Post by jjnickell on Apr 4, 2016 6:35:50 GMT
Asen is clear in that he views citizenship as a process constituted by human interactions, and further, that viewing citizenship in this light as opposed to a status will aid us in achieving a productive form of democracy contingent upon social order rather than institutional practice. Asen’s view of what democracy seems normative in that it appears to me that he is expressing what democracy ought to be. However, my concern here is this: are ALL acts of citizenship as he views them capable of promoting this social order? Asen offers no normative discussion of acts of citizenship themselves in this particular essay. I understand how this might be beyond the scope of a 20-page article in which he has already proposed a new theory. Yet, I am concerned because it seems to me that, without this type of normative description, his broad view of what constitutes acts of citizenship leaves the window open for hate group activities and discriminatory speech acts. Westboro Baptist Church certainly engages in discursive expressions of citizenship – but, viewing these acts as a process does not seem to be a helpful step in achieving this transformative sense of democracy. Thoughts?
