Opening Public Space: The Peace Arbitrator and Rural Politicization, 1861-1864

Slavic Review ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 707-731 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roxanne Easley
Keyword(s):  
Social Change ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Public Space ◽  
The State ◽  
Public Interests ◽  
Dialogue Process ◽  
Initial Shock ◽  
Point Of Intersection ◽  
Formal Communication

The peace arbitrator was created in 1861 to be the main administrative autiiority in the countryside during die implementation of emancipation. In this article Roxanne Easley examines the institution of peace arbitrator and its role in mediating interests and fostering communication between landlord and peasant and as a potential generative agent of civil society in the postemancipation countryside. After the initial shock of confrontation between landowners and peasants, coercion, arbitrariness, and custom began to share public space with dialogue, process, and law in the solution of public disputes. The peace arbitrator, as die point of intersection for each group’s ideology(ies) and as instructor in formal communication, was at the heart of this change. But a permanent, fully institutionalized vehicle for mediating public interests did not fit with the autocracy’s vision of orderly social change nor with its habitual compartmentalization of die social estates. In response to this threat, the state first neutralized the unusual public principles that underlay the institution of peace arbitrator and then eliminated it in 1874. Easley explores the unintended growth of public politicization in rural Russia as a consequence of emancipation and the boundaries of autocratic reformism.

Public Space for Memory in Contemporary Civil Society: Freedom to Learn from the Mirror of the Past?

1999 ◽  
Vol 160 ◽  
pp. 1019-1035 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary G. Mazur
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Cultural Revolution ◽  
The State ◽  
The Past ◽  
30Th Anniversary ◽  
Great Wall ◽  
The Cultural Revolution

On 17 May 1996 at the 30th anniversary of the beginning of the Great Cultural Revolution, a group of about 40 people met in the number two crypt at Babaoshan national cemetery on the western outskirts of Beijing where the ashes of China's highest elite are interred. They met at that particular time in memory of four men who had been declared traitors and enemies of the state in 1966 at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution. In this crypt are kept the ashes of three of the men, Deng Tuo, Wu Han and Liu Ren. The ashes of the fourth, Liao Mosha, were scattered, according to his wishes, at the foot of a tree beneath the Great Wall.

Affirmative Action and the Demands of Justice

1998 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Scott Arnold
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Social Change ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Affirmative Action ◽  
The United States ◽  
Normative Theory ◽  
The State ◽  
Main Argument ◽  
Theories Of Justice ◽  
Political Justification

This essay is about the moral and political justification of affirmative action programs in the United States. Both legally and politically, many of these programs are under attack, though they remain ubiquitous. The concern of this essay, however, is not with what the law says but with what it should say. The main argument advanced in this essay concludes that most of the controversial affirmative action programs are unjustified. It proceeds in a way that avoids dependence on controversial theories of justice or morality. My intention is to produce an argument that is persuasive across a broad ideological spectrum, extending even to those who believe that justice requires these very programs. Though the main focus of the essay is on affirmative action, in the course of making the case that these programs are illegitimate, I shall defend some principles about the conditions under which it is appropriate for the state to impose on civil society the demands of justice. These principles have broader implications for a normative theory of social change in democratic societies.

scholarly journals Conflicts and Religions: The Case of Syria and Iraq

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 94-111
Author(s):  
Pierre-Jean Luizard
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Public Space ◽  
The State ◽  
Violent Conflict ◽  
Foreign Occupation ◽  
Long Time ◽  
History Of ◽  
Ancient Mesopotamia ◽  
Religious War

Religion is at the heart of the lacerating conflicts in Iraq and Syria today. In both countries the matter at hand is the fracture between the two main branches of Islam. This fracture escalated into a religious war after the Arab Springs in 2011, even though the violent conflict between Shia and Sunni started in Iraq in 2003, after the American invasion of the ancient Mesopotamia. The reason for both the foreign occupation and the insurrection of the civil society leading to the same chaos is that, in both countries, the State does not raise enough legitimacy to open a public space able to welcome a unitary citizenship. Such a phenomenon calls back to the history of the two states and at the British (Iraq) and French (Syria) establishing mandates of the two institutions, which never succeeded in imposing their legitimacy for most people (Shia in Iraq and Sunni in Syria), left out of the ruling bodies for a long time. The Shia-Kurdish combination, which is the leading force in Iraq since 2003, conducted to the refusal of the Arab Sunni minority to live marginalized and powerless.

scholarly journals Memory Policy and European Integration Aspirations of Ukraine (2014-2019)

