Three Images of “Global Community”: Theorizing Law and Community in a Multicultural World

Abstract

Th is article uncovers the normative commitments underlying discussions on compliance and institutional design in international law and international relations (IR) theory through an examination of the concept of "global community" in diff erent disciplinary discourses. Th ree images of global community are conjured in these theoretical discussions: the pluralist, the solidarist, and the discursive. After outlining the fi rst two and discussing the critiques waged against them, the article seeks to defend the third image, which off ers an approach to global social integration that is both culturally attuned and ambitious in scope. Drawing on critical IR theory, political philosophy as well as discursive theories of law, the article argues that the proposed image of global community holds the potential to successfully resolve the inherent tension between order, justice and cultural diversity, and where international law may play a meaningful role.

Legitimacy, Gravity, and Global Community

“…58 It is true that "[e] xisting international legal structures have been used to marginalize and subordinate groups, first outside and then within the liberal global community. " 59 Scholars like David Kennedy have correctly observed that the vehicles of global governance, even those established to promote human rights, sometimes serve as vehicles for injustice. 60 I am also keenly aware of my own status as a privileged Northern scholar seeking to advance the cause of global justice.…”