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The Uneasy Alliance of Group Representation and Deliberative Democracy

Melissa S. Williams

in Citizenship in Diverse Societies

One of the central aims of deliberative theory is to redeem the ideal of impartiality by defining political processes in a manner that avoids bias against valid social interests. The first section of ... More

One of the central aims of deliberative theory is to redeem the ideal of impartiality by defining political processes in a manner that avoids bias against valid social interests. The first section of this chapter presents the broad outlines of theories of deliberative democracy and explores the place of the concept of impartiality within them. In the next section, the different kinds of contributions that marginalized group perspectives make to democratic deliberation are explored. Next, drawing on and extending the recent feminist critiques of deliberative democracy, two interrelated challenges to deliberative theory are examined: one focused on the standard of reasonableness and the idea of reason‐giving, and the other on the contingent social and political circumstances under which marginalized‐group perspectives may sway the judgement of other citizens. Finally, the implications of these changes for our more general notions of the virtues and responsibilities of citizenship are examined.Less

The United States: Bridging the Privileged and the Marginalized?

Robert Wuthnow

in Democracies in Flux: The Evolution of Social Capital in Contemporary Society

Social capital in the United States has been declining since the 1950s. While many important forms of social capital have declined, newer ways of connecting with friends and neighbours have emerged. ... More

Social capital in the United States has been declining since the 1950s. While many important forms of social capital have declined, newer ways of connecting with friends and neighbours have emerged. The largest decline in social capital has occurred among marginalized groups whose living situations have worsened.Less

Representation and Social Perspective

Iris Marion Young

in Inclusion and Democracy

Democratic participation and fair representation are not contraries, but rather mutually require one another. In societies with structural injustices that politically marginalize some groups, ... More

Democratic participation and fair representation are not contraries, but rather mutually require one another. In societies with structural injustices that politically marginalize some groups, fairness and inclusion generally require taking special measures to encourage the representation of members of marginalized groups in decision‐making bodies.Less

American Indian Tribal Governments ’ Fight for Change inside Institutions

Laura Evans

in Power from Powerlessness: Tribal Governments, Institutional Niches, and American Federalism

This chapter reviews the puzzle of American Indian tribal governments' political successes. Institutional niches in the federal government provide tribes with subtle outside help with cultivating ... More

This chapter reviews the puzzle of American Indian tribal governments' political successes. Institutional niches in the federal government provide tribes with subtle outside help with cultivating expertise. Expertise then matters because it provides building blocks for future political victories—building blocks that are easily overlooked by scholars. Institutional niches help marginalized groups with developing technical policy expertise, provide opportunities to get to know the external environment, and offer exposure to a variety of strategies and organizational forms. Groups can maintain and improve a niche's support by seeking modest yet serial adjustments in their access to officials, in overall policy frameworks, and in the specific technical procedures of federal agencies. While institutional niches may seem unremarkable in a single snapshot, their effects accumulate into impressive outcomes with wide-ranging consequences. Variegated institutions such as federalism matter because they enable quiet successes.Less

Inclusive Political Communication

Iris Marion Young

in Inclusion and Democracy

Theories of deliberative democracy presume too narrow an understanding of political communication. Several forms of communication additional to argument are important for political debate, especially ... More

Theories of deliberative democracy presume too narrow an understanding of political communication. Several forms of communication additional to argument are important for political debate, especially between members of more dominant and more marginalized groups. Greeting, rhetoric, and narrative each have important functions for public acknowledgement of interlocutors and communication when premises are not shared.Less

Views from the Indian Electorate: Satisfactions and Dissatisfactions with Democracy, Politics, and the Economy

Alfred Stepan

in India’s Reforms: How They Produced Inclusive Growth

Eminent political scientist Alfred Stepan analyzes the subjective responses of individuals when asked how their conditions have changed and how they see the future without necessarily connecting them ... More

Eminent political scientist Alfred Stepan analyzes the subjective responses of individuals when asked how their conditions have changed and how they see the future without necessarily connecting them to the policies. His findings unequivocally show that a rising proportion of the people say their fortunes are improving while a declining proportion say the opposite. This trend also carries over to their expectations for the future economic prospects.Less

Empowering Settings and Voices for Social Change: An Introduction

Kenneth I. Maton, Edward Seidman, and Mark S. Aber

in Empowering Settings and Voices for Social Change

Empowerment is central to any effort by researchers, community practitioners, or policymakers for bringing about meaningful social change related to marginalized individuals and groups. It is ... More

Empowerment is central to any effort by researchers, community practitioners, or policymakers for bringing about meaningful social change related to marginalized individuals and groups. It is invaluable as a guiding paradigm because it points both to a process of social change (citizen-based) and an outcome of such change (enhanced access to critical resources) for those lacking power in society. The process of empowerment is participatory and developmental—occurring over time, involving active and sustained engagement, and resulting in growth in awareness and capacity. Many different aspects of empowerment as a process and as an outcome have implications for the work of social scientists interested in enduring social change. This book focuses on two aspects: developing new empowering settings in the community and enhancing the influence of existing ones, and using research methods that seek to hear, understand, support, and amplify the voices of those individuals and groups in the community. This introductory chapter briefly discusses each of these. An overview of the subsequent chapters is also presented.Less

