The Fact of Pluralism

Assignment: John Inazu, Confident Pluralism, Preface and Introduction

Can people live together when they disagree not only about policies, but about the meaning of justice, dignity, freedom, religion, sexuality, equality, and the good life? Some of these differences feel morally urgent because we believe the stakes are too high simply to “agree to disagree.” We should not pretend these differences will disappear through consensus, politeness, or better information. Instead, we might consider a more modest goal: finding ways to live together in our “many-ness” without forcing false unity or surrendering our convictions. Perhaps the question is not whether we can eliminate deep difference, but whether we can build laws, institutions, habits, and relationships strong enough to sustain a shared life in the midst of it.