Getting the Left Right: The Transformation, Decline, and Reformation of American Liberalism. By Thomas A. Spragens, Jr. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2009. 304p. $34.95.

2010 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 620-622
Author(s):  
Bruce Miroff
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
John Rawls ◽  
Richard Rorty ◽  
Public Philosophy ◽  
Historical Explanation ◽  
The Core ◽  
Theory To Practice ◽  
The Social ◽  
American Liberalism ◽  
Michael Sandel

Why have American liberals been losing most political contests in recent decades? Theorist Thomas A. Spragens argues that the core of liberalism's problems lies in an ill-conceived transformation in public philosophy. In a “political treatise informed by scholarly resources” (p. ix), he defends an older liberalism, which he describes as populist and progressive, and decries a new one that he associates with the social justice approach of John Rawls. Shifting his attention back and forth from theory to practice, Spragens constructs an argument that liberalism will not recoup its political fortunes until it rediscovers its “populist heart” (p. xvii). Bearing some resemblance to previous treatises by Richard Rorty and Michael Sandel (along with important differences that Spragens notes), Getting the Left Right is provocative and powerful as theoretical critique and advocacy, but is less effective in providing a historical explanation for contemporary liberalism's troubled state.

scholarly journals Axel Honneth and The Reconstruction of Justice: An Attempt to Overcome the "Distribution Paradigm"

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 40
Author(s):  
Stanley Souza Marques ◽  
Marcelo Andrade Cattoni De Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Distributive Justice ◽  
John Rawls ◽  
Basic Structure ◽  
Reciprocal Relationships ◽  
Individual Life ◽  
Axel Honneth ◽  
The Social ◽  
Normative Reconstruction ◽  
Set Up

The article takes up the criticisms directed by Axel Honneth to the basic structure of the dominant conceptions of justice, but merely to point out the general outlines of his alternative project of justice normative reconstruction. If John Rawls and Michael Walzer structure theories of distributive justice very consistently and in order to get to the autonomy protection (already taken so) in a more sophisticated way, that to be satisfied it transcends the (mere) obligation of not interfering in the realization of individual life projects, Honneth proposes the radicalization of justice's demands. It is because he pays his attention to the mutual expectation of consideration. This point would be the new texture of the social justice. In this sense, the principles of fair distribution leave the scene to make way for principles which guidelines are directed towards the society basic institutions involved in a new goal: to set up favourable contexts for the success of plural reciprocal relationships.

What is to be Distributed?

1998 ◽  
pp. 186-192
Author(s):  
Rodney G. Peffer
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Real World ◽  
John Rawls ◽  
Fundamental Principle ◽  
Equality Of Opportunity ◽  
Amartya Sen ◽  
Social Basis ◽  
The Social ◽  
Material Goods ◽  
Primary Goods

I take up the "What is equality?" controversy begun by Amartya Sen in 1979 by critically considering utility (J. S. Mill), primary goods (John Rawls), property rights (John Roemer) and basic capabilities in terms of what is to be distributed according to principles and theories of social justice. I then consider the four most general principles designed to answer issues raised by the Equality of Welfare principle, Equality of Opportunity for Welfare principle, Equality of Resources principle and Equality of Opportunity for Resources principle. I consider each with respect to the more general normative principle that whatever theory of social or distributive justice we accept should be as ambition sensitive and endowment insensitive as feasible in real world circumstances. In this context I take up the problems of expensive tastes, expensive disabilities, lowered or manipulated preferences or ‘needs,’ and differential needs versus differential talents and abilities. I argue that the best solution is to adopt a modified version of Rawls’ theory which takes primary social goods as that which is to be distributed but which demands a Basic Rights principle that insures basic subsistent rights (as well as basic security rights) as the most fundamental principle of morality (and social justice), and then demands that Rawls’ Difference Principle be applied lexically to the ‘material’ goods of income, wealth, and leisure time, but done so that the social basis of self-respect is never undermined.

scholarly journals Social Justice: A Missing, Unelaborated Dimension in Humanitarian Engineering and Learning Through Service

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon A. Leydens ◽  
Juan C. Lucena
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Problem Definition ◽  
Service Work ◽  
Human Engineering ◽  
The Core ◽  
Multiple Data ◽  
The Social ◽  
Humanitarian Engineering ◽  
Barriers And Opportunities ◽  
Definition Of

