Democracy, Equality, and Redistribution

Democratic citizens are not equal but only anonymous, indistinguishable by any traits they may possess. Democracy only places a veil over distinctions that exist in society. Even the one sense in which equality that can be said to characterize democracy –equality before the law –is derivative from anonymity: the law has to treat all citizens equally because they are indistinguishable. This norm of anonymity was circumvented in most early representative systems by an elaborate intellectual construction that justi…ed restrictions of su¤rage. The argument held that the role of representatives is to promote the good of all, yet the intellectual capacity to recognize the common good and the moral qualities necessary to pursue it are not universal. These traits can be recognized by using some indicators, such as wealth, age, and gender. Hence, relying on such indicators to restrict su¤rage does not violate democratic norms. The logic of the argument is unimpeachable, but it is easy to suspect that it rationalized interests. This is the way it was perceived by those excluded, poor males and women, as they fought for political rights. Yet even if political rights are universal, to ignore distinctions is to not to obliterate them. Democracy was a political revolution, but not an economic