Pursuing Social Justice: Redistribution, Recognition and Representation

In this course we focus on contemporary social problems in relation to social justice and the role of public organisations and social movements in its pursuit. Social justice is reviewed through a lens of redistribution, recognition and representation. The political-philosophical debate between Honneth and Fraser on the proper balance between redistribution and recognition (and representation) will guide us in the analysis of how social justice can be understood and how it can possibly be achieved. In addition to the more philosophical-theoretical debate on social justice, we also employ a sociological lens to study people’s lived experiences of injustice and the organisational-structural context of social (in)justice: How is (in)justice defined, by whom? What power dynamics are at play? What role do public organisations at social movements play in fighting against social injustices?

These questions are applied to four contemporary social issues. Examples of such contemporary social issues are:

1. Human rights: (how) can we undo post-war and postcolonial suffering and advance human rights policy? What end goals can / ought to be achieved when we speak of compensation for human suffering?
2. Gender vs. culture?: under what circumstances are gender differences (un)just? What role does culture play in understanding and analysing injustice with regard to gender? And (how) can we repair possible injustices?
3. Precarity: (how) can we justify the emergence of a growing class of people facing chronic insecurity and uncertainty? And how can this ‘precariat’ organise itself in their struggle for social justice?
4. Human/non-human: which beings on earth are entitled to recognition and protection of their fundamental rights? Do conceptions of social justice allow for going beyond the human realm? What can we learn about social justice when shifting our attention to non-humans like animals?

The contemporary issues may change according to the availability of guest lecturers and/or changes in society.

After participating in Pursuing Social Justice the student is able to:

1. Reproduce, analyze and compare different theories of social justice, (including theories of recognition, redistribution and representation) (learning outcomes 1a).
2. Apply different theories of social justice to contemporary social problems (learning outcomes 2a, 2b).
3. Analyze and reflect on the role of (citizens, professionals and other actors in) public organizations and social movements to pursue social justice (learning outcomes 1a, 2b).
4. Formulate an informed view on contemporary debates on social justice and social problems (learning outcomes 3a).
5. Communicate one’s acquired insights on social justice on an academic level, both in oral and written form (learning outcomes 4a).

• ~Hoorcollege
• ~Werkgroep

• ~Communicatie A
• ~Kennis en inzicht A
• ~Oordeelsvorming A
• ~Toepassen kennis en inzich B
• ~Toepassen kennis en inzicht A