Negotiations between engineering and non-engineering perspectives are central in humanitarian engineering and learning through service initiatives, and these negotiations inevitably include dimensions of social justice. But what frameworks guide engineers through such negotiations? To date, in published scholarship, social justice has played little to no role in providing structure for work in humanitarian engineering and learning through service. Yet structure is needed to think and act systematically on the social justice dimensions inherent in humanitarian engineering and learning through service initiatives and practices. Drawing from multiple data sources, including interviews with engineering education faculty on the barriers and opportunities to integrating social justice dimensions in such initiatives, we provide a social justice definition and criteria that serve as flexible guidelines for humanitarian engineering and learning through service initiatives. Grounded in a synthesized definition of social justice, the social justice criteria can guide engineers to recognize and map human and non-human, engineering and non-engineering components in problem definition and solution—with social justice at the core. Along with other benefits, these criteria can act as a foundation from which to launch, evaluate, and improve on humanitarian engineering and learning through service work, serving as a vehicle for project initiation, reflection, and self-critique. 

Curricular Efforts in Technical Communication After the Social Justice Turn

2021 ◽  
pp. 105065192110441
Author(s):  
Godwin Y. Agboka ◽  
Isidore K. Dorpenyo
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Technical Communication ◽  
Professional Communication ◽  
Substantial Body ◽  
The Core ◽  
The Social ◽  
Technical And Professional Communication

The social justice turn in technical and professional communication (TPC) has inspired a substantial body of progressive scholarship and discussion. But it is not clear how these scholarly efforts have shaped (or are shaping) programmatic and curricular efforts. This article reports the findings of a survey of TPC instructors and an analysis of 231 TPC programs to examine their curricular efforts toward social justice. Drawing from the mixed findings, the authors argue that vigorous curricular efforts in social justice enable TPC to fully and practically demonstrate the core mandate of our discipline.

Bridging Social Justice-Oriented Theories to Practice in Teacher Education Utilizing Ethical Reasoning in Action and Case-Based Teaching

2020 ◽  
pp. 185-207
Author(s):  
Kara Maura Kavanagh
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Teacher Preparation ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Ethical Reasoning ◽  
Teacher Education Programs ◽  
Theory To Practice ◽  
The Social ◽  
Practice Gap ◽  
Case Based

Teachers rarely have preparation to analyze and disrupt the social (in)justice ethical dilemmas that arise in their classrooms. Scans of newspaper headlines reveal teachers making unethical decisions. Yet, teacher education programs rarely include opportunities for students to systematical analyze social justice-oriented cases that illuminate the inequities rooted in our sociocultural context of teaching and learning. This chapter overviews the process for social justice-oriented case-based teaching with an ethical reasoning framework to bridge the theory-to-practice gap in social justice teacher preparation.

John Rawls

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan Ryan
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Supreme Court ◽  
Social Contract ◽  
John Rawls ◽  
Civil Disobedience ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Theory Of Justice ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The U.S

This chapter examines the impact of John Rawls's A Theory of Justice on the liberal audience that took it up. In A Theory of Justice, Rawls offers a defense of civil disobedience that would make politically motivated disobedience a much more acceptable part of our political life than either the U.S. Supreme Court or the English judiciary seems likely to contemplate. Furthermore, his views about the subservience of economic institutions to “social justice” place him firmly on one side of what is currently the most fiercely contested dividing line in politics in Britain today. The chapter also considers Rawls's use of the theory of the social contract to support his arguments; his principle of “the priority of liberty”; and his “difference principle.” It asserts that Rawls is safe from those critics who maintain that what purports to be a defense of liberalism actually collapses into a wholesale collectivism.

scholarly journals Social Justice and Lesbian Feminism: Two Theories Applied to Homophobia

10.18060/210 ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 319-327
Author(s):  
Denise L. Levy
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Feminist Theory ◽  
John Rawls ◽  
Social Problem ◽  
Theory Of Justice ◽  
Lesbian Feminism ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
The Social ◽  
Theory Base ◽  
A Current

Trends in contemporary social work include the use of an eclectic theory base. In an effort to incorporate multiple theories, this article will examine the social problem of homophobia using two different theoretical perspectives: John Rawls’ theory of social justice and lesbian feminist theory.Homophobia, a current social problem, can be defined as “dislike or hatred toward homosexuals, including both cultural and personal biases against homosexuals” (Sullivan, 2003, p. 2). Rawls’ theory of justice and lesbian feminist theory are especially relevant to the issue of homophobia and provide a useful lens to understanding this social problem. In this article, these two theories will be summarized, applied to the issue of homophobia, and compared and contrasted based on their utility.

