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7 - The Liberalism of Fear

The Second Coming

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 November 2022

Liav Orgad
Affiliation:
European University Institute, Florence
Ruud Koopmans
Affiliation:
Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung
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Summary

This chapter covers how the debate over multiculturalism has evolved over the past fifty years (1970–2020). While the twentieth century was marked by fear of minorities, the twenty-first century is marked by growing fears of majorities. The panic hovering over Europe is not concentrated on the political arrangements of the present but on a deep concern for the future of liberalism. This perception of the future turns social and cultural relationships into a zero-sum game. But is there a way out? The chapter ends with a discussion of contemporary majority and minority tensions in liberal societies and offers a common moral ground that allows managing these tensions, reaching a political compromise that is likely to leave both sides dissatisfied, but it is the most one can achieve. Perhaps the most important lesson of the last fifty years of rights-talk, the chapter argues, is that the expansion of the notion of rights offers an inclusive tool of social discourse but cannot offer a receipt for how societies should handle themselves. That remains the role of democratic process and for that they should be cherished and protected.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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  • The Liberalism of Fear
  • Edited by Liav Orgad, European University Institute, Florence, Ruud Koopmans, Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung
  • Book: Majorities, Minorities, and the Future of Nationhood
  • Online publication: 12 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009233378.008
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  • The Liberalism of Fear
  • Edited by Liav Orgad, European University Institute, Florence, Ruud Koopmans, Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung
  • Book: Majorities, Minorities, and the Future of Nationhood
  • Online publication: 12 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009233378.008
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • The Liberalism of Fear
  • Edited by Liav Orgad, European University Institute, Florence, Ruud Koopmans, Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung
  • Book: Majorities, Minorities, and the Future of Nationhood
  • Online publication: 12 November 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009233378.008
Available formats
×