Does Democracy Need Solidarity? The Reasons for a question

Is solidarity necessary to support democracy? What has been its his- torical role and political function in this regard? How can the particu- laristic, and potentially exclusionary, aspects of solidarity be recon- ciled with its universal aspirations? While our (even very recent) histo- ry provides evidence that solidarity can be enacted as an exclusionary and illiberal principle against variously defined “others,” the starting point of this special issue is that the question of the relationship be- tween solidarity and democracy is politically significant and, more spe- cifically, one that can be effectively explored by examining both its his- torical origins and contemporary manifestations through multiple dis- ciplinary lenses.