Discrimination and the Foundation of Justice: Hate Speech, Affirmative Action, Institutional Opinions

Discrimination is still not sufficiently addressed within liberal democracies. Often only some groups are protected against discrimination and merely in certain situations. This leaves many who suffer because of discrimination without recourse. And that is only one of the dilemmas with group-based approaches to the protection against discrimination. So why are these approaches so common? And can we find a viable alternative?

In this new book, legal scholar Erwin Dijkstra answers these questions. His analysis is thorough, original, and thought-provoking. This makes Discrimination and the Foundation of Justice indispensable for anyone who seeks a better understanding of discrimination law, the relevant human rights context, and the debate on improving the protection against discrimination. That debate is brought to life through a thoughtful discussion of hotly debated topics like hate speech, affirmative action, and institutions that speak out against discrimination.

As discrimination concerns us all, this book was written as a resource for all. It is meant to be read by those studying discrimination law professionally and the broader public alike.

Erwin Dijkstra is a legal scholar, Assyriologist, and writer. His work on disability rights and discrimination law is considered especially ground-breaking and has been published in various prestigious scholarly journals. Between 2018 and 2022 he lectured at Leiden University in the Netherlands. During this time, he also served at the editorial board of the pre-eminent Dutch journal on disability law, Handicap & Recht. His teaching and research have been recognised with several awards and prizes.