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Chandran Kukathas

Singapore Management University, School of Social Sciences, Faculty Member

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I am a Malaysian-born Australian political philosopher and currently the Dean of the School of Social Sciences at Singapore Management University. I have written on a variety of topics, including: immigration, refugees, multiculturalism, freedom, toleration, liberalism, libertarianism, socialism, conservatism, nationalism, justice, equality, and the state. I have also written on the history of political thought, including books or papers on: F.A.Hayek, John Rawls, David Hume, Pierre Bayle, Adam Smith, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

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Papers by Chandran Kukathas

On Sen on comparative justice

Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, Mar 1, 2013

Against scepticism from thinkers including John Rawls and Thomas Nagel about the appropriateness ... more Against scepticism from thinkers including John Rawls and Thomas Nagel about the appropriateness of justice as the concept through which global ethical concerns should be approached, Amartya Sen argues that the problem lies not with the idea of justice, but with a particular approach to thinking of justice, namely a transcendental approach. In its stead Sen is determined to offer an alternative systematic theory of justice, namely a comparative approach, as a more promising foundation for a theory of 'global justice.' But in the end Sen offers no such thing. He does not develop a theory of justice and this is all to the good; for if values are plural in the way Sen suggests, then justice is not a master idea but one value among many, and it should be neither the first virtue of social institutions, nor the notion that frames all our reflections on ethical and political life.

The significance of civil society

The transition from socialism : state and civil society in the USSR

Longman Cheshire eBooks, 1991

An academic directory and search engine.

Oxford Handbooks Online, 2005

This article addresses the ethical issues of immigration. It asks about the morality of admitting... more This article addresses the ethical issues of immigration. It asks about the morality of admitting persons into (and out of) the state, for any of these reasons and under any of these conditions. Therefore, there may be no single answer about the morality of immigration — it will require taking positions on a number of different matters. What stance one takes will often depend upon — or shape — one's general views about the nature of the state.

Curriculum Vitae

Immigration and the Open Society: A Dialogue: Chapter 5

A draft of Chapter 5 of Dialogues on Immigration and the Open Society

Without Oppression or Disputation - Aboriginal Identity and Protest

A history and analysis of Aboriginal protest movements in Australia in the 1960s and 70s. A 1978 ... more

Handbook teori politik

Nusa Media, 2012

Sovereignty: Reconstructing Liberal Individualism. By Sharon Krause, Chicago: Chicago University Press, 2015. 249p.Rationalism, Pluralism and Freedom. By Jacob T. Levy, New York: Oxford University Press, 2015. 322p

Perspectives on Politics, 2016

Pluralism within the limits of reason: From David Hume to Isaiah Berlin

Liberalism: The international context

Understanding Hayek

Reconciling modernity and tradition in a liberal society

In praise of the strange virtue of people-smuggling

Global Policy, 2013

Pierre Bayle's philosophical commentary on the words of Jesus Christ: Compel them to come in

Review of Michael Oakeshott, rationalism in politics and other essays, and Paul Franco, The Political Philosophy of Michael Oakeshott

