The Claims of Culture

In The Claims of Culture: Equality and Diversity in the Global Era, Seyla Benhabib offers a penetrating analysis of the challenges facing liberal democracy amidst the complexities of identity politics and cultural conflict. Benhabib contests the notion of cultures as fixed, clearly defined entities and instead posits that they are in constant flux - creating, recreating, and renegotiating the boundaries between us and them. Through this lens, the book challenges dominant assumptions, particularly those underpinning "strong" multiculturalism, and rethinks how societies might address cultural injustices and achieve genuine human diversity. Drawing on examples from Western Europe, Canada, and the United States, Benhabib unfolds a double-track model of deliberative democracy that supports robust cultural contestation not only within official public institutions but also through dynamic social movements and civil society. At the heart of her analysis is a commitment to constitutional and legal universalism, which she argues can coexist with flexible citizenship and legal pluralism when guided by principles of egalitarian reciprocity and voluntary self-ascription. The Claims of Culture serves as an essential resource for scholars, students, and policymakers seeking to bridge the divide between theoretical debates and the practical realities of cultural politics in our global era.