Citizenship, inclusion and voice

Abstract

Firstly, the references which underlie a joint theory of citizenship and civil society are proposed. Secondly, we present a brief reflection on what has been produced over the last fifteen years about social exclusion and inclusion as well as their more concrete manifestations that keep on taking place right under our eyes. Thirdly, we use some investigations of the Portuguese society to try to identify the nature of the relationship between citizenship and inclusion. We also examine the deficits in civic and political order, that is, deficits of “voice”, which are observed at this level. As a conclusion we show some recent developments of the modality of exercising "voice" by Portuguese citizens in a comparative perspective.