Nationalism and Multiculturalism

Handbook of Political Theory

If any issue dominates contemporary political theory, it is how to deal with cultural diversity a... more If any issue dominates contemporary political theory, it is how to deal with cultural diversity and the claimsmoral, legal, and political-made in the name of ethnic, religious, linguistic, or national allegiance (Kymlicka, 2001: 17). Today, governments are confronted by demands from cultural minorities for recognition, protection, preferential treatment, and political autonomy within the boundaries of the state. Equally, international society and its political institutions, as well as states themselves, have had to deal with demands from various peoples for political recognition as independent nations, and for national self-determination. The turbulent politics of the contemporary world may account in part for this development: the collapse of communist Eastern Europe led to an upsurge of nationalist demands from peoples aspiring to statehood; the challenges to the legitimacy of rulers in such places as Kashmir, Burma, East Timor, and Bougainville have fed demands for national independence as well as attempts at secession; the emergence of an indigenous peoples' movement gave further encouragement to aboriginal groups calling for affirmative action, or compensation for past injustice, as well as rights of self-government; and the mass migrations of peoples, fleeing war or simply seeking better opportunities in new countries, have seen the emergence of substantial cultural minorities in states unprepared for the problems this could bring. Political theory had, until recent times, said relatively little about these matters (exceptions include Plamenatz, 1960; Van Dyke, 1977; 1982; 1985). But the issues raised by cultural diversity and nationalist claims could not be ignored for long, since they posed a challenge to the prevailing political theories-and to liberal and democratic theory in particular. Indeed, the challenge of multiculturalism and nationalism has provoked a reexamination of a great number of issues in political theory, from the role of the state, the limits of toleration and the rights of women, to the proper scope of public education and the nature of citizenship. It has brought about a reconsideration of the basis of political order. This chapter surveys the literature of nationalism and multiculturalism as it has grown and developed over the past 15 years. Its aim, however, is not simply to summarize that body of writing but to draw attention to the problems that have confronted contemporary political theory-and liberal theory in particular-as it has struggled to embrace diversity. How can the many live as one? That is an old question in political theory, and the theorists of nationalism and multiculturalism have, in different ways, tried to offer an answer. What is Multiculturalism? The term 'multiculturalism' predates its use in political theory, but not by very long. Although nationalism is an old concept which has been much discussed in the past century (Kedourie, 1967; Minogue, 1967), multiculturalism did not appear until the 1960s and 1970s, when it was used to describe a new public policy, first in Canada and then in Australia. In both of these cases, this development marked an explicit movement by federal governments away from policies of assimilation of ethnic minorities, and immigrants in particular, toward policies of acceptance and integration of diverse cultures (Lopez, 2000: 2-3). The term did not enter the American (or British) lexicon until the 1980s (Glazer, 1997: 8). When it did enter American debates, however, it did so in the first instance, in discussions about public education. 'Multiculturalism,' according to Nathan Glazer, 'is just the latest in [a] sequence of terms describing how American society, particularly American education, should respond to diversity' (1997: 8). Multiculturalism, then, is a term that describes one particular way of responding to ethnic diversity. 'It is a position that rejects assimilation and the "melting pot" image as an imposition of the dominant culture, and instead prefers such metaphors as the "salad bowl" or the "glorious mosaic", in which each ethnic and racial SAGE © Gerald F

The road to serfdom forty years later

On Sen on comparative justice

Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, Mar 1, 2013

Against scepticism from thinkers including John Rawls and Thomas Nagel about the appropriateness ... more Against scepticism from thinkers including John Rawls and Thomas Nagel about the appropriateness of justice as the concept through which global ethical concerns should be approached, Amartya Sen argues that the problem lies not with the idea of justice, but with a particular approach to thinking of justice, namely a transcendental approach. In its stead Sen is determined to offer an alternative systematic theory of justice, namely a comparative approach, as a more promising foundation for a theory of 'global justice.' But in the end Sen offers no such thing. He does not develop a theory of justice and this is all to the good; for if values are plural in the way Sen suggests, then justice is not a master idea but one value among many, and it should be neither the first virtue of social institutions, nor the notion that frames all our reflections on ethical and political life.

The significance of civil society

The transition from socialism : state and civil society in the USSR

Longman Cheshire eBooks, 1991

An academic directory and search engine.

Oxford Handbooks Online, 2005

This article addresses the ethical issues of immigration. It asks about the morality of admitting... more This article addresses the ethical issues of immigration. It asks about the morality of admitting persons into (and out of) the state, for any of these reasons and under any of these conditions. Therefore, there may be no single answer about the morality of immigration — it will require taking positions on a number of different matters. What stance one takes will often depend upon — or shape — one's general views about the nature of the state.

