Diversity, visibility, discrimination, polarization and representative democracy

Established European democracies are increasingly diverse. Much of this diversity (cultural, ethnic, linguistic, religious, etc.) stems from successive and historical waves of migration and from complex processes of nation-state formation. Other dimensions of increasing diversity (e.g., regarding gender identity, sexual orientation, differential ability, etc.) are the product of more recent processes of social and political change that have led to the public recognition and inclusion of identities and lived experiences that were previously repressed. As a consequence, the public space is increasingly reclaimed by a multiplicity of actors that demand identity recognition through policy-making. At the same time, these claims are opposed by counter-claims that resist demands for the recognition of (at least certain forms of) diversity. Democratic parliaments are at the heart of such dynamics, ‘diversity-related tensions’, and these tensions are increasingly at the heart of political polarization dynamics and electoral outcomes that shape current democratic politics. Professor Laura Morales invites applications to supervise PhD theses on topics connecting to this research agenda.