Abstract
Conventional wisdom holds that citizenship is not a consumer good and that the goods that the state confers upon its constituents – eg, economic and social rights, access to its publicly provided goods, political voice and identity – are not for sale. In fact the relationships between states and actual or potential citizens is ideally conceptualized as standing in stark contrast to a seller-buyer relationship. The ideal type of state-citizen relationship is based in an entirely political sphere disconnected from the market. In accordance with this ideal conceptualization of the state-citizen relationship, the state is depicted as the legal guardian of citizenship entrusted with authority to determine who its members are and to exercise its powers in a manner that is compatible with the underlying normative values shared by its political members. It has an obligation to reinforce and represent the politically pronounced collective will. Being a citizen, according to this view, translates into being a member of a political community, participating in its deliberative process and as such bearing rights vis a vis the state and being entitled to the benefits it confers … (more)
Dagan, Tsilly and Fisher, Talia, State Inc. (December 2, 2017). Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy, forthcoming.
First posted 2017-12-12 07:03:41
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