Editing Social justice (section)

==== John Rawls ====
{{Main|John Rawls}}

Political philosopher [[John Rawls]] draws on the [[utilitarian]] insights of [[Jeremy Bentham|Bentham]] and [[John Stuart Mill|Mill]], the [[social contract]] ideas of [[John Locke]], and the [[categorical imperative]] ideas of [[Immanuel Kant|Kant]]. His first statement of principle was made in ''A Theory of Justice'' where he proposed that, "Each person possesses an inviolability founded on justice that even the welfare of society as a whole cannot override. For this reason justice denies that the loss of freedom for some is made right by a greater good shared by others."<ref>John Rawls, A Theory of Justice (2005 reissue), Chapter 1, "Justice as Fairness" – 1. The Role of Justice, pp. 3–4</ref> A [[deontological]] proposition that echoes Kant in framing the moral good of justice in [[Moral absolutism|absolutist]] terms. His views are definitively restated in ''[[Political Liberalism]]'' where society is seen "as a fair system of co-operation over time, from one generation to the next".<ref>John Rawls, ''Political Liberalism'' 15 (Columbia University Press 2003)</ref>

All societies have a basic structure of social, economic, and political institutions, both formal and informal. In testing how well these elements fit and work together, Rawls based a key test of legitimacy on the theories of social contract. To determine whether any particular system of collectively enforced social arrangements is legitimate, he argued that one must look for agreement by the people who are subject to it, but not necessarily to an objective notion of justice based on coherent ideological grounding. Not every citizen can be asked to participate in a poll to determine his or her consent to every proposal in which some degree of coercion is involved, so one has to assume that all citizens are reasonable. Rawls constructed an argument for a two-stage process to determine a citizen's hypothetical agreement:
* The citizen agrees to be represented by X for certain purposes, and, to that extent, X holds these powers as a [[trustee]] for the citizen.
* X agrees that enforcement in a particular social context is legitimate. The citizen, therefore, is bound by this decision because it is the function of the trustee to represent the citizen in this way.
This applies to one person who represents a small group (e.g., the organiser of a social event setting a dress code) just as it does to national governments, which are ultimate trustees, holding representative powers for the benefit of all citizens within their territorial boundaries. Governments that fail to provide for [[social welfare|welfare]] of their citizens according to the principles of justice are not legitimate. To emphasise the general principle that justice should rise from the people and not be dictated by the law-making powers of governments, Rawls asserted that, "There is ... a general presumption against imposing legal and other restrictions on conduct without sufficient reason. But this presumption creates no special priority for any particular liberty."<ref>John Rawls, Political Liberalism 291–92 (Columbia University Press 2003)</ref> This is support for an unranked set of liberties that reasonable citizens in all states should respect and uphold&nbsp;— to some extent, the list proposed by Rawls matches the normative human rights that have international recognition and direct enforcement in some nation states where the citizens need encouragement to act in a way that fixes a greater degree of equality of outcome. According to Rawls, the basic liberties that every good society should guarantee are:
* [[Freedom of thought]];
* Liberty of conscience as it affects social relationships on the grounds of religion, philosophy, and morality;
* Political liberties (e.g., representative democratic institutions, [[freedom of speech]] and the [[freedom of the press|press]], and [[freedom of assembly]]);
* [[Freedom of association]];
* Freedoms necessary for the liberty and integrity of the person (namely: freedom from [[slavery]], freedom of movement and a reasonable degree of freedom to choose one's occupation); and
* Rights and liberties covered by the [[rule of law]].