This general issue of Democratic Theory begins with an important contribution by George Vasilev (La Trobe University) that reflects on Chantal Mouffe’s notion of democratic agonism. Mouffe has, primarily as part of her critique of deliberative democracy, asserted that consensus necessarily creates exclusion. What is important is that democratic dialogue remains open-ended. For her this means that democrats should view themselves as adversaries rather than antagonists who bring discussions to a close. Vasilev critiques Mouffe’s assertion by arguing that she holds a one-sided understanding of consensus that creates a less credible form of adversarial politics. By crafting a “norm of consensus”, Vasilev thus demonstrates that consensus formation can ensure the very condition of democratic freedom itself. In doing this, Vasilev’s argument brings a fresh perspective to ongoing debates in deliberative and agonistic democracy.
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Rethinking Modes of Political Participation
The Conventional, Unconventional, and Alternative
Marcin Kaim
positioned as an alternative to conventional politics. The authors of this research state that such activity is genuine political participation because it tends to question existing social norms. Therefore, the political action done as a leisure activity is
In Democratic Theory
- Published (Print):
- 01 Jun 2021
- Article Type:
- Research Article
- Pages:
- 50–70 (21 total)
Democratic Procedures Are Not Inherently Democratic
A Critical Analysis of John Keane's The New Despotism (Harvard University Press, 2020)
Gergana Dimova
versions of authoritarianism that it justifies the coining of this separate term. Each model of hybrid regimes has a different answer to the question of how to navigate the boundary between implementing democratic norms and transgressing democratic norms
In Democratic Theory
- Published (Print):
- 01 Jun 2021
- Article Type:
- Review Article
- Pages:
- 96–109 (14 total)
Realizing Interspecies Democracy
The Preconditions for an Egalitarian, Multispecies, World
Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon
experience pure equality from the outset. We are, rather, born into a field defined by already-existing inequalities and equalities, into a patchwork of norms for and against the status quo. Over the course of our lives, we may experience, therefore, the
Romanticizing Difference
Identities in Transformation after World War I
Nadia Malinovich
, native colonial populations are represented primarily as exploitable labor forces and assessed in terms of their degree of “civilization,” that is, conformity to French social and cultural norms. Moise then compares those interwar representations of the
In Historical Reflections/Réflexions Historiques
- Published (Print):
- 01 Jun 2017
- Article Type:
- Introduction
- Pages:
- 1–9 (9 total)
Pluralist Democracy and Non-Ideal Democratic Legitimacy
Against Functional and Global Solutions to the Boundary Problem in Democratic Theory
Tom Theuns
of a global demos formally equal and adequate accountability mechanisms can meet the democratic norm that a polity treats each person as an equal source of authoritative value (the “equal value demand” that I develop in the following section). Some
In Democratic Theory
- Published (Print):
- 01 Jun 2021
- Article Type:
- Research Article
- Pages:
- 23–49 (27 total)
Struggles over Expertise
Practices of Politicization and Depoliticization in Participatory Democracy
Taina Meriluoto
the largely government-initiated demands for “more participatory approaches” within social policy and public governance. They reflect a broader paradigm shift in Finnish governance norms that were launched in the beginning of the 2000s as the
In Democratic Theory
- Published (Print):
- 01 Jun 2021
- Article Type:
- Research Article
- Pages:
- 1–22 (22 total)
Barbara Prainsack
and norms. When solidarity is enacted at the individual level, from person-to-person, we can speak of “tier 1 solidarity.” When actions of mutual support become so common that they turn into “normal,” expected behavior in some groups, we see an
In Democratic Theory
- Published (Print):
- 01 Dec 2020
- Article Type:
- Article Commentary
- Pages:
- 124–133 (10 total)
Babies and Boomers
Intergenerational Democracy and the Political Epidemiology of COVID-19
Toby Rollo
coercion and violence to govern citizens. Liberal justifications for the exclusion of the child center on the child's lack of sophisticated reasoning and communication on norms and collective decision-making. Children, especially very young children, simply
In Democratic Theory
- Published (Print):
- 01 Dec 2020
- Article Type:
- Article Commentary
- Pages:
- 75–81 (7 total)
COVID and the Era of Emergencies
What Type of Freedom is at Stake?
Danielle Celermajer and Dalia Nassar
). This means that the conditions most likely to trigger the introduction of emergency measures will become more common. Second, it is well-documented that 40 years of neo-liberalism, as a form of politics, economics, and a cultural norm, have eroded
In Democratic Theory
- Published (Print):
- 01 Dec 2020
- Article Type:
- Article Commentary
- Pages:
- 12–24 (13 total)