The Politics of Vulnerable Groups: Implications for Philosophy, Law, and Political Theory (Critical Political Theory and Radical Practice)

This book describes and analyzes the conceptual ambiguity of vulnerability, in an effort to understand its particular applications for legal and political protection when relating to groups. Group vulnerability has become a common concept within legal and political scholarship but remains largely undertheorized as a phenomenon itself. At the same time, in academia and within legal circles, vulnerability is primarily understood as a phenomenon affecting individuals, and the attempts to identify vulnerable groups are discredited as essentialist and stereotypical. In contrast, this book demonstrates that a conception of group vulnerability is not only theoretically possible, but also politically and legally necessary. Two conceptions of group vulnerability are discussed: one focuses on systemic violence or oppression directed toward several individuals, while another requires a common positioning of individuals within a given context that conditions their agency, ability to cope with risks and uncertainties, and manage their consequences. By comparing these two definitions of group vulnerability and their implications, Macioce seeks a more precise delineation of the theoretical boundaries of the concept of group vulnerability. Acknowledgments Contents 1 Introduction 2 Vulnerability: What Are We Talking About? Introduction Vulnerability and the Liberal Paradigm Autonomy and Vulnerability: The Relational Perspective Vulnerability as a Universal and Particular Condition Vulnerability and the Political Dimension: Meaning and Role of Vulnerable Groups References 3 The Vulnerable Groups and Their Legal Value Introduction The Development of the Notion of Group Vulnerability in International Law Group Vulnerability in the Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights Group Vulnerability in EU Law Group Vulnerability and Bioethics References 4 Towards a Theory of Group Vulnerability Introduction The Challenges of the Concept of the Vulnerable Group Developing the Notion of Group Vulnerability Identity-Based Group Vulnerability Positional Group Vulnerability The Consequences of Group Vulnerability, Between the Rights of Individuals and the Rights of Groups Conclusions References 5 Group Vulnerability and Parallel Dimensions Introduction Vulnerable Groups and Collective Victimhood Vulnerable Groups and Minorities Vulnerable Groups and Discrimination References 6 Group Vulnerability and Power Introduction Vulnerability, Power, and Oppression Group Vulnerability and Resistance Group Vulnerability and Resource Distribution References 7 Vulnerability in a Positional Sense: The Case of Clinical Trials Introduction Positional Vulnerability and Consensus Group Vulnerability and Pandemic Treatments, Trials and Informed Consent: The Case of Vulnerable Groups Conclusions References 8 Identity-Based Group Vulnerability: The Case of “Irregular” Migrants Introduction Irregularity Conditions and Vulnerability Factors Group Vulnerability, Agency, and Resistance Practices Conclusions References Index