A Democratic Critique of Cosmopolitan Democracy: Pragmatism from the Bottom-up

Abstract

This article begins by critically evaluating recent work on cosmopolitan democracy by David Held. I argue that where cosmopolitan democrats should now focus their energies is in filling a significant gap that Held's inquiries have left open — an exploration of what `bottom-up' processes bring to cosmopolitan democracy, more specifically the work of problem-solving, publicity and advocacy that takes place in sites that are referred to as international public spheres (IPSs). The next stage for the literature on cosmopolitan democracy must continue the work that James Bohman and John Dryzek have begun; that is, theorizing the role of bottom-up processes, in particular how IPSs and their members — individuals — work together in making their shared views authoritative in international decision-making. However, I argue that a pragmatist understanding of this key democratic concept, as opposed to the deliberative ones used by Bohman and Dryzek, is better suited to this endeavour.