Recognition of Laborers as Citizens: First Worker Democracy versus Liberal Capitalist Democracy

0465334 - FLÚ 2017 RIV NL eng J - Journal Article
Brabec, Martin
Recognition of Laborers as Citizens: First Worker Democracy versus Liberal Capitalist Democracy.
Perspectives on Global Development and Technology. Roč. 15, 1/2 (2016), s. 157-165. ISSN 1569-1500
R&D Projects: GA ČR GA14-19416S
Institutional support: RVO:67985955
Keywords : Athenian democracy * capitalism * citizenships * demos * exploitation * liberal democracy * peasants
Subject RIV: AA - Philosophy ; Religion

This article contributes in a relevant way to the contemporary academic discussions of issues of the nature modern liberal democracy by making its comparison with the Athenian democracy. This comparative perspective uncovers unexpected features which are often hidden from today prevailing synchronous point of view, particularly several problematic roots of contemporary democracy and following contradiction between liberal and democratic dimensions within liberal democracy. The ancient concept of democracy originates from a particular historical situation that had conferred a unique civic status on subordinate classes, turning them into citizens and so created the unique social class, the peasant-citizen. On the other side, the modern concept of democracy belongs to a different historical trajectory, originating not much in the Athenian democracy. It is the major milestones, like Magna Carta and 1688, mark the ascent of the propertied classes. In this case, it is not a question of peasants liberating themselves from the political domination of their overlords but lords themselves asserting their independent powers against the claims of monarchy. The Athenian citizen claimed to be masterless, a servant to no mortal man. The freedom entailed by his citizenship was the freedom of the demos from his lordship. Power of demos, including the poorest citizens, meant to decide, to judge, to control and to initiate-together these powers made people equal and gave them freedom from being dominated by the elites. In Athenian democracy, the state had no separate existence apart from community of citizens. In addition this political role of demos had also very important economic consequences. Relations between classes were directly and profoundly affected by civic status. So political equality not only coexisted with, but substantially modified socio-economic inequality and democracy was more substantive than formal, even if, of course, the serious injustice of slavery was there. Consequently important characteristic of Athenian democracy was the fact that the poor were free from the compulsion to do work for the rich. It is possible to see that in our modern conception democracy liberal principles as constitutionalism, ideas of limited government, the separation of powers, inviolable liberties have displaced the social implications of rule by the demos - such as balance of power between rich and poor - as the central criterion of democracy. In activities of the Fathers of the American constitutionalism, the concept of democracy began to lose both its association with citizenship and its identification with particular distribution of power - democracy as rule by demos, the common people, the poor. The article explains these differences in order to illuminate the sources of the problems of democracy today.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0263945