The nation state is now faced with unprecedented pressures. Global shifts (a medley of powerful forces in contemporary political economy, military affairs and international security, technology and communications, cultural changes, ecological challenges and so on) require policy solutions at levels of governance beyond traditional states. At the same time, and in part as a response to these wider forces and the uncertainty they bring in their wake, established national polities are challenged too by the rise of politicized sub-national (ethnic, religious, linguistic and cultural) movements. This phenomenon presents a challenge to the extant political systems and the elites who manage their affairs. Moreover, it offers a particular challenge to democratic states. Inasmuch as these polities celebrate the virtues of self-determination and encourage pluralism as a matter of course, flourishing and assertive movements demanding in some degree the re-negotiation of the national bargain, present a serious challenge to the continuity of historic national projects. At the same time, democracy is particularly well equipped, both as a discourse and method of practising politics, for accommodating cultural diversity. This book contains an overview of this challenge to the art of democratic government, and case studies from every region of the world. The contributions are by acknowledged international experts on how democratic states have confronted the task of managing cultural diversity and accommodating perceived differences of identity short of political break-up.
About the AuthorDennis Austin was a Tutor at the University of Ghana in the 1950s, a Research Fellow at the University of London in the 1960s, a Professor of Government of the University of Manchester in the 1970s, and Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of Manchester in the 1980s. He is now Honorary Fellow and Emeritus Professor at the Institute of Development at the University of Manchester. Michael O'Neill has lectured in politics at Manchester Metropolitan, Sheffield Hallam and Nottingham Trent Universities between 1972 and the present.
Book InformationISBN 9780199290000
Author Michael O'NeillFormat Paperback
Page Count 240
Imprint Oxford University PressPublisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 368g
Dimensions(mm) 235mm * 156mm * 14mm