Curriculum Vitae

Immigration and the Open Society: A Dialogue: Chapter 5

A draft of Chapter 5 of Dialogues on Immigration and the Open Society

Without Oppression or Disputation - Aboriginal Identity and Protest

A history and analysis of Aboriginal protest movements in Australia in the 1960s and 70s. A 1978 ... more

Handbook teori politik

Nusa Media, 2012

Sovereignty: Reconstructing Liberal Individualism. By Sharon Krause, Chicago: Chicago University Press, 2015. 249p.Rationalism, Pluralism and Freedom. By Jacob T. Levy, New York: Oxford University Press, 2015. 322p

Perspectives on Politics, 2016

Pluralism within the limits of reason: From David Hume to Isaiah Berlin

Liberalism: The international context

Understanding Hayek

Reconciling modernity and tradition in a liberal society

In praise of the strange virtue of people-smuggling

Global Policy, 2013

Pierre Bayle's philosophical commentary on the words of Jesus Christ: Compel them to come in

Review of Michael Oakeshott, rationalism in politics and other essays, and Paul Franco, The Political Philosophy of Michael Oakeshott

Nationalism and Multiculturalism

Handbook of Political Theory

If any issue dominates contemporary political theory, it is how to deal with cultural diversity a... more If any issue dominates contemporary political theory, it is how to deal with cultural diversity and the claimsmoral, legal, and political-made in the name of ethnic, religious, linguistic, or national allegiance (Kymlicka, 2001: 17). Today, governments are confronted by demands from cultural minorities for recognition, protection, preferential treatment, and political autonomy within the boundaries of the state. Equally, international society and its political institutions, as well as states themselves, have had to deal with demands from various peoples for political recognition as independent nations, and for national self-determination. The turbulent politics of the contemporary world may account in part for this development: the collapse of communist Eastern Europe led to an upsurge of nationalist demands from peoples aspiring to statehood; the challenges to the legitimacy of rulers in such places as Kashmir, Burma, East Timor, and Bougainville have fed demands for national independence as well as attempts at secession; the emergence of an indigenous peoples' movement gave further encouragement to aboriginal groups calling for affirmative action, or compensation for past injustice, as well as rights of self-government; and the mass migrations of peoples, fleeing war or simply seeking better opportunities in new countries, have seen the emergence of substantial cultural minorities in states unprepared for the problems this could bring. Political theory had, until recent times, said relatively little about these matters (exceptions include Plamenatz, 1960; Van Dyke, 1977; 1982; 1985). But the issues raised by cultural diversity and nationalist claims could not be ignored for long, since they posed a challenge to the prevailing political theories-and to liberal and democratic theory in particular. Indeed, the challenge of multiculturalism and nationalism has provoked a reexamination of a great number of issues in political theory, from the role of the state, the limits of toleration and the rights of women, to the proper scope of public education and the nature of citizenship. It has brought about a reconsideration of the basis of political order. This chapter surveys the literature of nationalism and multiculturalism as it has grown and developed over the past 15 years. Its aim, however, is not simply to summarize that body of writing but to draw attention to the problems that have confronted contemporary political theory-and liberal theory in particular-as it has struggled to embrace diversity. How can the many live as one? That is an old question in political theory, and the theorists of nationalism and multiculturalism have, in different ways, tried to offer an answer. What is Multiculturalism? The term 'multiculturalism' predates its use in political theory, but not by very long. Although nationalism is an old concept which has been much discussed in the past century (Kedourie, 1967; Minogue, 1967), multiculturalism did not appear until the 1960s and 1970s, when it was used to describe a new public policy, first in Canada and then in Australia. In both of these cases, this development marked an explicit movement by federal governments away from policies of assimilation of ethnic minorities, and immigrants in particular, toward policies of acceptance and integration of diverse cultures (Lopez, 2000: 2-3). The term did not enter the American (or British) lexicon until the 1980s (Glazer, 1997: 8). When it did enter American debates, however, it did so in the first instance, in discussions about public education. 'Multiculturalism,' according to Nathan Glazer, 'is just the latest in [a] sequence of terms describing how American society, particularly American education, should respond to diversity' (1997: 8). Multiculturalism, then, is a term that describes one particular way of responding to ethnic diversity. 'It is a position that rejects assimilation and the "melting pot" image as an imposition of the dominant culture, and instead prefers such metaphors as the "salad bowl" or the "glorious mosaic", in which each ethnic and racial SAGE © Gerald F

