Published Article / In this article we use the concepts identity, agency and social justice education as a lens to explore the role of life history research in the study of the interconnection between emerging teacher identities, critical agency and social justice education. By exploring the life history of a white woman pre-service teacher, this study foregrounds the use of life history research to help teacher educators to understand the contexts through which student teachers' identities are constructed, and how these identities feed into agency and a stance to bring about social change.

The study makes a descriptive and analytical study of the development of the dynamic concept of the rule of law with special reference to the African contribution. First, the study shows that the Diceyan concept of the rule of law was narrow and peculiar to the Western liberal legal culture, and that more specifically, the substantive content of the concept of the rule of law was limited to the first generation of human rights. In its international and African context the concept was expanded to include all three generations of human rights and also identified with the concepts of democracy and the right of peoples and nations to self-determination. The expanded concept came to be known as the Dynamic Concept of the rule of law. Secondly, the study traces the origins and development of the principle of equal rights and self-determination and their extension to all peoples and nations and shows that these rights are universal, not relative, as they derive from the inherent worth and dignity of the individual. Also, the study shows that in the African context the three generations of human rights have been interlinked, made inter-dependent, and then identified with the rule of law, human rights and the right of self-determination (perceived as a right to democratic self-governance). Hence, the worth and dignity of the human personality has been made the fountainhead of human rights and have been elevated to the substantive elements of the Dynamic Concept of the rule of law and the basis of the modern African Constitutional State. Under the Colonial Rule both the Diceyan and the dynamic concept of the rule of law were not recognised. Instead, Colonial and racist regimes tried to create alternative institutions of government which denied the oppressed peoples the right to democratic self-governance and independence. However, Colonial and oppressed peoples relied on the dynamic concept of the rule of law in their freedom struggles and in the elaboration of their policies. Hence, the constitutions of all the former colonies in southern Africa under discussion were to different degrees informed by the Dynamic Concept of the rule of law. / Constitutional, International & Indigenous Law / LL.D

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the academic requirements for the Master of Technology Degree: Graphic Design, Durban University of Technology, 2011. / In this dissertation I examine of the role of graphic design in the struggle for social justice in South Africa - with specific reference to the concept of human rights. I am motivated by an overwhelming awareness that the Bill of Rights in post-apartheid South Africa exists in striking contrast to the daily struggles for human dignity. In addressing this contradiction I present a historical examination that focuses on the visual impact of the creative combination of images and text to effect socioeconomic and political change. Drawing from Steve Biko’s philosophy of psychological liberation and Paulo Freire’s educational philosophy for critical thinking, I distinguish between propaganda and education. I take the stand that people are not really free if they blindly accept the myths of the established state order and I explore the various ways in which society is misguided by these myths. I argue that unlike graphic design that maintains the status quo and represents the propaganda of the established order, ‘graphic design for social justice’ represents the voice of people’s power against state power. Through this study and practice I conclude that the role of graphic design for social justice in South Africa is to uncover the myths of state power by presenting scenarios that encourage critical thinking, dialogue and open debate about power and the abuse of power in the continued struggle for human dignity. It is intended that this body of work, and the exhibition that results from it, contributes in part to the writing and documentation of a history of South African socio-political graphics. / National Research Foundation

In recent decades the European Union has moved from a multilateral treaty to a distinctive social, political, and economic order among European states. During the same period political philosophers have increasingly turned their attention to questions of justice beyond the state. But their discussions have largely focused on global justice, and have paid relatively little attention to the distinctive moral and political questions raised by the emergence of a new type of order among European states. This thesis fills this lacuna, by developing a conception of ‘social democratic’ or ‘egalitarian’ social justice for the specific institutional arrangements of the EU. In Chapters one through three, I delineate a general conception of ‘pluralist egalitarianism’, the view that we have a variety of grounds for endorsing equality-inclined economic institutions domestically. Direct egalitarian arguments stress the internal requirements of institutional fairness to which basic economic institutions are subject. Indirect egalitarian arguments favour egalitarian economic outcomes based on concerns of social equality. I further differentiate between a transnationalist and an internationalist position. Direct transnationalist arguments stress the EU’s similarity to domestic institutions and derive egalitarian economic requirements for the EU as a whole. Indirect transnationalists argue that EU citizens stand in a distinctive kind of relationship such that the value of social equality has purchase amongst them, and social equality requires a limitation on economic inequalities at the EU level. By contrast, internationalists insist on the continuing importance of national self-determination. However, they endorse more substantive economic institutions at the EU level to protect existing social democratic welfare state arrangements. In chapter four to seven, I assess the extent to which each of these arguments can support a more egalitarian organisation of basic economic institutions at the EU level. Finally, I offer one practical proposal that would help the EU to realise the social democratic vision I have defended. This is the idea of an EU social minimum. I explain how such a social minimum would be conceived and implemented, and I demonstrate why transnationalists and internationalists should endorse such a policy.

