Kantian Citizenship: Grounds, Standards and Global Implications

This book is a collection of 12 new essays on the topic of Kant’s account of citizenship, the first book-length text on this topic. It features an international cast of leading scholars who specialize in Kant’s ethics, philosophy of religion and political philosophy. The contributors connect Kant’s philosophy with contemporary issues concerning citizenship, including the moral grounds of citizenship rights, the relation between citizenship, human rights and dignity, civic virtues, citizenship in the ethical commonwealth, in particular the moral function of religious rituals, the link between ethical duties and faith, and the relation between religious freedom and political power, democratic participation, the legitimacy of international courts, just war theory, cosmopolitanism and the contemporary relevance of a Kantian account of citizenship. The topic is of interest given some of the currently urgent citizenship-related challenges that we are facing today. Kant’s account of justice stipulates that, in a fair and peaceful world, the legal framework that establishes rights and obligations should be effective at national, international and cosmopolitan levels. Kant’s legal and political philosophy also features the unique combination of a realistic appraisal of the human condition and powerful normative recommendations concerning action and principles of ethics and law. Together with Kant’s emphasis on the requirement of consistency, the approaches discussed in the volume are better able to orient thinking and guide action for currently urgent ethical, legal, political and social problems. Kantian Citizenship will appeal to scholars and graduate students working on Kant’s legal and political philosophy, as well as scholars from other fields who are interested in legal philosophy and the politics of citizenship.