Citizenship

« Citizenship Within political philosophy, citizenship refers not only to a legal status, but also to a normative ideal - the governed should be full and equal participants in the political process.

As such, it is a distinctively democratic ideal.

People who are governed by monarchs or military dictators are subjects, not citizens.

Most philosophers therefore view citizenship theory as an extension of democratic theory.

Democratic theory focuses on political institutions and procedures; citizenship theory focuses on the attributes of individual participants. One important topic in citizenship theory concerns the need for citizens to actively participate in political life.

In most countries participation in politics is not obligatory, and people are free to place private commitments ahead of political involvement.

Yet if too many citizens are apathetic, democratic institutions will collapse.

Another topic concerns the identity of citizens.

Citizenship is intended to provide a common status and identity which helps integrate members of society.

However, some theorists question whether common citizenship can accommodate the increasing social and cultural pluralism of modern societies. 1 Citizenship and democratic theory ‘Citizenship' is a term the philosophical meaning of which differs from its everyday usage.

In everyday speech, citizenship is often used as a synonym for ‘nationality' , to refer to one's legal status as a member of a particular country.

To be a citizen entails having certain rights and responsibilities, but these vary greatly from country to country.

For example, citizens in a liberal democracy have political rights and religious liberties, whereas citizens in a monarchy, military dictatorship or religious theocracy may have neither. In philosophical contexts, citizenship refers to a substantive normative ideal of membership and participation in a political community.

To be a citizen, in this sense, is to be recognized as a full and equal member of society, with the right to participate in the political process.

As such, it is a distinctively democratic ideal.

People who are governed by monarchs or military dictators are subjects, not citizens. This link between citizenship and democracy is evident in the history of Western thought.

Citizenship was a prominent theme among philosophers of the ancient Greek and Roman republics, but disappeared from feudal thought, only to be revived with the rebirth of republicanism during the Renaissance (see Political philosophy, history of §§2, 4 ).

Indeed, it is sometimes difficult to distinguish citizenship, as a philosophical topic, from democracy.

However, theories of democracy primarily focus on institutions and procedures - political parties, elections, legislatures and constitutions - while theories of citizenship focus on the attributes of individual citizens. Theories of citizenship are important because democratic institutions will collapse if citizens lack certain virtues, such as civic-mindedness and mutual goodwill.

Indeed, many democracies suffer from voter apathy, racial and religious intolerance, and significant non-compliance with taxation or environmental policies that rely on. »