Beyond Flexibility
While Derrick Darby and Eduardo Martinez's "Making Identities Safe for Democracy" proposes flexible identities as a solution to reconciling social identity with democratic politics, this paper argues that flexibility alone is insufficient to address contemporary challenges to democra...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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International Association for Political Science Students (IAPSS)
2024-11-01
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| Series: | Politikon |
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| Online Access: | https://politikon.iapss.org/index.php/politikon/article/view/419 |
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| _version_ | 1846148610065956864 |
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| author | Sung Jun Han |
| author_facet | Sung Jun Han |
| author_sort | Sung Jun Han |
| collection | DOAJ |
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While Derrick Darby and Eduardo Martinez's "Making Identities Safe for Democracy" proposes flexible identities as a solution to reconciling social identity with democratic politics, this paper argues that flexibility alone is insufficient to address contemporary challenges to democracy. Through a critical examination of their work, I identify two significant limitations in their argument. First, their primary example of veteran status as a flexible identity is problematic, as empirical evidence shows it remains significantly aligned with Republican partisan identity and may be grounded in potentially restrictive forms of national identity. Second, their framework fails to adequately address how identity flexibility can counter the phenomenon of partisan sorting, where partisanship has evolved into a mega-identity that increasingly structures both political and social life. In response to these limitations, I argue that emphasizing the plurality of social identities, rather than merely their flexibility, offers a more effective approach to treating—rather than just preventing—the challenges that identity poses to democratic practice. While flexibility remains important, cultivating multiple, distinct social identities that coexist and interact within individuals and communities may better dilute the dominance of partisan mega-identities and foster more inclusive democratic engagement.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-769d503a9d6b4e9784b8c7c1f01cb60d |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2414-6633 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | International Association for Political Science Students (IAPSS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Politikon |
| spelling | doaj-art-769d503a9d6b4e9784b8c7c1f01cb60d2024-11-30T17:28:12ZengInternational Association for Political Science Students (IAPSS)Politikon2414-66332024-11-015810.22151/politikon.58.4Beyond FlexibilitySung Jun Han0Vanderbilt University While Derrick Darby and Eduardo Martinez's "Making Identities Safe for Democracy" proposes flexible identities as a solution to reconciling social identity with democratic politics, this paper argues that flexibility alone is insufficient to address contemporary challenges to democracy. Through a critical examination of their work, I identify two significant limitations in their argument. First, their primary example of veteran status as a flexible identity is problematic, as empirical evidence shows it remains significantly aligned with Republican partisan identity and may be grounded in potentially restrictive forms of national identity. Second, their framework fails to adequately address how identity flexibility can counter the phenomenon of partisan sorting, where partisanship has evolved into a mega-identity that increasingly structures both political and social life. In response to these limitations, I argue that emphasizing the plurality of social identities, rather than merely their flexibility, offers a more effective approach to treating—rather than just preventing—the challenges that identity poses to democratic practice. While flexibility remains important, cultivating multiple, distinct social identities that coexist and interact within individuals and communities may better dilute the dominance of partisan mega-identities and foster more inclusive democratic engagement. https://politikon.iapss.org/index.php/politikon/article/view/419DemocracyIdentity PoliticsPartisanshipPluralitySocial Identity |
| spellingShingle | Sung Jun Han Beyond Flexibility Politikon Democracy Identity Politics Partisanship Plurality Social Identity |
| title | Beyond Flexibility |
| title_full | Beyond Flexibility |
| title_fullStr | Beyond Flexibility |
| title_full_unstemmed | Beyond Flexibility |
| title_short | Beyond Flexibility |
| title_sort | beyond flexibility |
| topic | Democracy Identity Politics Partisanship Plurality Social Identity |
| url | https://politikon.iapss.org/index.php/politikon/article/view/419 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sungjunhan beyondflexibility |