2020 ◽  
pp. 7-24
Author(s):  
Y. Shapoval
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Collective Memory ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
The State ◽  
Political Class ◽  
Adequate Model ◽  
The Past ◽  
Political Reality

The article analyzes peculiarities of Ukraine’s memory policy in 2014-2019 in the context of its European integration aspirations. The features of the politics of memory / historical politics in Ukraine are described after the dramatic events of the end of 2013-2014, which were proclaimed as a “Revolution of Dignity” (or “Euromaidan”). These events were also connected with the beginning of Russian aggression in the East of Ukraine, with the beginning of so called “Leninopad” (demolition of monuments to Lenin) and forced decommunization up until 2019. That is, to the changes in the political class of Ukraine related to the election of the 6-th President Volodymyr Zelensky. Undoubtedly, memory policy will change and its content will receive a separate consideration in the nearest future. The author of this article first of all strived to stimulate broader scholarly discussions on this topic. Scientist’s conscience demands to be modest in answering even those questions that appear simple at first sight. The scientific novelty is to summarize the key trends of the memory policy in Ukraine in 2014-2019 and to identify a number of problems that have a negative impact on Ukraine’s European integration process. The article considers Ukrainian experience of memory policy as a mechanism for influencing political reality. Memory policy refers to effective mechanisms for influencing political reality, in particular, to change the degree of social consolidation, citizens’ self-awareness, the formation and strengthening of collective identities. In 2014-2019 the gradual awareness of the effectiveness of these mechanisms caused the increase of interest in collective memory, which was demonstrated by the leaders of the state, politicians, political parties and civil society structures. The formation and implementation of memory policy in Ukraine were getting increasingly conscious and directed. The search for such a model of memory policy, which would be able to promote the consolidation of these groups into a united civil society, to convert a diversity of the images of the past of Ukraine into its resource, not its problem. This is also encouraged by the ongoing Russian hybrid aggression. One of its manifestations appears a permanent imposing on Ukrainians of the imperial-Soviet image of the past by the propaganda structures of the Russian Federation. This is prompted by a well-defined strategy for Ukraine’s European integration. As the experience of 2014-2019 has shown, Ukraine with some of foundations of its historical policy fits quite organically into the pan-European scheme (for example, by strengthening the influence and role of civil society in this area). At the same time, there were some problems during the mentioned period. First of all, they were related to the search for an adequate model of the collective memory, which focuses on the value of the state as a common homeland and a human rights’ guarantee. An important step was 2014 decommunization policy in Ukraine. By condemning totalitarianism (Nazi and Soviet models), it ensured that Ukraine’s public space was cleansed of communist symbolism (though not definitively). At the same time, it has created new risks and new questions that need to be discussed and answered with the obligatory participation of expert scientists.

scholarly journals Tracing “Taiwanization” Processes in Taiwanese Presidential Statements in Times of Cross-Strait Rapprochement

2011 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lutgard Lams ◽  
Xavier Li-wen Liao
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Nation Building ◽  
The State ◽  
Building Process ◽  
Current Article ◽  
Presidential Discourse ◽  
Media Discourses ◽  
Ruling Party

Over the last few decades, Taiwanese society has witnessed processes of localization/Taiwanization/ de- and re-Sinicization (Sinification), all vying for legitimacy. These trends in the nation-building process are played out on the state as well as the civil society level. It can thus be useful to examine whether societal (de-)localization trends are paralleled in any ideological repositioning of official and/or media discourses after a change in ruling party. The current article investigates an important discursive site in Taiwan's public space, the presidential discourse of the new Kuomintang (KMT) (Guomindang) era, starting from the inauguration address by President Ma Ying-jeou (Ma Yingjiu) on 20 May 2008.

Imagining the street in post-war Britain

Urban History ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 166-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
JOE MORAN
Keyword(s):  
Social Change ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Social Life ◽  
The State ◽  
Way Of Thinking ◽  
Post War ◽  
Planning Concept

ABSTRACT:This article discusses the changing ways in which the residential street has been imagined in post-war Britain. From the ethnographers and street photographers who emerged in Bethnal Green in the late 1940s and early 1950s, to the planning concept of ‘streets in the air’, to modern geodemographics, the street has been a way of thinking through shifting ideas about civil society and collective social life. Imagined as a space of spontaneous community when set against the rational, contractual operations of both the market and the state, the street has been a means of articulating hopes for and anxieties about social change.

scholarly journals Funding community organising: diversifying sources, democratising civil society

2019 ◽  
pp. 103-118
Author(s):  
Robert Fisher ◽  
Hélène Balazard
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Change ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Community Building ◽  
The State ◽  
State Funding ◽  
Funding Sources

