Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-2013
Abstract
First, I will briefly summarize the state of the art of equality law in Germany today. A distinct dimension of this story from a European Union member state is that we are not just theorizing postnational constitutionalism these days, but that we live it already, since law is not anymore isolated as national but needs to be seen in the context of transnational migration and multinational regimes. Second, I turn to a key feature and key challenge in and to equality law today. It is what I have called the triangle of fundamental rights, referring to the three most prominent human fundamental rights around, namely dignity, liberty, and equality. The triangle calls upon us to think equality in relation to dignity (in order to reach the substantive basics, like violence, and to reach a minimum standard for distributive justice), and the triangle reminds us to think equality in relation to liberty (in order to avoid paternalism, or, again, maternalism). Finally, I would like to point out three trends that may endanger equality law, in Germany, Europe, the United States, and more.
Recommended Citation
Baer, Susanne. "The Difference a Justice may Make: Remarks at the Symposium for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg." Colum. J. Gender & L. 25, no. 1 (2013): 92-100.
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