The Social Citizenship Tradition in Anglo-American Thought
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The Social Citizenship Tradition in Anglo-American Thought by Constance MacRae-Buchanan A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of Political Science University of Toronto © Copyright by Constance MacRae-Buchanan 2013 The Social Citizenship Tradition in Anglo-American Thought Constance MacRae-Buchanan, PhD 2013 Graduate Department of Political Science University of Toronto Abstract The right to belong and participate in some form of political community is the most fundamental social right there is. This dissertation argues that social rights have not been understood broadly enough, that there has not been enough attention paid to their historical roots, and that they must not be viewed as being simply passive welfare rights. Rather, they must be seen in their historical context, and they must be seen for what they are: a much larger and more substantive phenomenon than what liberal theory has projected: both theoretically and empirically. I am calling this body of discourse “the social citizenship tradition.” This dissertation hopes to show that there was more than one definition of social citizenship historically and that social rights are certainly not “new.” In surveying a vast literature in Britain, the United States, and Canada, it points to places where alternative social rights claims have entered politics and society. By looking at writings from these three countries over three centuries, the evidence points to some similarities as well as differences in how scholars approached questions of economic and social rights. In particular, similar arguments over labour and property figured prominently in all three countries. The contextual ground of right was different in each country but the voice of social action was similar. The objective here is to reunite this common tradition of social citizenship with its past. It is because of classical liberalism that social right has lost focus and power, and a whole tradition of political thinking has been lost.This tradition has been narrowed to the point that it might be unrecognizable to the more radical forces, those who also fought for it, in the American, Canadian and British pasts. ii Acknowledgements I would like to thank my thesis committee for excellent supervision and guidance during the course of writing this dissertation. In particular, David A. Wolfe (Supervisor), Joseph H. Carens, and Ronald A. Manzer. I would also like to thank the internal examiner Robert C. Vipond and the external examiner Professor Ronalda Murphy. This thesis could not have been written without the sustained intellectual and emotional support of Ruthanne Wrobel who read every word of many versions and whose suggestions improved the quality of the overall product. Other important sources of support were, in alphabetical order, Mary Anne Appleby, Benjamin Buchanan, Daniel Buchanan, Hormoz Khakpour, Patty MacRae, Mary McIlroy. This thesis is dedicated to the memory of my parents, Charles and Elizabeth MacRae. iii Table of Contents Page Chapter 1: Uncovering Social Citizenship in Anglo-American Thought 1 Chapter 2: United Kingdom: Loss of the Commons 51 Chapter 3: United States: Producerism, Philanthropy and the Private Welfare State 93 Chapter 4: Canada: The Organic Community 134 Chapter 5: Whither Social Rights? 188 iv List of Figures Page Figure 1: Three Elements of Citizenship in T.H. Marshall 3 Figure 2: Concepts of Social Rights in T.H. Marshall 79 Figure 3: The Two-Tier Distinction of Rights in American Writings 117 Figure 4: Communal Expressions of Social Rights in Canadian Writings 136 Figure 5: Ideological Variations in Anglo-American Thought 191 v Appendices Page Appendix 1: Text of the first Chartist petition, 1839 228 Appendix 2: The Four Freedoms Speech 230 Appendix 3: The Social Rights Index 232 Appendix 4: Selected Highlights from the History of Social Rights 234 Select Bibliography 240 vi Chapter One – Uncovering Social Citizenship in Anglo-American Thought “Politics is the science which teaches the people of a nation to care for each other.” William Lyon Mackenzie (1795-1861) 1.1 Some General Thoughts on Social Citizenship and Social Rights The right to belong and participate in some form of political community is the most fundamental social right there is. This dissertation argues that social rights have not been understood broadly enough, that there has not been enough attention paid to their historical roots, and that they must not be viewed as being simply passive welfare rights. Rather, they must be seen in their historical context, and they must be seen for what they are: a much larger and more substantive phenomenon than what liberal theory has projected: both theoretically and empirically. I am calling this body of discourse “the social citizenship tradition.” This dissertation hopes to show that there was more than one definition of social citizenship historically and that social rights are certainly not “new.” In surveying a vast literature in Britain, the United States, and Canada, it points to places where alternative social rights claims have entered politics and society. This dissertation on the social citizenship tradition in Anglo-American thought is an important undertaking for many reasons. There is tremendous ignorance when it comes to understanding social rights historically. It is true that many government programs embodying social rights in their modern form, such as old age security and pensions, workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance, mothers’ allowances, medical care etc. were mainly put in place in the twentieth century,1 particularly after the first and second World Wars.2 This point is not being disputed, and is highly significant: the social legislation of the twentieth century in all industrialized countries is a considerable achievement. What is being questioned is the way in which the concept and content of social citizenship is presented in the literature, the media and public discourse as conceptually and historically “new” and specifically new to the twentieth century. For example, the Canadian Welfare Council said in 1969: “There is a growing interest in human rights; and the concept of social rights as distinct from civil and political rights is emerging.”3 Similarly, in 1991, The Globe and Mail writes: “A whole new brand of rights – social rights – is expected to be a big part of the national unity debate in the fall.”4 This study examines social citizenship in Canada and elsewhere and looks at its early forms and expressions and alternative ways to conceive it. Any work in the area of social citizenship must begin with the writings of Thomas H. Marshall. Marshall delivered his theory on citizenship and social class in the form of two lectures at Cambridge University in 1949.5 Marshall posited that citizenship rights have developed historically along a continuum, from first, the recognition of legal or civil rights in the eighteenth century, to second, the granting of political rights beginning in the nineteenth century, and then, finally, to the recognition of social and economic rights in the twentieth century. A substantial section of this thesis discusses 1 A chronology of important dates in twentieth century social welfare legislation can be found in Andrew Armitage, Social Welfare in Canada: Ideals and Realities (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1975), Appendix II, “Canadian Social Welfare (1900-1974): Chronology.” 2 In Britain, major liberal reforms took place in the years between 1906 and 1914, and in Germany major reforms took place during Bismarck’s regime. 3 Canadian Welfare Council, Social Policies for Canada Part I (1969), 1. 4 Globe and Mail. September 10, 1991. 5 T.H. Marshall, “Citizenship and Social Class” (1950) in idem, Sociology at the Crossroads and Other Essays (London: Heinemann, 1963), 67-127. 2 Marshall’s analysis of social citizenship, and reference to his work is frequently made due to its importance in the literature. Marshall’s work not only was important in itself: it also stimulated a tremendous amount of work in social and political theory. This has led to both the extension and refutation of his ideas in many profitable ways. Three distinct elements of citizenship, as outlined by Marshall in 1950, appear in the chart below. Figure 1 Three Elements of Citizenship in T.H. Marshall Civil Political Social 1700s – Revolutions 1800s – Reform Acts 1900s – Modern State Individual freedom as a Participation in politics as Life as a “civilised being” person + citizen voter or legislator according to social standards a Civil rights – freedom of Political rights – struggle Access to “a modicum of speech, thought, religion to win + exercise these economic welfare and rights security” b Right to acquire + protect Right to engage in public Right to receive social property, sign contracts life, debate issues, benefits – health care, influence decisions housing, schooling Right to justice upheld by Rights gradually extended Provided through public common law + courts from elites to lower education + social classes services Independent, private, National consciousness, Dependent, passive economic actors patriotic citizens recipients of welfare benefits a T. H. Marshall, “Citizenship and Social Class,” 74. b Ibid. In some ways, Marshall’s entire approach obscures social rights as they developed historically. First and foremost, the tripartite classification between different types of right is a contrivance. The emphasis on social legislation and