The road to serfdom forty years later

A Philosopher Calls SCRIPT

A dialogue on Rainer Forst's theory of justification

What is Capitalism DRAFT

Critics of capitalism have regularly anticipated its demise, suggesting that it is likely to coll... more Critics of capitalism have regularly anticipated its demise, suggesting that it is likely to collapse under the weight of its internal contradictions and arguing that this is something to be welcomed, many insisting that it is a system that is beyond reform. Defenders of capitalism, typically, tout its benefits while maintaining that whatever failings it appears to possess reflect not any internal weaknesses but the unfortunate reality of political intervention in its operation. In these differing assessments, the term “capitalism” is not always consistently—or even coherently—deployed, and all too often the meaning of the word and the identity of the subject is entirely unclear. This lecture offers a re-examination of the idea of capitalism and aims to show that neither its critics nor its defenders have operated with accounts that serve their purposes or have any independent utility. It goes on to present an analysis of the meaning of capitalism, setting it in the context of a broader theory of modernity.

Immigration and the open society ch 4

chapter of a book called Dialogues on Immigration and the Open Society

Immigration and the Open Society ch 3

I must confess to being a little anxious about this next meeting with the students. Underneath th... more I must confess to being a little anxious about this next meeting with the students. Underneath the friendly banter, I thought I detected a harder-and sharper-edge that had begun to make itself felt in the last conversation. It wasn't clear to me whether they were tiptoeing around Tracy-either because of friendship or because they were intimidated by her manner-or were genuinely torn between different intuitions. But I needn't have worried. They turned up on time, in good spirits, and ready to do battle. I couldn't see any evidence of rancour, and it sounded like the only argument they'd had since our previous gathering was over the choice of food, Astrid having announced quite firmly that she would have no truck with pizza. The group had settled on a mixture of Chinese and Indian (because it had better vegetarian offerings for Antoine) and arrived with a variety of takeout containers, each home to some hellish western interpretation of an Asian cuisine. 'This menu is a catastrophe,' I said. 'How, in this day and age, can any serious establishment claim to be a "Chinese" restaurant? 'Or an "Indian" one? It's like thinking that labelling something "European food" gave you a serious description of what was to be served.' 'Xandros,' said Diana, 'just chill! Try not to turn dinner into a conceptual problem. It's food. And I'm sure that somewhere in China someone once made a honey shrimp.' 'Yes,' said Temi, 'and he was caught, tried, found guilty of crimes against cuisine, and deported to Australia.' 'I like honey prawns-or shrimp, as you call them,' said Kaveh, 'they're so, so…' 'Nauseatingly cloying?' said Astrid. 'Moreish,' said Kaveh. 'I think it's because they have a kind of purity that comes from their sheer authenticity.' 'I think you've had one prawn too many,' said Antoine in a grave voice. 'Well, I'm with Xandros,' said Tracy, 'as a menu, it's a disaster: we've got Italian and Australian wine, faux Chinese offerings that mix noodles and rice, and an assortment of so-called Indian dishes that all look like they were invented in a pub in1970s Britain.' 'I also brought some special cheese,' said Antoine sheepishly. 'It's from France-a Mont D'Or, actually, really delicious.' 'Ah,' said Tracy, drily, 'the perfect complement to Chicken Tikka Masala.' 