If we are interested in questions about how we ought to organize our political lives, what kind of weight, if any, should we give to evidence about what people actually think? The thesis explores this question about the role of public opinion in normative political theory. First, I disentangle a number of distinct justifications for taking account of public opinion. Specifically, the thesis evaluates four views of the status of public opinion: as an epistemic resource; a feasibility constraint; a means of democratizing political theory; or constitutive of moral and political ideals. I defend the epistemic argument, outlining two forms in which popular attitudes represent a valuable epistemic resource. The thesis criticizes the feasibility and democratic accounts of the role of public opinion as these are presented in the existing literature, but suggests more convincing ways of reconstructing these arguments. Finally, I reject the view that public opinion constitutes the ideal of justice, arguing that such an account is subject to a fundamental tension. As well as clarifying the status of popular attitudes, the thesis addresses the methodological difficulties that arise when we seek to bring public opinion to bear on ideas from political theory, whose meaning and status in everyday political thought and discourse is often limited or uncertain. I outline two approaches to integrating normative theory with the investigation of popular attitudes that mitigate the methodological problems that often confront such projects. The second major aim is to situate the question of the role of public opinion in the context of wider debates about the aims and methods of contemporary political theory. In particular, I address recent demands for greater ‘realism’ in political theory, distinguishing two main strands of realist critique and drawing out their contrasting implications for the role of public opinion.

Existing moral reflection on immigration law and policy is caught in an impasse between (1) proponents of an individual right to free international migration and (2) proponents of a state’s right to control its borders. In Chapter 1, I examine arguments supporting an individual right to free international migration. I show that the case for this putative right cannot be settled solely by considering the strength of individuals’ interest in being able to cross international borders according to their choice. Rather, at a crucial point, the argument for an individual right to free migration turns on the truth of a particular conception of global justice. In Chapter 2, I examine arguments supporting a state’s right to control its borders. I contend that these arguments do not seek to defend the substantive justice of restrictive immigration policies, but rather the legitimacy of processes of political decision-making by which states unilaterally determine their own immigration policies. Abandoning this right-versus-right paradigm, I recast the debate by focusing on two distinct questions: (1) the question of justice in immigration, which substantively evaluates immigrant admission policy; and (2) the question of the legitimacy of immigration law enacted by procedures responsive only to states’ internal political decisions. I further propose that in articulating principles of justice in immigration, we should first develop a conception of global justice which will provide the background for our evaluation of immigration policy. In Chapter 3, I develop and defend a conception of global justice I call cooperation-based internationalism. I argue that co-citizens are joint participants in a scheme of cooperation which provides them with the social goods they need to lead autonomous lives. They therefore owe each other special duties of social justice. In addition, I argue for a duty of assistance which applies among all human persons globally. This duty requires developed states to assist developing states in establishing minimally just institutions. In Chapter 4, I develop a conception of justice in immigration against the background of cooperation-based internationalism. I argue that there is no requirement for states to allow open immigration. Nevertheless, I argue that co-citizens owe each other duties which impose significant moral constraints on immigration policy: states must (1) allow for family unification; (2) eschew policies that select immigrants based on criteria that unjustly call into question the fitness for citizenship of certain current members; (3) regulate labour immigration so that all current citizens benefit equally unless unequal gains benefit worse-off citizens. The duty of assistance is also imposes constraints on immigration policy. Developed states should (4) avoid immigration policies which cause brain drain harmful to international development and (5) admit and resettle refugees. In Chapter 5, I turn to the distinct question of the legitimacy of unilaterally-enacted immigration law. I argue that the application and enforcement of immigration law counts as a coercive exercise of political power which stands in need of justification. I examine the consent and natural duty of justice theories of political legitimacy, concluding that these influential theories cannot establish the legitimacy of immigration law. I conclude by considering the implications of the illegitimacy of immigration law for the evaluation of irregular migration.

