Wibren Van der Burg and Frans W.A. Brom, In Defense of State Neutrality (August 28, 2009). ‘Eine Verteidigung der Staatlichen Neutralität’, in: K.P. Rippe (Hrsg.), Angewandte Ethik in der pluralistischen Gesellschaft, Freiburg, CH: Freiburger Universitätsverlag, 53-82.. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1463289
Most discussions of neutrality focus on the liberal tradition as it has developed in the USA. In this article we defend an approach that finds its inspiration in the Dutch tradition. In one respect, our theory of neutrality is more restricted than the American liberal positions. Three categories of the good may be distinguished: goods, the good life, and the good society. In a liberal political theory the state cannot be neutral regarding conceptions of goods or regarding conceptions of the good society, but it should be neutral regarding conceptions of the good life. This form of neutrality is, however, only a derivative prima facie norm. In a second respect, our theory of neutrality is broader than the usual liberal positions. Neutrality may be seen as a standard not only for the input of the procedure, but for all aspects of the political process. We illustrate our approach with an analysis of the German discussion on crucifixes in classrooms.
