Civic nationalism

"Liberal nationalism" redirects here. It is not to be confused with National liberalism.

Civic nationalism is a kind of nationalism identified by political philosophers who believe in a non-xenophobic form of nationalism compatible with values of freedom, tolerance, equality, and individual rights.[1] Ernest Renan[2] and John Stuart Mill[3] are often thought to be early civic nationalists. Civic nationalists often defend the value of national identity by saying that individuals need a national identity in order to lead meaningful, autonomous lives[4] and that democratic polities need national identity in order to function properly.[5]

History

Civic nationalism is the form of nationalism where the state derives political legitimacy from the active participation of its citizenry (see popular sovereignty), to the degree that it represents the "general will". It is often seen as originating with Jean-Jacques Rousseau and especially the social contract theories which take their name from his 1762 book The Social Contract.

Civic nationalism lies within the traditions of rationalism and liberalism, but as a form of nationalism it is contrasted with ethnic nationalism. Membership of the civic nation is considered voluntary, as in Ernest Renan's classical definition in "Qu'est-ce qu'une nation?" of the nation as a "daily referendum" characterized by the "will to live together".[6] Civic-national ideals influenced the development of representative democracy in countries such as the United States and France (see the United States Declaration of Independence of 1776, and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen of 1789).

States in which civic forms of nationalism predominate are often (but not always) ex-settler colonies such as the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina, in which ethnic nationalism is difficult to construct on account of the diversity of ethnicities within the state. A notable exception is India where civic nationalism has predominated due to the country's linguistic, religious and ethnic diversity. Civic-nationalist states are often characterized by adoption of the jus soli (law of the soil) for granting citizenship in the country, deeming all persons born within the integral territory of the state citizens and members of the nation, regardless of their parents' origin. This serves to link national identity not with a people but rather with the territory and its history, and the history of previous occupants of the territory unconnected to the current occupants are often appropriated for national myths.

In the United Kingdom, the Scottish National Party[7][8][9] and Plaid Cymru (The Party of Wales),[9] which advocate separation from the United Kingdom, proclaim themselves to be "civic nationalist" parties.

Civic nationalism in post-Soviet Ukraine has prevailed since the Orange Revolution.[10]

In Flanders, Belgium the regionalist New Flemish Alliance is considered the advocate of civic nationalism. Whereas in Catalonia, an autonomous region of Spain, parties such as Ciu and Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya are the largest two civic nationalist parties. Furthermore in Spain, there is the Basque Nationalist Party which is becoming increasingly civic.

Outside Europe, it has also been used to describe the Civil War-era Republican Party in the United States.[11]

Civic nationalism contrasts with more restrictive forms, such as ethnic nationalism, which is found in some Eurasian countries such as South Korea.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Tamir, Yael. 1993. Liberal Nationalism. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-07893-9; Will Kymlicka. 1995. Multicultural Citizenship. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-827949-3; David Miller. 1995. On Nationality. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-828047-5.
  2. ↑ Renan, Ernest. 1882. "Qu'est-ce qu'une nation?"
  3. ↑ Mill, John Stuart. 1861. Considerations on Representative Government.
  4. ↑ Kymlicka, Will. 1995. Multicultural Citizenship. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-827949-3. For criticism, see: Patten, Alan. 1999. "The Autonomy Argument for Liberal Nationalism." Nations and Nationalism. 5(1): 1-17.
  5. ↑ Miller, David. 1995. On Nationality. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-828047-5. For criticism, see: Abizadeh, Arash. 2002. "Does Liberal Democracy Presuppose a Cultural Nation? Four Arguments." American Political Science Review 96 (3): 495-509; Abizadeh, Arash. 2004. "Liberal Nationalist versus Postnational Social Integration." Nations and Nationalism 10(3): 231-250.
  6. ↑ "Qu'est-ce qu'une nation?"
  7. ↑ Michael O'Neill (2004). Devolution and British Politics. Pearson/Longman. pp. 92–. ISBN 978-0-582-47274-7.
  8. ↑ Trevor C. Salmon; Mark F. Imber (6 June 2008). Issues In International Relations. Taylor & Francis. pp. 50–. ISBN 978-0-203-92659-8.
  9. 1 2 http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ZrV9fnIkgjcC&pg=PA134&dq=plaid+cymru+%22civic+nationalism%22&hl=en&ei=-tjaTNPOFoaWhQenubjPAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=plaid%20cymru%20%22civic%20nationalism%22&f=false
  10. ↑ http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Jp-5UtoBtFEC&pg=PA187&dq=%22civic+nationalism%22&hl=en&ei=MN7aTKbvCM-xhQeA3lE&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CDcQ6AEwAzgK#v=onepage&q=%22civic%20nationalism%22&f=false
  11. ↑ http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=YJ3CrOiJ6wYC&pg=PA140&dq=conservative+%22civic+nationalism%22&hl=en&ei=t9naTJWbAdGahQe3q2A&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CFcQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=conservative%20%22civic%20nationalism%22&f=false
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