Social planning has remained a longstanding element of urban planning practice and continues to be pursued through different institutional structures in Canada. While the City of Winnipeg currently features no municipal social planning department, the City of Vancouver attempts to support its most disadvantaged neighbourhoods through its municipal sector. As these are two cities with high concentrations of Indigenous populations, this research uncovers the degree to which these two social planning models have worked to support the particular needs and interests of residents living in Winnipeg’s North End and Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Through the comparative case study of these two research sites, comprehensive document analysis and semi-structured interviews with key informants from planning agencies in each city, it is evident both models promote socially just and socially sustainable planning processes and outcomes within their respective neighbourhoods. However, neither is without fault. As a government body Vancouver is able to create and track progress in a more systemic way, setting targets and metrics for other government agencies, while information sharing and relationship building are where non-profit organizations in Winnipeg truly excel. This research explains how most non-profit organizations are unable to successfully sustain themselves, while municipal departments lack the rapport grassroots organizations more easily attain. Therefore, an integration of both models could begin to better support Canada’s most disadvantaged neighbourhoods with growing urban Indigenous populations. / May 2016

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis explores the possibility of promoting social justice through the direct confrontation and rectification of manifest injustices in our existing social institutions and practices, as opposed to the more conventional theoretical approach of attempting to offer comprehensive accounts of ideal justice based on the identification of ultimate principles of justice or perfectly just institutional arrangements. Through an analysis and moral evaluation of the intergenerational transfer of wealth through the practice of inheritance, the study attempts to illustrate how a narrower theoretical focus on specific existing social institutions and practices will enhance conceptual clarity regarding their morally relevant features and, by taking the actual social and political context into account from the outset, increase the political and real-world relevance of the resulting proposal. This study also offers a thorough examination of property rights, because an understanding of the nature of ownership and the justificatory theories of entitlement claims necessarily provides the background context against which the issue of inheritance has to be addressed. As property rights give specific people claims to resources to the exclusion of others, any considerations on property rights also brings up questions of distributive and social justice. Within this broader framework of property rights and distributive justice, this study seeks to show that inheritance is not only inconsistent with the values underlying capitalism, but also an unfair and outdated practice that helps to perpetuate economic and social inequality, which undermines the ideal of democratic citizenship. To this end, a proposal is made to cap inheritance by placing an upper limit to the amount an individual will be allowed to bequeath to any other individual(s). It is argued that this limit should be high enough to allow for the transfer of a family home and objects with sentimental value, but not so high as to ensure a life of complete leisure to future generations. The merits of inheritance taxation will then be discussed in detail and arguments in favour of limiting inheritance will be subdivided into three broad categories: The first concerns the legitimacy of the practice of inheritance itself, as well as the tension between the liberal-democratic principles underlying capitalism and the practice of inheritance, the second relates to the undesirability of the social outcomes that are realised based on the practice of inheritance, and the third focuses on the potential gains that the alternative arrangement will bring. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die tesis ondersoek die moontlikheid dat sosiale geregtigheid deur die direkte konfrontasie en regstelling van ongeregtighede in ons bestaande instellings en praktyke bevorder kan word, in teenstelling met die meer konvensionele teoretiese benadering wat poog om alomvattende teorieë van ideale geregtigheid op die identifikasie van finale beginsels van geregtigheid of volmaakte institusionele organisering te baseer. Die studie poog om deur die analise en morele evaluering van die praktyk van erflating te illustreer dat ‘n nouer teoretiese fokus op spesifieke bestaande sosiale instellings en praktyke die konseptuele duidelikheid aangaande hul moreel relevante aspekte kan verbeter, en dat die relevansie van voorstellings verhoog kan word deur die werklike politieke en sosiale konteks uit die staanspoor in ag te neem. Die studie bied ook ‘n deeglike analise van eiendomsreg aan, omdat ‘n begrip van die aard van eienaarskap en die teorieë wat besitsreg regverdig noodwendig die agtergrond konteks skep waarteen die kwessie van erflating aangespreek moet word. Omdat eiendomsreg vir spesifieke mense regte tot hulpbronne gee tot die uitsluiting van ander, bring enige oorwegings aangaande eiendomsreg ook die kwessie van sosiale geregtigheid na vore. Binne hierdie breër raamwerk van eiendomsreg en sosiale geregtigheid, poog die studie om te wys dat erflating nie net teenstrydig is met die waardes onderliggend aan kapitalisme nie, maar ook 'n onregverdige en verouderde praktyk is wat bydra tot die voortbestaning van ekonomiese en sosiale ongelykheid, en dus die ideaal van demokratiese burgerskap ondermyn. Die studie stel voor dat erflating beperk moet word deur ‘n limiet te plaas op die bedrag wat enige persoon van ander persone af kan erf. Die meriete van erflatingsbelasting word in detail bespreek en argumente ten gunste van ‘n limiet op erflatings word breedweg in drie kategorieë verdeel: Die eerste betref die legitimiteit van die praktyk van erflating self, sowel as die spanning tussen die liberaal-demokratiese beginsels onderliggend aan kapitalisme en die praktyk van erflating; die tweede het betrekking tot die onaanvaarbare sosiale uitkomste wat ontstaan vanweë die praktyk van erflating; en die derde fokus op die verbeteringe wat alternatiewe praktyke kan bring.