This chapter recognises the variety, complexity, and contested politics of community organising — a practice that ranges from consensus-based community building to more conflict-oriented grassroots organising confronting oppression. It focuses on the need for movement-like organising for economic and social justice at the local level and beyond. The chapter makes the case that an over-reliance on progressive philanthropic sources has resulted in the underfunding of community organising. It has also contributed to the depoliticisation of ‘civil society’ and has obscured the potential role the state can play in achieving egalitarian social change. The chapter argues that it is time to diversify funding sources for community organising and to re-evaluate debates in the field about the limits and difficulties associated with state funding.

scholarly journals Religious Relations in the Context of Social Change and the Formation of Civil Society

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (19) ◽  
pp. 98-101
Author(s):  
Oleksiy Tytarenko
Keyword(s):  
Social Change ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
The State ◽  
The Future ◽  
Democratic Country

Together with gaining independence, the Ukrainian people received a historical opportunity to build the state according to their own ideas and wishes, inherent in the people's values and cherish hope for the future of life in a just and democratic country.

scholarly journals Editorial: Social change, civil society and the state…the struggle continues

2009 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-95
Author(s):  
Anthony Marcus ◽  
Kirk Dombrowski
Keyword(s):  
Social Change ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
The State

scholarly journals ENTIDADES DO TERCEIRO SETOR: PARTICIPAÇÃO DEMOCRÁTICA NAS PARCERIAS COM O PODER PÚBLICO

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 204-221
Author(s):  
Ocimar Barros de Oliveira ◽  
Walkiria Martinez Heinrich Ferrer
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Public Policies ◽  
Third Sector ◽  
The State ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Jürgen Habermas ◽  
The Third ◽  
Jurgen Habermas ◽  
The Third Sector

O presente trabalho aborda a participação democrática nas políticas públicas pelas denominadas entidades do terceiro setor, organizadas e administradas pela sociedade civil e suas relações com o Estado na implementação de atividades de interesse público e auxílio de implementação das políticas públicas. A escolha do tema reflete na importância de se analisar esta relação frente às teorias democráticas, em especial a teoria da democracia participativa, bem como os efeitos positivos e negativos oriundos desta relação.  Tem-se por objetivo, na primeira parte do trabalho, definir e identificar as entidades que integram o terceiro setor e a importância das relações existentes entre tais entidades e o Estado, para a consolidação da democracia. Na segunda parte, identificar algumas atividades de utilidade pública realizadas pelas entidades do terceiro setor e relevância para a efetivação de políticas públicas. No terceiro momento, é realizada uma análise das consequências positivas e/ou negativas nas relações entre tais entidades do terceiro setor e o Estado. O método de abordagem utilizado é dedutivo, combinado com os métodos de pesquisa bibliográfico e documental.  Em conclusão, percebe-se a importância da democracia participativa, no contexto de organização da sociedade civil, criando instituições capazes de ocupar o espaço público e auxiliar na tomada de decisões políticas dialogadas, dentro da concepção da teoria discursiva de Jürgen Habermas. Contudo, há que se traçar uma linha demarcatória visível entre Estado e entidades do terceiro setor, ante aos perigos de captura de interesses e de desvirtuamento do processo democrático que podem advir desta relação. Palavras-chave: Democracia. Poder público. Terceiro setor.  This paper approaches the democratic participation in public policies by the entities denominated as the third sector – which are organized and administrated by the civil society – and its relationships with the government in implementing public interest activities and helping in the application of public policies. The importance of choosing the subject reflects on the relevance of analyzing that relationship based on the democratic theories, especially the participatory democracy theory, as well as the positive and negative effects from such relation. The goal, in the first part of this study, is to define and identify the entities that constitute the third sector and the importance of the existing relations among those entities and the State for the consolidation of democracy. In the second part, the objective is to point out some utility services carried out by third sector entities and its relevance for the fulfillment of public policies. Afterwards, it has been conducted an analysis of the positive and/or negative consequences regarding the relationships among the afore mentioned entities and the State. The method of approach that has been used is deductive, in combination with a bibliographic and document analysis. In conclusion, there can be noticed the importance of participatory in the context of the organization of civil society, originating institutions capable of occupying the public space and assisting in the making of dialogical political decisions, within the conception of the discursive theory of Jürgen Habermas. However, it is necessary to draw a visible line of demarcation between the State and third sector entities, given the dangers of capturing interests and distorting the democratic process that may result from this relationship. Keywords: Democracy; Public Power; Third sector. 

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