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Citizenship and inequality overview
- 1. Citizenship and Inequality: Overview Scott Dibley - 16785104
- 2. What do I think is a citizen? • A recognised member of a group or club i.e. a country • All citizens belong to different classes within their group • Not anyone can become a citizen without qualifying
- 3. T.H. Marshall’s Model of Citizenship • Citizenship consists of 3 types of right: • Civil • Political • Social
- 4. Problems with Marshall’s Model of Citizenship • Outdated • Class inequalities change with new social movements • Assumption of what a “normal” citizen was defined
- 5. Australian Citizens: Inequality and National Identity • Australia is an Immigrant country • Migration was premised on the displacement of indigenous populations • The myth of egalitarianism
- 6. The myth of egalitarianism • The myth of Australia as an egalitarian nation, or a classless society, began to saturate the colonial consciousness in the mid-nineteenth century. • Australia was a working class paradise • Many urban workers were recent migrants who could compare their current conditions favourably with those they had left behind in Europe
- 7. Reference: Kate Nash, ‘Citizenship’, Contemporary Political Sociology: Globalization, Power and Politics Alistair Grieg, Frank Lewins, Kevin White 2003. Inequality in Australia. Chapter 8
Editor's Notes
- When I think about what a citizen actually is I have trouble coming up with a distinct definition. I’ve honestly never thought about it in depth as some other people my age may have done. Therefore I lack the certain knowledge and expertise required, in order for me to create a somewhat sophisticated answer. When I think of a citizen I automatically think of a person belonging to a country. Although this is correct, there is so much more to it than just “belonging to a country.”
- Thomas Humphrey Marshall’s model of citizenship is seen to be somewhat outdated in this day and age. It was written at the time when the optimism concerning the post-war welfare state of Britain was at an all time high and is therefore only of partial relevance of todays contemporary society. Marshall’s model of citizenship is made up of three types of rights: civil, political, and social. Civil rights involve the protection of individual freedoms. Political rights involve the right to participate in political power as a member of a body invested with political authority. Marshall refers to Social rights as the right to share in economic welfare and security and to live the life of a civilized being according to standards prevailing in society. (Nash)
- Class inequalities were the main focus of attention in society and in sociology for Marshall. However, over time, as “new” social movements were formed like anti racist and civil rights movements, feminism and gay liberation movements which threatens to make his model less relevant. These movements test the informal criteria of citizenship that some individuals are defined as “other.” Being referred to as a group of “others” makes them unworthy of equal rights in the civil sphere. Social movements have challenged the assumption that “normal” citizens are white, heterosexual, male heads of households, on the basis that others should enjoy the same formal rights. (Nash)
- “A nation is defined as a community of people sharing a defined political or geographic territory, unified by common language, culture or tradition. Nationalists search for community origins that bind a group together against outsiders and make those insiders distinct, unique and part of a shared heritage.” (Greig, Lewins, White 2003) Immigrant cultures such as Australia face many identity concerns. When migrants migrate to our country they always bring a contextualized understanding of the past, a sense of break with their familiar cultural background and therefore a sense of displacement. In Australia, migration was founded on the isolation of indigenous people, thus being a double sense of displacement for these people. This is what builds our nation. (Greig et al 2003)
- Australia was seen as a working class paradise and many immigrants would flock to Australia to get a taste of working life and provide for themselves and their families. Since the mid-nineteenth century, one of the main features of our ‘Australian Identity’ has been the myth of egalitarianism. As a result of the myth undergoing a serious of transformations in meaning and function over the past 150 years, the way Australians have understood the way we define equality and inequality has been in a state of constant flux. The myth of Australia as an egalitarian nation, or a classless society, began to saturate the colonial consciousness. (Greig et al 2003)