Thesis (MSc)--University of Stellenbosch, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: To equip students in the health professions with the necessary skill to work effectively in a diverse society, a joint research-education project was launched by Stellenbosch University and the University of the Western Cape. Over a period of three years, fourth-year psychology, occupational therapy and social work students from the different institutions met for workshops and interacted on a web based platform. In small workgroups they conversed around community, self and identity and the module was named Community, Self and Identity (CSI). While the programme was evaluated at the end of each year, no follow-up study had been done to assess the effect of the module over time. In fact, very few follow-up evaluations of course curricula have been done. This current study aims to fill this gap, by evaluating the CSI module; one to three years after the participants had completed it. Based on social justice education principles, this study used a web based survey with quantitative as well as qualitative questions, in order to get a more complete picture of students’ experience of the module. This study also aims to determine whether the module changed students’ perception of community and identity. The sample of 23 participants was for the most very positive about the module, indicating that they would definitely recommend it to other students. Most of the sample also reported that their perception of the concepts of community and identity were expanded due to the CSI module. Despite the small sample size and corresponding low response rate, this study has important implications for future course evaluations and social justice studies. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Om studente in gesondheidsberoepe met die nodige vaardighede toe te rus om effektief in ‘n diverse samelewing te werk, is ‘n gesamentlike navorsing en onderrig projek deur die Universiteit Stellenbosch en die Universiteit van Weskaapland geloods. Oor ’n tydperk van drie jaar het vierdejaar sielkunde-, arbeidsterapie- en maatskaplike werkstudente van die verskillende instellings saam aan werkswinkels deelgeneem en deur middel van ’n web-gebaseerde platform gekommunikeer. Hulle het in klein groepies omgegaan rondom gemeenskap, self en identiteit en dus is die betrokke module Community, Self and Identity (CSI) (Gemeenskap, Self en Identiteit) genoem. Alhoewel die program aan die einde van die aanbieding elke jaar geëvalueer is, is geen opvolg studie nog gedoen om effek van die module oor tyd beoordeel nie. In werklikheid is weinig opvolgevalueringstudies van kursus kurrikula nog gedoen. Hierdie huidige studie beoog om die leemte te vul, deur die CSI module, een tot drie jaar na deelnemers dit voltooi het, te evalueer. Hierdie studie, wat op beginsels van sosiale geregtigheidsonderrig gebaseer is, gebruik ’n web-gebaseerde meningsopname met kwantitatiewe sowel as kwalitatiewe vrae, om sodoende ’n meer volledige indruk van studente se ervaring van die module te kry. Die studie mik ook om vas te stel of die module studente se persepsie van gemeenskap en identiteit verander het. Die steekproef van 23 deelnemers was oor die algemeen hoogs positief oor die module en het aangedui dat hul dit verseker by ander studente sal aanbeveel. Die meerderheid van die steekproef het ook gerapporteer dat hul persepsie van gemeenskap en identiteit uitgebrei is as gevolg van die CSI module. Ten spyte van die klein steekproefgrootte en ooreenstemmende lae respons, hou hierdie studie belangrike implikasies vir toekomstige kursusevalueringstudies en sosiale geregtigheidstudies in.

This work revealed what is at the core of a particular group of prospective teachers that underlie their commitment to teach in under-resourced schools and districts. Prospective teachers committed to teaching in under-resourced schools have qualities or attributes of recognition and respect for students and families who come from low-income and culturally different backgrounds and experiences. These prospective teachers were able to recognize complex interactions that students and their families face at the individual, social and institutional level. They also sought ways to address their students' learning needs by drawing from students' experiences to make meaningful connections between home and school. To identify students' and families' lived experiences, cultural practices, and language as resources to draw from, are acts of recognition and respect towards students and their families who are, for many prospective teachers, different from themselves. Recognition and respect for difference are essential attributes that underlie a socially just and humanistic pedagogy which can positively impact the learning outcomes for students who are historically poorly served by our public schools. This work highlights a different view that prospective teachers from majority White European backgrounds have about social others. It also provides a new framework using social otherness as a lens to reveal prospective teachers' understandings and knowledge about students and families from low-income backgrounds.