The Universities Expansion Made

Steven Brint

in Two Cheers for Higher Education

This chapter argues that the traditional structures and purposes of colleges and universities are intended to produce two outcomes: the expansion of knowledge, principally in the disciplines but also ... More

This chapter argues that the traditional structures and purposes of colleges and universities are intended to produce two outcomes: the expansion of knowledge, principally in the disciplines but also at their interstices, and the development of students' cognitive capacities and subject matter knowledge. The chapter shows that these objectives gave rise to two movements. One was the movement to use university research to advance economic development through the invention of new technologies with commercial potential. The other was to use colleges and universities as instruments of social inclusion, providing opportunities to members of previously marginalized groups, including women, racial—ethnic minorities, and members of the LGBTQ community. They were driven both by external parties and the great philanthropic foundations, and by campus constituencies who benefited from their advance.Less

Intersectionality and Representation

in Affirmative Advocacy: Race, Class, and Gender in Interest Group Politics

This chapter introduces the contemporary universe of organizations representing women, racial minorities, and low-income people in national politics. Organizations representing marginalized groups ... More

This chapter introduces the contemporary universe of organizations representing women, racial minorities, and low-income people in national politics. Organizations representing marginalized groups claim a distinctive mandate when it comes to advocating for their constituents in politics and policy making. Advocacy organizations help compensate for inadequate levels of formal political representation for marginalized groups in all of the aforementioned ways, and vary widely in how accountable they are to their constituencies. Evidence from the survey and interviews shows that organization officers feel a responsibility to speak on behalf of many subgroups within their constituencies and also recognize and embrace their roles as mediators in a variety of different and important ways. Advocacy organizations advance a conceptualization of representation that embodies the pursuit of social justice as a central goal.Less

Pinning the Tail on the Donkey: Conceptualizing, Identifying, and Responding to Bullying

Faye Mishna

in Bullying: A Guide to Research, Intervention, and Prevention

A review of underlying factors that are encompassed within the phenomenon of bullying are described in this chapter. Children and adolescents both engage in and are victimized through a number of ... More

A review of underlying factors that are encompassed within the phenomenon of bullying are described in this chapter. Children and adolescents both engage in and are victimized through a number of aggressive/violent and offensive behaviors and attitudes that are often encompassed within the term bullying. Bullying can be influenced by individual characteristics, social interactions, and cultural sanctions and conditions. Bias-based bullying results from and reinforces discrimination towards minorities and marginalized groups, based on certain characteristics, thereby threatening appreciation of diversity. Bias-based bullying includes sexual harassment, racism, sexism, homophobia, and other forms of prejudice, discrimination and aggression/violence towards groups and populations. The incidence of bias-based bullying is high and children and youth who belong to marginalized groups or minorities are generally vulnerable to being victimized by peers. This chapter underscores the necessity to understand and address these problems in working with children and youth who are bullied and who bully.Less

Can Members of Marginalized Groups Remain Invested in Schooling?: An Assessment from the United States and the United Kingdom

Angel L. Harris

in Education, Justice, and Democracy

This chapter examines whether members of marginalized groups can remain invested in education despite persistent encounters with barriers to upward socioeconomic mobility. The first part looks at the ... More

This chapter examines whether members of marginalized groups can remain invested in education despite persistent encounters with barriers to upward socioeconomic mobility. The first part looks at the intergenerational transmission of beliefs regarding upward socioeconomic mobility among black Americans. The second part assesses whether youths from marginalized groups disinvest from schooling, presenting evidence from youths in both the United States and the United Kingdom. It is shown that although black parents expect their children to experience racial discrimination, they also attribute more value to education than white parents. It also appears that marginalized racial groups do not respond to their marginalization by resisting school.Less

Teaching African American Mysticism

Joy R. Bostic

in Teaching Mysticism

Epistemological theories that speak to how we know what we know are critical theories to interrogate when teaching about mysticism from the perspectives of marginalized groups. It is our ... More

Epistemological theories that speak to how we know what we know are critical theories to interrogate when teaching about mysticism from the perspectives of marginalized groups. It is our epistemological bearings that help us to determine what we deem to be “legitimate” mystical experience. This chapter, which describes a course on African American mysticism, begins with an exploration of how mysticism has been historically defined in Western culture and the ways in which issues of power, race, and gender have factored into these definitions. Against this backdrop, the course gives special attention to how African Americans have viewed mystical experience, as well as the epistemological frameworks that have informed their views. These frameworks provide a lens through which we can better understand the complexity of African American mystical traditions. The course uses narrative, film, music, and field trips as pedagogical tools that can enable students to enter into and engage these traditions.Less

