Basic Equality and Discrimination (Applied Legal Philosophy)

✍ Scribed by Nicholas Mark Smith

• Publisher: Ashgate
• Year: 2011
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 239
• Series: Applied Legal Philosophy
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

The focus of this book is the idea of equality as a moral, political and jurisprudential concept. The author is motivated primarily by a concern to better understand the conundrums which arise in the justification, interpretation and application of discrimination law. Nicholas Smith aims to provide a clearer understanding of the nature of the value that the law is trying to uphold - equality. He rejects the notion that the concept of equality is vacuous and defends the idea as the proper range of ultimate moral concern. After discussing the general characteristics of the denial of equality and some types of discrimination, Smith turns to the vexed subject of discrimination law. He argues that human rights lawyers should step back from the business of trying to steer courts towards vague equality goals, informed by conceptions of equality that are either empty or even more abstract than the notion of equality itself. If they do, Smith thinks that the meaning of 'equality' will be apparent and our difficulties with the law will be shown to be primarily moral ones. This book will be a valuable resource for students and researchers working in the areas of legal philosophy and theory, public law, and human rights law.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover......Page 1
Contents......Page 6
Preface......Page 8
1 Introduction......Page 12
Why Westen Thinks ‘Equality’ is Empty......Page 24
Waldron’s Defence of Equality......Page 26
The Point of Talk about Equality......Page 29
Introduction......Page 38
Range Properties......Page 41
Metaethical Considerations......Page 46
The Ethics of Superiority......Page 52
Basic Equality and Morality......Page 56
When are We Bound by Basic Equality?......Page 63
Introduction......Page 68
Basic Equality and Fundamental Freedoms......Page 70
Enforcing Basic Equality......Page 76
Other Types of Liberty......Page 79
Equal Values?......Page 80
Introduction......Page 86
What Constitutes a Denial of Basic Equality?......Page 87
Some Different Types of Denial of Basic Equality......Page 91
Introduction......Page 100
Definitions......Page 101
What is Discrimination Against a Cultural Group?......Page 106
Is Critiquing Other Cultures Morally Permissible?......Page 107
Cultural Rights......Page 110
Introduction......Page 120
Substantive Equality?......Page 124
Equality and Dignity......Page 132
Social Inclusion......Page 142
Conclusion......Page 146
Introduction......Page 150
Indirect Discrimination......Page 154
Summing Up......Page 165
Introduction......Page 170
The Past Discrimination Argument......Page 176
The Forward Looking (Present Discrimination) Argument......Page 192
Does Affirmative Action Treat Affected Individuals Fairly?......Page 198
Is Affirmative Action Effective?......Page 209
Different Contexts and Groups......Page 215
What is to Be Done?......Page 219
Conclusion......Page 226
Bibliography......Page 228
Index......Page 236