Showing papers in "Canadian Journal of Political Science in 2017"
TL;DR: This paper investigated whether a similar trend might be occurring in Canada by examining redistributive preferences, using Canadian Election Studies data from every election since 1992, and found that Canada has experienced a surge in partisan sorting that is comparable to that in the US.
Abstract: Recent decades have been marked by increasingly divided partisan opinion in the US. This study investigates whether a similar trend might be occurring in Canada. It does so by examining redistributive preferences, using Canadian Election Studies data from every election since 1992. Results suggest that Canada has experienced a surge in partisan sorting that is comparable to that in the US. Over time, like-minded citizens have increasingly clustered into parties, with increasingly stark divisions between partisans.
37 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the phone interviews conducted by ISR-York and the online questionnaires from panellists purchased from a sample provider and conduct a comprehensive comparison of the distributions of responses across modes and a comparative analysis of inferences about voting.
Abstract: Election studies must optimize on sample size, cost and data quality. The 2015 Canadian Election Study was the first CES to employ a full mixed-mode design, aiming to take advantage of the opportunities of each mode while preserving enough commonality to compare them. This paper examines the phone interviews conducted by ISR-York and the online questionnaires from panellists purchased from a sample provider. We compare data quality and representativeness. We conduct a comprehensive comparison of the distributions of responses across modes and a comparative analysis of inferences about voting. We find that the cost/power advantages of the online mode will likely make it the mode of choice for subsequent election studies.
33 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the digitization and enrichment of the Canadian House of Commons English Debates from 1901 to present, and present the structure of the database and provide guidelines to prospective users.
Abstract: This paper describes the digitization and enrichment of the Canadian House of Commons English Debates from 1901 to present. We start by laying out the general framework in which this project took place and then present the structure of the database and provide guidelines to prospective users. The paper concludes with the introduction of www.lipad.ca, an online platform designed as a hub for archiving Canadian political data, with the parliamentary proceedings at the centre of its architecture.
32 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that there is an important secondary drive within the resurgence movement that presses in the opposite direction, arguing that the prevailing normative-discursive environment continues to reflect this imperative and that Indigenous peoples must turn away from this hostile environment and pursue independent programmes of social and cultural rejuvenation.
Abstract: “Indigenous resurgence” centres on three contentions: (1) that colonialism is an active structure of domination premised, at base, on Indigenous elimination; (2) that the prevailing normative-discursive environment continues to reflect this imperative; and (3) that Indigenous peoples must therefore turn away from this hostile environment and pursue independent programmes of social and cultural rejuvenation. The principal movement advocated under the resurgence paradigm thus appears as one of disengagement with the settler order. I also argue, however, that there is an important secondary drive within the movement that presses in the opposite direction. It figures further engagement both as a longer term goal (in the form of renewed dialogue on decolonization) and as an immediate imperative (in order to expose and remove obstacles to reciprocal dialogue). I aim, here, to excavate this secondary drive and consider what it connotes in terms of settler engagement.
27 citations
TL;DR: The authors reviewed the place of Indigenous politics in the last 50 years of Canadian political science and argued that while at least 43 articles have dealt with Indigenous politics (solely or as a significant focus) and at least 18 have had some significant discussion thereof, there still remains a disconnect between Indigenous politics and the discipline.
Abstract: This article reviews the place of Indigenous politics in the last 50 years of Canadian political science. Focusing on the CJPS, it looks at broad themes and clusters in the literature over time, while also trying to explain how the roots of the discipline continue to impact the development of political science in Canada and thus CJPS. I argue that while at least 43 articles have dealt with Indigenous politics (solely or as a significant focus) and at least 18 have had some significant discussion thereof, there nonetheless remains a disconnect between Indigenous politics and the discipline. This disconnect exists because of the methodological and epistemological foundations of the discipline which have resulted in a focus limited to the Westphalian state. While the disconnect between Indigenous politics and the discipline has waned considerably (43 of 61 articles have been published since 2000) as there has been an awakening of sorts, a disconnect nevertheless still exists.
26 citations
TL;DR: This paper used the Making Electoral Democracy Work data for the 2015 Canadian federal election in three provinces (British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec) and found that one voter out of ten particularly liked a candidate from a party other than the one he or she preferred.
