Theorizing Citizenship (Suny Series, Political Theory)

This is an anthology of essays on citizenship by such well-known theorists as Habermas, Walzer, Flathman, Iris Marion Young, MacIntyre, Ignatieff, and George Armstrong Kelly.

"Professor Beiner has collected an excellent set of essays on a topic that is once again commanding widespread attention among political thinkers and policy-makers. As a set, the essays are historically rich, analytically rigorous, and highly provocative." -- Richard Dagger, Arizona State University

"This is a collection of first-rate articles on an important topic--citizenship--by a group of very well-known and highly respected political theorists. Bringing them together into one volume is a great service." -- Bernard Yack, University of Wisconsin, Madison

In recent years there has been an explosion of interest in the theme of citizenship among political philosophers. Any attempt to reflect theoretically on this topic must address a host of vital questions: how to distinguish between "insiders" and "outsiders" in a normatively defensible way; how to secure for all individuals within a political society a sense of full membership in the social and political life of that society; and how to keep allegiance to the political community durable in the face of mounting pressures, domestic and international.

The need to rethink the issue of citizenship has been given special urgency by incisive theoretical challenges to liberalism within the academy as well as practical challenges associated with continuing flare-ups of modern nationalism and ethnic strife, implying challenges, both localist and globalist, to the integrity of the modern state.

Therefore, political theorists must once again explore the basic problem of what binds citizens together into a shared political community. Theoretical essays by such well- known scholars as Habermas, Walzer, Flathman, Iris Marion Young, MacIntyre, Ignatieff, and George Armstrong Kelly offer a sampling of some of the best articles on this crucial topic.