Cultural Pluralism and Dilemmas of Justice

How should democratic societies define justice for cultural minority groups, and how might such justice be secured? This book is a nuanced and judicious response to a critical issue in political theory—the challenge of according equal respect and recognition to minority groups and accommodating their claims for special cultural rights and arrangements.

Monique Deveaux contends that liberal theorists fail to grant enough importance to identity and the content of cultural life in their attempts to conceive of political institutions for plural societies. She takes to task the spectrum of theories on pluralism, from weak and strong theories of tolerance through neutralist liberalism to comprehensive liberalism, and finally to arguments for deliberative politics that build on Jürgen Habermas's discourse ethics. The solution proposed here is "deliberative liberalism," which incorporates both critically reconceived principles of deliberative democracy and central liberal norms of consent and respect.

Cultural conflicts in democratic societies include clashes involving Aboriginal peoples, ethnic and linguistic minorities, and recent immigrant groups in Europe, North America, and Australia. Drawing on examples from several countries, Deveaux concludes that genuine respect and recognition for cultural minorities requires full inclusion in existing institutions and the right to help shape the political culture of their own societies through democratic dialogue and deliberation.

Monique Deveaux is Associate Professor of Political Science at Williams College.