Abstract: We address two questions: How many voters particularly like a candidate from another party? And do these voters vote for their preferred party or their preferred candidate? We use the Making Electoral Democracy Work data for the 2015 Canadian federal election in three provinces (British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec). We find that one voter out of ten particularly liked a candidate from a party other than the one he or she preferred. For two out of five of such voters, the preference for the local candidate trumped the party preference.
23 citations
TL;DR: The authors explored how gender analysts exercised their agency and carved out spaces within the bureaucracy to articulate and advance a gender focus in policy work, using discursive, institutional and relational strategies, gender analysts simultaneously used and pushed back against hierarchical bureaucratic discourses as they operationalized GBA+ in the federal public bureaucracy.
Abstract: The debate surrounding the transformative potential of gender mainstreaming has revived concerns of co-optation of equality work and resistance first expressed by early feminist public administration scholars. In this article, we explore how gender analysts exercised their agency and carved out spaces within the bureaucracy to articulate and advance a gender focus in policy work. Employing discursive, institutional and relational strategies, gender analysts simultaneously used and pushed back against hierarchical bureaucratic discourses as they operationalized Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) in the federal public bureaucracy. These micro-level acts of resistance, on their own, do not lead to social transformation. However, by creating spaces for feminist knowledge and activism within the state, these local strategies can contribute to the broader feminist agenda.
22 citations
TL;DR: The authors investigated the mediated dynamic of framing Canada's military mission in Afghanistan and found that while journalists overwhelmingly indexed their stories to elite sources, they frequently impeached the frames sponsored by government and military leaders.
Abstract: The Canadian government and military struggled to control its media framing of the war in Afghanistan between 2006 and 2009. This content analysis (n = 900) critically investigates the mediated dynamic of framing Canada's military mission in Afghanistan. This study found that while journalists overwhelmingly indexed their stories to elite sources, they frequently impeached the frames sponsored by government and military leaders. Journalists used elite criteria to fact check the frames of military and government leaders. Most of the coverage was episodic and event-oriented rather than thematic and contextual. While Canadian journalists challenged official claims of improving security, for instance, their coverage lacked context and critical appraisal of Canada's military mission in Afghanistan, raising questions about journalism's normative role in Canadian democracy.
21 citations
TL;DR: The authors identified major monographs about the study of government and political institutions in Canada published in English over the past 50 years and argued that key books about Canadian political life have mirrored the evolution of the discipline in the country as a whole.
Abstract: This review essay identifies major monographs about the study of government and political institutions in Canada published in English over the past 50 years. Our review is woven around a general argument that key books about Canadian political life have mirrored the evolution of the discipline in the country as a whole. For instance, important books on federalism were written at turning points in Canada's constitutional history, while the recent uptick in social diversity and political communication studies mirrors broader societal trends. Equally, greater diversity in hiring within the academy has contributed to a broadening of subject matter, perspectives, methodologies and authorship. Thus, we explore the intersection between scholarship and society, with political scientists and their books as much products of their time as they have been contributors to the evolution of the political world around them. The sources that we identify have given shape to the study and practice of Canadian domestic politics.
19 citations
TL;DR: The residential school violence cannot be reduced to a deviation from the norm as discussed by the authors, in crucial respects, it was an inherent feature of the residential school system and Canadian modern statehood itself.
Abstract: Drawing upon Walter Benjamin's “principle of montage,” this article excavates the political salience of what is referred to herein as the residential school system's “pan-territorial ideal.” The pan-territorial ideal materialized in 1930 with the opening of the Shubenacadie Residential School in the Maritimes, the system's final frontier. It was envisioned, forged and secured, in part, with the overt understanding that so called Indian education could be used as a vector of violence to control Indigenous peoples and their lands. This history clashes with dominant narratives that interpret residential school system violence as the product of mismanagement and neglect. From the early days of Confederation to its almost full legal autonomy from Britain in the early twentieth century and beyond, the Dominion's pursuit of the pan-territorial vision involved the selective harnessing of the residential school system as a field of state-sanctioned force to quell Indigenous resistance. In this, residential school violence cannot be reduced to a deviation from the norm. In crucial respects, it was an inherent feature of the system and Canadian modern statehood itself.
17 citations
TL;DR: The authors evaluate the Canadian parliamentary hearings on The Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act to determine whether respectful and fair deliberation occurred, focusing on the content, tone and nature of each question posed by committee members in hearings in both chambers.
