Title Who elected Oxfam? : a democratic defense of self-appointed representatives / Laura Montanaro, University of Essex

Published Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2018

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Description 1 online resource Contents Machine generated contents note: Conceptual Strategy -- Significance -- Chapter Outline -- 1. Democracy and Its Norms -- 8. Political Equality and Self-Determination as Self-Rule -- Democracy Transformed: Self-Determination as Self-Legislation -- Electoral Democracy and Representation -- What Standard Accounts of Representation Do Not Cover -- From "Responsiveness" to "Reflexivity" -- Representation beyond Territory -- Filling in the Gaps: Informal Representation -- Non-Electoral Representation: Conceptualization and Assessment -- Representation and the Audience -- Representation as Claim Making -- Being Represented -- Conclusion -- 2. Self-Appointed Representation -- Self-Appointed Claims of Representation -- Audience -- Dual Constituency -- How Self-Appointed Representatives Advance Democratic Norms -- Egalitarianism and Inclusiveness -- Authorization and Accountability -- Self-Determination -- Publicity -- Democratic Outcomes of Self-Appointed Representation -- Conclusion -- 3. Dangers of Self-Appointed Representation -- Ambivalent Potential of Self-Appointed Representation -- Skewed Representative Outcomes -- Surrogate Representative Outcomes -- Failed Representative Outcomes -- Conclusion -- 4. Non-Electoral Authorization and Accountability -- Beyond Electoral Authorization and Accountability -- Non-Electoral Sources of Authorization -- Non-Electoral Sources of Accountability -- Discursive Exit -- Answering the Question "Who Elected Oxfam?" -- Conclusion -- 5. Applying the Theory -- Bono -- Jose Bove -- Concerned Residents of the West End (CROWE) -- Malala Yousafzai -- Muslim Council of Britain -- National Rifle Association -- Conclusion -- 6. Conclusion -- Reminder and a Summary -- Concluding Remarks Summary Non-elected actors, such as non-governmental organizations and celebrity activists, present themselves as representatives of others to audiences of decision-makers, such as state leaders, the European Union, the United Nations, and the World Trade Organization. These actors are increasingly included in the deliberation and decision-making processes of such institutions. To take one well-known example, the non-governmental organization, Oxfam, presses decision-makers and governments for fair trade rules on behalf of the world's poor. What entitles such 'self-appointed representatives' to speak and act for the poor? As The Economist asked, 'Who elected Oxfam?'. Montanaro claims that such actors can, and should, be conceptualized as representatives, and that they can - though do not always - represent others in a manner that we can recognize as democratic. However, in order to do so, we must stretch our imaginations beyond the standard normative framework of elections Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index Notes Online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on September 04, 2019) Subject Representative government and representation. Protest movements. Political participation. Non-governmental organizations -- Political aspects Democracy. POLITICAL SCIENCE -- General. Democracy Political participation Protest movements Representative government and representation Form Electronic book ISBN 9781108297721 1108297722 9781108321624 1108321623 9781108410557 1108410553

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