'It's all nosh,' said Kaveh, 'and we should just enjoy. Remember that the poor would be grateful for any of it.' 'Even the poor can have standards,' said Tracy, sounding a little sour. 'What modernity hath wrought,' I said, smiling, 'makes being alive bliss and, I'm sure, being young simply heaven.' 'Huh?' said Temi. 'It's Wordsworth,' said Kaveh, 'try to keep up.' 'Was he also a Jedi,' said Astrid. 'No, more a cloud walker than a sky walker,' said Kaveh with a grin. MU Classificati on: Restricted 'Let's get back to earth,' I said, 'we did have an intellectual item on the menu, or should I say agenda. Can we turn to that? 'Not quickly enough,' said Temi. 'Then you're up, Tracy,' I said, 'you were going to enlighten us on the state and its significance.' 'I don't know that I'm going to give you a fully formed theory of the state,' said Tracy, 'since I'm not sure where to start on that topic. But what I have been doing is trying to figure out what we owe to each other if we're really serious about social justice. It seems clear to me that we have obligations to others, but not to everyone, and that we owe more to those we have relationships with than we owe to strangers-even if those strangers are close by, or indeed, in our midst. That means that we owe more to our families, to our friends, to our colleagues, and to our countrymen, than to people from other countries. It means working to sustain, or sometimes create, the institutions and the policies to take care of our own. It also means making sure that our fellow citizens understand this and are brought up to be responsible for upholding our shared values as well as our common practices and frameworks. I know you guys aren't going to like this, but I think it means educating our compatriots to be, well, patriotic-to be loyal to their country.' 'Why are you bringing up education?' said Temi, 'And loyalty? I thought we were going to discuss immigration.' 'Yes,' said Diana, 'I'm a bit puzzled too. 'And patriotism? Seriously?' 'Don't be too quick to judge,' I said, 'I think Tracy is on the right track. She's getting to the heart of the issue-though whether you agree with her in the end is another matter altogether.' 'Thank you,' said Tracy, 'though you may have an exaggerated opinion of how far I've been able to think things through. I'm just hoping that as I answer your questions my intuitions will be borne out.' 'Go on, then,' said Antoine, 'fill us in on these intuitions.' 'Okay,' said Tracy, 'let me start with the most obvious fact. You'll have noticed that the world is divided into states. In fact, there are 195 of them according to Worldometer. 1 This is not an accident. The reason we have states is that they perform a vital function. They make it possible for us to act collectively to address problems we could not deal with unless we had institutions that enable us to cooperate, particularly in matters where market exchange is not enough. What states do is facilitate the working together of people who have shared interests so that they might be better able to pursue their goals in an orderly way, and also take care of one another as members of a shared community.' 'Wikipedia says there are 206 countries,' said Kaveh nonchalantly, more engrossed in dissecting yet another honey prawn than in the conversation, 'I looked it up.' 'Maybe that figure is out of date,' said Tracy, 'or is just mistaken. It's Wikipedia.' 'I don't think it's wrong, or out of date,' said Kaveh, but it's really a matter of how you count countries. There are 193 UN member states, and then there are Vatican City and Palestine, and then you have Kosovo and Taiwan, which are recognized by some states but not others. Actually, there are quite a lot of states that are not recognized by everyone-Taiwan obviously, Israel, North and South Korea since they don't recognize one another, and others, I'm sure.' 1 https://www.worldometers.info/geography/alphabetical-list-of-countries/ 'Pakistan doesn't recognize Armenia,' said Astrid solemnly. 