SYMPOSIUM ON GLOBALIZATION AND JUSTICE: INTRODUCTION

2006 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-114
Author(s):  
RODNEY G. PEFFER
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Critical Theory ◽  
John Rawls ◽  
World Wide ◽  
Richard Rorty ◽  
International Level ◽  
Liberal Egalitarianism ◽  
Socialist Government ◽  
Wide Scale ◽  
Egalitarian Theory

For over half a century in more than a dozen books and 600 philosophical articles Kai Nielsen has developed and defended a radically egalitarian theory of social justice as well as a political vision demanding a democratic, humane form of socialism and, on an international level, a federative world socialist government embodying these values. In Globalization and Justice Nielsen applies his acute analytical abilities and his substantive theories and views to the present ongoing reality of corporate, capitalist globalization, arguing that this sort of globalization is unjust in that it further disadvantages the developing world. He then argues for an alternative sort of globalization, a process that he believes could and should have, as its end goal, a democratic and humane socialist government and society on a world-wide scale. Along the way he compares his theory and vision to those of such other major contemporary thinkers as John Rawls, Jürgen Habermas, G.A. Cohen, and Richard Rorty representing, respectively, liberal egalitarianism, critical theory, analytical Marxism (at least formerly), and post-modern eclecticism.

Building a Social Justice Narrative for Public Health

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 901-904 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence Wallack
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Collective Responsibility ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
Public Health Issue ◽  
Public Health Perspective ◽  
Public Health Policies ◽  
The Core ◽  
The Social ◽  
Collective Processes

Public health is the place where science, policy, politics, and activism converge. Each public health issue is a snapshot where we can see the unfolding of the collective processes that define who we are, what we believe, and what we value as a society. Our professional strength is our commitment to community and social justice values, but we are challenged to effectively communicate these values in an individualistic, market-dominated society. It is this language of community, and the values it represents, that must be the core of the narrative animating a more just and healthier society. A public health perspective characterized by social justice argues that public health problems are primarily socially generated and can be predicted based on the level of injustice and inequality in a society. Thus, the solutions to such problems must be through progressive social and public health policies and are best understood as a collective responsibility shared across the various levels of society. When we can develop a narrative that effectively communicates the social justice values that are the foundation of this perspective, ours will be a society that better understands the meaning of public health and responds more appropriately to its challenges. We will then be collectively more effective in better translating our values into caring, and more effective, public policy. This will not be easy, but it will be necessary.

scholarly journals URGENSI MASLAHAH DALAM KONSEP EKONOMI SYARIAH

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-28
Author(s):  
Sakirman Sakirman
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Economic System ◽  
Moral Values ◽  
The State ◽  
Pragmatic Approach ◽  
The Core ◽  
The Social ◽  
Islamic Economic ◽  
Political Realities ◽  
Islamic Values

The fragility of the economic system of capitalism and socialism makes the Islamic economic system into an alternative economic system and studied in depth by contemporary Islamic economic thinkers. In realizing Islamic economic system must be aligned with the maqasid al-shari'ah (goals sharia). There are four main approaches in the study of Islamic economics namely: a pragmatic approach, recitative, utopian and adaptive. Such an approach always leads to moral values, human brotherhood, social justice, integrating Islamic values and aims for the establishment of al-mashlahah as the core maqashid al-shari'ah can be used as an argument of the legal establishment, especially relating to Islamic economics. Ijtihad in Islam economy by using al-maslahah can be done by meeting certain requirements that do not conflict with al-Qur'an and al-Hadith and not contrary to qiyas. Besides, it does not conflict with a higher benefit, both in how to do it and in a way to preserve from extinction. Economic Ijtihad Islam implemented by analyzing the social and political realities and priorities (fiqh figh realities and priorities) in order to achieve the benefit of society and the state.

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