Closer to a Pluralist Heaven?

in Affirmative Advocacy: Race, Class, and Gender in Interest Group Politics

This chapter, which describes the role of advocacy organizations as representatives for marginalized groups, elaborates the policy typology and study design, and explores some of the limitations of ... More

This chapter, which describes the role of advocacy organizations as representatives for marginalized groups, elaborates the policy typology and study design, and explores some of the limitations of the data and analytic framework. Although not primarily concerned with representation for disadvantaged subgroups, evidence from other areas of scholarship about interest groups and social movements indicates a set of strategic reasons to be concerned that organizations will not be active when it comes to issues affecting disadvantaged subgroups. It is suspected that the single-axis interest groups that predominate at the national level are ill equipped to represent intersectionally marginalized subgroups of their constituents. The policy typology and, more broadly, the intersectional framework within which it is based implicitly resist essentialist notions which hold that the individuals falling into the categories share inevitable and naturally occurring common identities and interests.Less

Tyranny of the Minority? Institutional Targets and Advocacy Strategies

in Affirmative Advocacy: Race, Class, and Gender in Interest Group Politics

This chapter explores the use of the courts by advocacy organizations and evaluates whether the political institutions that are targeted by these organizations vary by issue type. It then assesses ... More

This chapter explores the use of the courts by advocacy organizations and evaluates whether the political institutions that are targeted by these organizations vary by issue type. It then assesses the consequences of this variation for the resulting quality of representation afforded to intersectionally disadvantaged groups as well as for concerns about the use of the courts to bring about social change. Organizations representing weak and politically marginalized groups use a wide range of tactics to advocate on behalf of their constituents. Each branch of government presents advocacy organizations. Variations in organizations' institutional targeting are strongly linked to the relationship between the majoritarianism of each branch and the issue type under consideration. In general, the advocacy organizations representing marginalized groups do not rely heavily on the courts to advocate for social change or to protect minority rights.Less

The consequences of failure

Anand Grover, Brian Citro, and Mihir Mankad

in Advancing the Human Right to Health

This chapter examines four essential aspects of the right to health: the right as a legal entitlement in domestic law; the prioritization of the needs of vulnerable or marginalized groups; the ... More

This chapter examines four essential aspects of the right to health: the right as a legal entitlement in domestic law; the prioritization of the needs of vulnerable or marginalized groups; the protection of personal freedoms and negative liberties; and the participation of affected individuals and communities in all decisions affecting their heath. It considers current deficits and emerging problems in global health in light of these four aspects of the right to health. It shows that the right to health approach provides not only the conceptual and legal tools, but also the flexibility and breadth required to address these multifaceted challenges. Specific attention is given to the differences between the right to health approach and traditional biomedical and public health approaches in order to identify and clarify the consequences of the failure to realize the right to health.Less

Social solidarity, human rights and Roma: unequal access to basic resources in Central and Eastern Europe

Richard Filĉák and Daniel Škobla

in Reinventing Social Solidarity Across Europe

This chapter argues that the continuing presence of widespread inequalities across European societies militates against the achievement of solidarity. Manifested also as disparities in access to ... More

This chapter argues that the continuing presence of widespread inequalities across European societies militates against the achievement of solidarity. Manifested also as disparities in access to important resources for daily living, these inequalities represent a growing challenge as the liberalization and privatization of water and energy markets has led to a higher proportion of incomes being spent on water, gas and electricity bills. The chapter argues that problems with access to basic resources are a form of poverty and social exclusion, which arise out of a combination of complex, interwoven institutional and structural challenges representing a significant challenge to marginalized ethnic groups. Drawing upon research from the Central and Eastern European countries, with a focus on the Roma population, it highlights the need to build approaches across Europe that are based on solidarity and integration instead of egoism and exclusion. The findings of the chapter have wider significance for a broader context of access to natural resources and energy among other marginalized ethnic groups in Europe, since the mechanisms of exclusion and barriers are present in many other countries and are not exclusively the problem of Roma (e.g., migrants, refugees etc).Less

Introduction

Amit Ahuja

in Mobilizing the Marginalized: Ethnic Parties without Ethnic Movements

Dalits, the world’s largest marginalized group, have mobilized socially and electorally. This chapter introduces the puzzle of Dalit mobilization in India. It defines the three research questions ... More

Dalits, the world’s largest marginalized group, have mobilized socially and electorally. This chapter introduces the puzzle of Dalit mobilization in India. It defines the three research questions central to addressing the puzzle. What factors shape the nature and the prospects of a marginalized group’s mobilization? How do social movements affect political parties? When does ethnic identity influence voting? It outlines the argument, and explains why mobilization of the marginalized matters. The chapter provides an overview of the social and institutional context for Dalit mobilization. It enumerates the research design, including the strategy for case study selection, and highlights the contributions of the book.Less