First published in 1998, this volume emerged in the light of the resurgence of militant nationalism and racism since liberalism’s alleged triumph in 1989. We have to ask whether liberalism represents a bulwark against these deformations, or whether it is in fact their harbinger. Central themes explored in this interdisciplinary collection are: ¢ the position of the Romani, especially in central and eastern Europe ¢ the nature and scope of multiculturalism and its relation to conceptions of recognition ¢ the relations of liberalism to nationalism and racism ¢ the philosophical relation of ’the individual’ to national and other identities ¢ the debate between liberal and communitarian conceptions of personhood The book will thus be of particular interest to social and political scientists, philosophers and educationalists, as well as to anyone more generally concerned with contemporary issues of nationalism and racism.

As many scholars have argued, racism and its passions are created by and subordinated to the nation. This volume places the practices of racism at the center of analysis of so-called post-racist or multi cultural nation-states. This way, each contributor analytically treats racism and its related concepts of race, identity, culture, and naturalizing symbols of blood to highlight the manner in which governing institutions use nationalist precepts to create "races". In the end, it is racism - the actual political practices of domination - that makes "race" salient, especially in its multi-cultural and liberal-democratic form.

Melegh's work offers a powerful analysis of the sociological and symbolic meanings of East-West in Europe after the end of the Cold War. While the fundamental poles of East and West remain, both their meaning and their relationship to one another have shifted profoundly since the late 1970s. Melegh exposes the underbelly of liberal characterizations of East-West, highlighting the polarizing effect of extreme nationalism and ethnic racism. The theoretical underpinnings of this work involve the ideas of preeminent theorists such as Karl Mannheim, Michel Foucault and more recently Maria Todorova and Iver Neumann. This work casts into fine relief how the "East-West Slope" oriented negatively from West to East has emerged from liberal characterizations of this project. The book analyzes the historical change in East-West discourses from a modernizationist type to a new/old civilizational one. In addition, this is one of the first attempts to link post-colonial analysis to developments in Eastern Europe.

Liberalism is the political philosophy of equal persons, yet liberalism has denied equality to those it saw as black sub-persons. In Black Rights/White Wrongs: The Critique of Racial Liberalism, political philosopher Charles Mills challenges mainstream accounts that ignore this history and its current legacy in the United States today.

How does the current nationalist moment within British political culture, most acutely evidenced in the recent Brexit result, capture such a broad cross-section of constituenciess? Valluvan propose a theorisation of contemporary nationalist ascendancy which addresses this question head-on.

The surprising case for liberal nationalism Around the world today, nationalism is back—and it’s often deeply troubling. Populist politicians exploit nationalism for authoritarian, chauvinistic, racist, and xenophobic purposes, reinforcing the view that it is fundamentally reactionary and antidemocratic. But Yael (Yuli) Tamir makes a passionate argument for a very different kind of nationalism—one that revives its participatory, creative, and egalitarian virtues, answers many of the problems caused by neoliberalism and hyperglobalism, and is essential to democracy at its best. In Why Nationalism, she explains why it is more important than ever for the Left to recognize these positive qualities of nationalism, to reclaim it from right-wing extremists, and to redirect its power to progressive ends. Provocative and hopeful, Why Nationalism is a timely and essential rethinking of a defining feature of our politics.