Demokratins dilemma: Toleransens gränser och kampen om lika rättigheter

• Main Author: Palovaara, Nadja
• Format: Bachelor Thesis
• Language: Swedish
• Published: Uppsala universitet, Teologiska institutionen 2022
• Subjects: Liberal democracy; political tolerance; freedom of expression; freedom of thought; minority group; group threat; participation; autonomy; equality; democracy; Liberaldemokrati; tolerans; yttrandefrihet; åsiktsfrihet; minoritet; grupphot; deltagande; autonomi; jämlikhet; demokrati; Political Science; Statsvetenskap; Social Sciences Interdisciplinary; Tvärvetenskapliga studier inom samhällsvetenskap; saami
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-475535

Political tolerance is defined as the willingness to tolerate political ideas, actions, or practices of others that one disapproves of or finds objectionable. Tolerance is considered an indispensable democratic virtue. Contemporary debate in liberal, pluralistic societies covers a variety of controversies regarding tolerance as a concept, its exact meaning as well as its practical boundaries. Other factors such as different perceived threats by the majority group lower tolerance towards minority groups even in democratically stable countries. Sweden as a state rest on a strong liberal democratic foundation with emphasis on individual freedom and dignity as well as to the idea of political equality. Meanwhile, Sweden is confronted with increasing intolerant attitudes and public expressions of intolerance towards immigrants as well as other minority groups. Another consequence is hesitation among citizens to publicly express their opinions and a sense of self-censorship. Thus, the state fails to guarantee all individuals their equal right to political freedom and self-determination. Although previous research has recognized the challenge of balancing political tolerance with other democratic values such as equality and autonomy, no such study has yet been conducted. This thesis is a contribution to the field of research. The aim is to empirically study how tolerance is expressed from a liberal democratic perspective on freedom of expression and thought towards three minority groups in Sweden: Jews, the Saami people, and Muslims. Applying a qualitative, comparative method, the thesis analyses how tolerance is expressed in media based on three liberal democratic core values: participation, autonomy, and equality. The chosen method provides a deeper understanding of how toleration is expressed towards each minority group. It also shows how the minority groups equal right to freedom of expression and thought is perceived. The results show that each minority group provides a different perceived threat in which ...