'Turkey doesn't recognize Cyprus,' said Temi, 'and Somalia doesn't recognize Somaliland.' 'And then there's Abkhazia,' said Kaveh, 'now that's complicated. Some say it's a country and others say not. I don't think you're off to a good start, Trace.' 'Oh, come on,' said Tracy, 'can't we just use some common sense here? I know there are conflicts and disagreements in politics, and I realize that borders and boundaries change. There are always exceptions and grey areas whenever one tries to categorize anything. Can I just try to make my case?' 'Sorry,' said Kaveh. 'Me too,' said Temi and Astrid in unison. 'We should let Tracy finish her opening gambit,' I said, 'but let's make sure we don't let her off the hook on this matter. It's true that categorization can be difficult, and sometimes even philosophers have to use a little common sense, but we can't appeal to common sense to get us out of philosophical trouble, even if we have to do so for more practical purposes.' 'Er, thank you, I think,' said Tracy, looking at me a little uncertainly. 'You're welcome,' I said, 'now carry on.' 'As I was saying before I was interrupted by the encyclopaedia police,' Tracy continued, giggling even as she tried to look cross, 'we have states because they bring order and make it possible for us to cooperate. I'm not saying that all states do this equally well, and I know that some states are incompetent, or tyrannical, or just run by crooks and murderers.' 'When you say, "some" I think you mean "most",' said Kaveh, 'just sayin'.' Tracy ignored him and continued: 'But that doesn't change the fact that we need states because we need rules and the means of enforcing them-we need institutions. For them to work-and this is why I think some states have no proper institutions-we need both rulers and citizens who accept this story. If either party doesn't, well, Whisky. Tango. And Foxtrot!' 'Hang on a minute,' said Diana, 'are you saying that states are just fictions, only useful ones? I thought you were going to go in a completely different direction once you started talk about family, countrymen, education, patriotism. It sounds like you're now giving a completely utilitarian account for why we have to have states.' 'Yes,' Antoine jumped in, 'I thought you were going to start appealing to history, and how our forefathers...' 'And foremothers,' Astrid added, 'who are always neglected.' '…and foremothers, Antoine continued, 'how they forged a nation through the sweat of their brows and the blood they sacrificed, and so on, and so on.' 'You're getting a bit overly dramatic, Antoine,' said Diana, 'but hey, that's roughly where I thought you were going.' 'That's not a million miles from what I want to say,' said Tracy, looking and sounding a little flustered, 'but I thought if I went down that route all I'd get is the kind of mockery I'm hearing now. But okay, let me try to rescue my case. I think it's both. I think there are good practical reasons of necessity for the state, and I think states have to be MU Classificati on: Restricted established on something real, like history. So yes, we construct it, and renew it, but we can't just make it up any way we like. 'Like writing a chain novel, perhaps,' said Kaveh, either helpfully or mischievously. 'Yes, yes,' said Tracy eagerly, 'I think that's right.' 'Ronald Dworkin says we should think of the law as a kind of chain novel,' said Antoine, 'and each generation adds chapters to keep it going, only they have to do it in a way that's consistent with the story.' 'I don't know,' said Diana, 'if the narrative is anything like Game of Thrones, where any plot twist is possible, I don't think the past...

