put roughly, observing these constraints is a condition for being worthy of a form of trust that I callcivic trust, and being worthy of such trust is an essential part of living with others in the sort of harmony that characterizes morally permissible interaction. By focusing, in ways other accounts do not, on the role that observing constraints plays in our psychological lives, this approach not only makes the structure of constraints more intelligible, but also helps us better appreciate the force of our reason to observe constraints, and better understand the kind of moral community to which we should aspire. (shrink)

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This paper argues that, according to a specific conception of the ideals of constitutional democracy - deliberative democratic constitutionalism - the proper function of constitutional review is to ensure that constitutional procedures are protected and followed in the ordinary democratic production of law, since the ultimate warrant for the legitimacy of democratic decisions can only be that they have been produced according to procedures that warrant the expectation of increased rationality and reasonability. It also contends that three desiderata for the (...) institutionalization of the function of constitutional review follow from this conception: structural independence, democratic sensitivity and the maintenance of legal integrity. Finally, evaluating three broadly different ways of institutionalizing constitutional review - solely in appellate courts, in deliberative constitutional juries of ordinary citizens and in a combined system of constitutional courts andcivic constitutional amendment fora - it argues that the third arrangement would perform best at collectively fulfilling the sometimes antithetical desiderata. (shrink)

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abstract In Political Liberalism and later work John Rawls has recast his theory of justice as fairness in political terms. In order to illustrate the advantages of a liberal political approach to justice over liberal non‐political ones, Rawls discusses what kind of education might be required for future citizens of pluralistic and democratic societies. He advocates a rather minimal conception ofcivic education that he claims to derive from political liberalism. One group of authors has sided with Rawls’ political (...) perspective and educational proposal, holding that a political approach and educational requirements that are not too demanding would have the advantage of being acceptable to a wide range of citizens with different religious, moral and philosophical perspectives. A second group of authors have criticized Rawls’ educational recommendations, holding that the production of a just society composed of reasonable citizens requires a more demandingcivic education and, hence, that the political approach is not viable. The present paper argues that both groups are only partially right, and that there is a third way to understandcivic education in Rawlsian terms, a way that is political but not minimal. (shrink)

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Abstract The idea of a purelycivic nationalism has attracted Western scholars, most of whom rightly disdain the myths that sustain ethnonationalist theories of political community.Civic nationalism is particularly attractive to many Americans, whose peculiar national heritage encourages the delusion that their mutual association is based solely on consciously chosen principles. But this idea misrepresents political reality as surely as the ethnonationalist myths it is designed to combat. And propagating a new political myth is an especially inappropriate (...) way of defending the legacy of Enlightenment liberalism from the dangers posed by the growth of nationalist political passions. (shrink)

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Few recent developments in information technology have been as hyped as blockchain, the first implementation of which was the cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Such hype furnishes ample reason to be skeptical about the promise of blockchain implementations, but I contend that there’s something to the hype. In particular, I think that certain blockchain implementations, in the right material, social, and political conditions, constitute excellent bases for common knowledge. As a case study, I focus on trust in election outcomes, where the ledger records (...) not financial transactions but vote tallies. I argue that blockchain implementations could foster warranted trust in vote tallies and thereby trust in the democratic process. Finally, I argue that if the promise of blockchain implementations as democratic infrastructure is to be realized, then democracies first need to ensure that these material, social, and political conditions obtain. (shrink)

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A democratic society cannot flourish if its citizens merely pursue their own narrow interests. If it is to do more than survive, at least a substantial proportion of its citizens must fulfill responsibilities that go beyond simply avoiding the violation of others'rights and occasionally casting a vote. The vitality and success of a democracy requires that many citizens — ideally all of them — contribute something to their communities and participate responsibly in the political process. The disposition to (...) do these things is a large part of what constitutescivic virtue. But that virtue encompasses considerably more. My task here is to explorecivic virtue. I first outline a conception of virtue in general and, with that set out, pursue the question of what makes a virtuecivic. My special concern is to articulate what constitutescivic virtue in relation to an enduring problem for democratic societies and especially for the pluralistic democracies of the Western world: how to determine what constitutes a proper relation between religion and politics and, in the lives of religious citizens havingcivic virtue, an appropriate balance between religious and secular considerations. (shrink)

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In this article Sarah Stitzlein highlights an educational right that has been largely unacknowledged in the past but has recently gained significance given renewed citizen participation in displays of public outcry on our streets and in our town halls. Dissent is typically conceived of as a negative right—a liberty that guarantees that the government will not interfere with one's public self-expression. Stitzlein argues that, insofar as the legitimacy of the state depends on obtaining the consent of the governed, the state (...) must allow the lively proliferation of dissent. Attending to this negativerights perspective, Stitzlein explores the educational implications of reframing the right to dissent as a positive right. This includes discussing the state's obligation to cultivate the skills of dissent in its young citizens and, correspondingly, student entitlement to this training. These educational implications, especially for civics education, are far more substantial than the thinner implications of the negative right to dissent. (shrink)

