Social justice in globalization: redistribution, recognition, and participation

Nancy Fraser

Focusing on the widespread politicization
of culture, especially on struggles for recognition,
the author identifies three problems
that pose a threat to social justice in globalization:
the reification of collective identities,
the displacement of redistribution by
recognition, and the fact that different
kinds of struggles are misframing transnational
processes.

The text discusses three
conceptual strategies for defusing the risks
derived from these problems, all three
rooted in emerging features of globalization.
To counter the threat of reification,
the author proposes a “status” conception
of recognition that does not lead to identity
politics. To counter the threat of displacement,
she proposes a two-dimensional
conception of justice, which encompasses
not only recognition but also distribution.
To counter the threat of misframing, she
proposes a multi-tiered conception of
sovereignty that decenters the national
frame.