Pax Americana: A comment on Martha Nussbaum's Liberty of Conscience

My dear wife: Mr. Davies will tell you what's happening here. He's a good man and has done everyt... more My dear wife: Mr. Davies will tell you what's happening here. He's a good man and has done everything he can for me. There are some other good men too, only they don't realize what they're doing. They're the ones I feel sorry for, because it'll be over for me but they'll have to go on remembering for the rest of their lives. A man just can't take the law into his own hands and hang people without hurting everybody in the world because then he's not just breaking one law, but all laws. Law is a lot more than words you put in a book or judges or lawyers or sheriffs you hire to carry it out. It's everything people ever have found out about justice and what's right and wrong. It's the very conscience of humanity. There can't be any such thing as civilization unless people have a conscience, because if people touch God anywhere, where is it except through their conscience? And what is anybody's conscience except a little piece of the conscience of all men that ever lived? I guess that's all I've got to say, except kiss the babies for me, and God bless you. Your husband, Donald."-The Ox-Bow Incident

These are the words penned by an innocent man in the few moments granted to him to before he is lynched by men convinced of his guilt. They are heard for the first time in the film, The Ox-Bow Incident, in this final scene when the letter is read aloud to those who now know they are guilty of murdering the writer. As Henry Fonda speaks the dead man's words his eyes are obscured by the brim of another man's hat, as if to emphasise that these words spring from the lips of Justice, whose blindness symbolizes her impartiality and, so, her unwavering commitment to what is right. Law, justice, right, civilization, humanity, conscience, God. Not only are these notions intertwined but they also described how we are all linked: by law, by the justice it serves, and by the faculty called conscience, which contains within it the possibility of civilization. Reading Martha Nussbaum's spirited defence of Liberty of Conscience, I could not help recalling this particular scene from one of America's most famous westerns.

John Rawls and the Immigrant

John Rawls was the most eminent political philosopher of the second half of the twentieth century... more John Rawls was the most eminent political philosopher of the second half of the twentieth century and one who achieved canonical status within the tradition of western political thought for his theory of justice. According to many, he almost single-handedly revived political philosophy as a reputable field, at least among analytical philosophers. A part of the reason for his eminence is the sheer ambition of his undertaking. His first great work, A Theory of Justice, not only drew together in a single study all the major questions with which moral and political theorists had grappled but also deployed a dizzying array of methodological techniques drawn from economics, game theory, sociology, and philosophy, as well as from the history of moral and political thought. The motivation behind Rawls's enterprise, we now know, was not simply that of a scholar interested in abstract or technical puzzles but rather a genuine concern about matters of morality in a world that had just come out of war, and in a country-the United States-that was in the midst of a civil rights movement that questioned the legitimacy of its fundamental institutions, arising as they had out of a long and bitter history of slavery. Though these topics are not touched upon explicitly in Rawls's philosophical writings, they were very much at the back of his mind as he tried to craft a theory that he hoped would not merely engage academic philosophers but serve as a foundation for moral and political renewal.

Immigration and the Open Society: A Dialogue: Chapter 2

Draft of chapter 2 of 5 of a dialogue on immigration and the open society. It begins with the eco... more

Kevin Vallier's Trust in a Polarized Age

Draft of a short paper on Kevin Vallier's Trust in a Polarized Age

Immigration and the Open Society: A Dialogue: Chapter

Draft of chapter 1 of a dialogue, on Immigration and the Open Society

Immigration and Freedom for Darwin Lectures

Darwin Lecture presented at Cambridge, due for publication in 2020

Hayek's Constitution of Liberty2.docx

Immigration and Freedom Princeton UP 2021

Immigration and Freedom, 2021

Immigration is often seen as a danger to western liberal democracies because it threatens to unde... more Immigration is often seen as a danger to western liberal democracies because it threatens to undermine their fundamental values, most notably freedom and national self-determination. In this book, however, Chandran Kukathas argues that the greater threat comes not from immigration but from immigration control.

Kukathas shows that immigration control is not merely about preventing outsiders from moving across borders. It is about controlling what outsiders do once in a society: whether they work, reside, study, set up businesses, or share their lives with others. But controlling outsiders—immigrants or would-be immigrants—requires regulating, monitoring, and sanctioning insiders, those citizens and residents who might otherwise hire, trade with, house, teach, or generally associate with outsiders. The more vigorously immigration control is pursued, the more seriously freedom is diminished. The search for control threatens freedom directly and weakens the values upon which it relies, notably equality and the rule of law. Kukathas demonstrates that the imagined gains from efforts to control immigration are illusory, for they do not promote either economic prosperity or social solidarity. Nor does immigration control bring self-determination, since the apparatus of control is an international institutional regime that increases the power of states and their agencies at the expense of citizens. That power includes the authority to determine who is and is not an insider: to define identity itself.

Looking at past and current practices across the world, Immigration and Freedom presents a critique of immigration control as an institutional reality, as well as an account of what freedom means—and why it matters.

Then and Now - A Reply to Professor Rawls[19]

N/A, 1986

A response I gave while a DPhil student to the Oxford Ockham Society, which had invited Professor... more