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The purpose of this thesis is to discuss in depth the issues ofcivic education and public education in light of Condorcet’s philosophy. Condorcet proposed the revolutionary plan of education reform in the period of the French Revolution. His philosophy is based on republican thought. The republic rests on the sovereignty of the people; people with sovereignty should receive intelligence and be educated for that. Therefore, Condorcet has planned educational programs to enhance people's ability to use reason, that is, (...) “people's reason”, through public education, and to sublimate people and nation into enlightenment rationality. According to Condorcet, there is no true political and social space for citizens without public education, and there are only blind people who are confiscated by dictators. In this case, the citizen falls into anti-enlightenment which is adhered to the limit of immediate utility. Autocracy is always parasitic to the ignorance of citizens. Therefore, the role of public education must be the development of reasoned and free will. The purpose of public education is not to teach the doctrine ofcivic religion, but to teach all people how to use their reason, teach humanrights, and teach people how to judge freely. In this sense, Condorcet's educational philosophy iscivic education mediated by people's reason. (shrink)

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If there is one generally acknowledged “take away” from the election of Trump, it may well be that the old divisions between right and left no longer hold. Trump supporters were seemingly moved less by traditional conservative appeals to free markets and small government than by anger against perceived condescension and indifference on the part of the cultural elite to their own deeply held moral beliefs and sense of personal dignity. Kant offers both insight into and potential remedies for the (...) dilemmas growing out of our present situation. This is particularly true in matters of economic policy andcivic engagement, where “top down” solutions have often left their would-be beneficiaries feeling ever more powerless and disrespected. By addressing these concerns in the name of common citizenship, Kant’s thought helps restore the meaning of the core constitutional principles of freedom, equality, andcivic dignity that Trump’s presidency increasingly puts in question. (shrink)

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Today, a major technological trend is the increasing focus on the person: technical systems personalize, customize, and tailor to the person in both beneficial and troubling ways. This trend has moved beyond the realm of commerce and has become a matter of public governance, where systems for citizen risk scoring, predictive policing, and social credit scores proliferate. What these systems have in common is that they may target the person and her ethical and political dispositions, her virtues. Virtue ethics is (...) the most appropriate approach for evaluating the impacts of these new systems, which has translated in a revival of talk about virtue in technology ethics. Yet, the focus on individual dispositions has rightly been criticized for lacking a concern with the political collective and institutional structures. This paper advocates a new direction of research intocivic virtue, which is situated in between personal dispositions and structures of governance. First, it surveys the discourse on virtue ethics of technology, emphasizing its neglect of the political dimension of impacts of emerging technologies. Second, it presents a pluralist conception ofcivic virtue that enables us to scrutinize the impact of technology oncivic virtue on three different levels of reciprocal reputation building, the cultivation of internal goods, and excellence in the public sphere. Third, it illustrates the benefits of this conceptions by discussing some paradigmatic examples of emerging technologies that aim to cultivatecivic virtue. (shrink)

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The chapter is an examination of our competing duties to society and to those we have close personal relationships, such as friends and family. Particular attention is paid to the views of Plato and Aristotle on our social and personal responsibilities. It is maintained that the Greek philosophers are right that we should sometimes place ourcivic duty over the interests of those closest to us. This doesn’t mean that we should never treat our friends and family better than (...) people with whom we have no connection. But it does mean that even apparently heroic acts of personal loyalty can really be acts of moral failure. If we want to do right, it isn’t enough to do well by the people we care about most. We must ask how our actions affect everyone. In some ways, the moral views of these early philosophers move us too far towardcivic duty and away from traditional values of loyalty to friends and family. Plato and Aristotle are wrong to turn the citizens into something akin to state property. People are happiest when they are allowed to be in charge of their own lives. Plato is especially wrong that we should encourage loyalty to the state by abolishing the family for the guardians in favor of raising their children in state institutions. The love of a family is good for children’s development. On the other hand, in some ways, the philosophers don’t take us far enough from traditional values in their notions of how to balance family andcivic loyalties. Such loyalties raise the possibility of letting family interests get in the way of importantcivic duties. (shrink)

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What's Wrong withRights? argues that contemporaryrights-talk obscures the importancecivic virtue, military effectiveness and the democratic law legitimacy. It draws upon legal and moral philosophy, moral theology, and court judgments. It spans discussions from medieval Christendom to contemporary debates about justified killing.

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In this paper based on original fieldwork, I seek to contribute to critical scholarship in international law by providing an investigation into the engagement with international law by actors in civil society working against son preference primarily in Tirupati, India. I suggest that the turn to the international legal order bycivic actors should be theorized as something else than as merely coming ‘from above’, ‘from below’ or as a ‘translation’ of ‘global’ law to ‘local’ conditions. Instead, I propose (...) that the mobilization of international law within Tirupati’s civil society should be seen as an emancipatory undertaking, an act of resistance with the overarching ambition to reclaim the zenana. In that, I argue, the strategies within Tirupati’s civil society are more appropriately understood as critical international law put into practice. (shrink)

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Democratic civility is a corecivic virtue of persons engaged in democratic deliberation. It is a complex trait that includes tolerance of diverse political views, openness regardingcivic matters to reasons offered by others, willingness to seek compromise in an effort to find workable political solutions, and willingness to limit one’s individual interests for the public good when there are adequate reasons for doing so. Various writers have noted a tension betweenrights and civility. Insofar as (...) class='Hi'>rights trump general considerations of community welfare and entail claims that can be demanded, an emphasis on individualrights and standing on one’srights can undermine the sort of civility required for political compromise. Similarly an emphasis on civility might require not standing onrights when doing so is at the expense of the welfare of the community. Notwithstanding this tension, I argue that humanrights and democratic civility have a symbiotic relationship. In particular, I argue that democratic civility is important for determining the scope of humanrights as they are implemented in institutional structures, and that humanrights have an important role to play in shaping the virtue of democratic civility. (shrink)

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