Societal polarisation and capitalist democracy

Societal polarisation is inherent to capitalist democracy, which is grounded on the reproduction of structural inequalities required by the workings of the capitalist system. The scope for the exercise of democratic rights, including the rights of academic freedom and autonomy is restricted and subordinated to capitalist interests, a dynamic exacerbated by the empowered rise of illiberal political projects, in particular those led by far-right actors, and by associated neocolonial processes in the peripheries of global capitalist democracies. The current episode of the long-term ‘war in Gaza’ has exposed these contradictions in the core Western capitalist democracies questioning the strength of their commitment to academic freedom and autonomy and to the defense of the basic principles of democracy. This succinct response to Hanafi’s article includes some examples to illustrate this intrinsic character of societal polarisation in capitalist democracies and reflects on key challenges facing dialogical sociology partnered with dialogical liberalism in the current global context.