Abstract: We evaluate the Canadian parliamentary hearings on The Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act to determine whether respectful and fair deliberation occurred Our focus is on the content, tone, and nature of each question posed by committee members in hearings in both chambers We find that, on the whole, the vast majority of questions met this baseline but that committee members were biased toward witnesses in agreement with their position and against witnesses in opposition to it In addition to our substantive findings, we contribute methodological insights, including a coding scheme, for this kind of qualitative text analysis
TL;DR: The authors argue that the organizational and ideational evolution of political science is closely interconnected with Canada's history and unequal social relations since Confederation, and that organized political science in Canada was really at heart a national venture.
Abstract: In this address, I argue that the organizational and ideational evolution of political science is closely interconnected with Canada’s history and unequal social relations since Confederation. This is because organized political science in Canada was really at heart a national venture. As a consequence, in order to understand the ideas animating early political scientists we have to consider Canada’s foundational status as a settler colony in the North American space, with a privileged place in the British Empire. This perspective may also help to highlight the distinct features of the colonial present which are giving rise to multiple sites of knowledge production-or multiple knowledges.
TL;DR: The authors provided the first wide-scale analysis of the factors that influence voter turnout in Canadian local elections using ordinary least squares regression with panel-corrected standard errors for time series cross-sections.
Abstract: We provide the first wide-scale analysis of the factors that influence voter turnout in Canadian local elections. Drawing on original data from 300 municipal elections conducted from 2004 to 2014, we use ordinary least squares regression with panel-corrected standard errors for time series cross-sections to test explanatory hypotheses related to differences in institutional design, the social-spatial context of these elections, and local competitiveness. Our results show that, although institutional and sociospatial factors influence local turnout, the competitiveness of elections exercises the greatest influence on local electoral participation.
TL;DR: The authors applied the regime politics approach to the study of judicial behaviour, which regards the Supreme Court as largely operating to preserve the policy agenda of the existing lawmaking majority, and evaluated the Court's behaviour during the Conservative government's tenure.
Abstract: Applying the regime politics approach to the study of judicial behaviour, which regards the Supreme Court as largely operating to preserve the policy agenda of the existing lawmaking majority, this paper evaluates the Court's behaviour during the Conservative government's tenure. There is evidence to support the basic core of the regime politics thesis. The Court rarely invalidates laws passed by the sitting government. Nonetheless, the Court's behaviour during the Conservative government's tenure was distinctive. Incorporating a measure of issue salience—the relative importance of the policies affected—into the analysis demonstrates the Court's impact on the Conservatives' policy agenda stands in sharp contrast to previous governments. It is the only government of the Charter period to have policies in its election platforms blocked by judicial review and the only government in Canadian history to effectively lose all of the constitutional reference cases it posed to the Court.
TL;DR: This paper examined the saliency of gender identity in six provincial election studies and found that saliency moderates the impact of gender on behaviour, and argued that gender identity should be incorporated into analyses of how gender structures political behavior.
Abstract: We know how sex (rather than gender) structures political preferences, but researchers rarely take into account the salience or importance of gender identity at the individual level. The only similar variable for which salience is commonly taken seriously is partisanship, for which direction and importance or strength are both considered imperative for measurement and analysis. While some scholars have begun to look at factors that may influence intragroup differences, such as feminism (Conover, 1988), most existing research implicitly assumes gender salience is homogenous in the population. We argue that both the content of gender identity (that is, what specifically is gender identity, as opposed to sex) as well its salience should be incorporated into analyses of how gender structures political behaviour. For some, gender simply does not motivate behaviour, and the fact that salience moderates the impact of gender on behaviour requires researchers to model accordingly. Using original data from six provincial election studies, we examine a measure of gender identity salience and find that it clarifies our understanding of gender's impact on political attitudes.
TL;DR: Dhamoon et al. as mentioned in this paper address the difficulties of integrating intersections into large-n style studies of political behaviour using "situated comparisons" and provide an analysis of gender gaps in turnout and civic engagement across ethnoracial groups in Canada using the Ethnic Diversity Survey (2002).
Abstract: Research on gendered political behaviour has been heavily influenced by feminist scholarship in understanding gender inequalities. Yet it has been more difficult to integrate the insights of more recent waves of feminist critics, notably among intersectional scholars. The focus has been on differences between women and men, rather than among differently situated women. This article addresses the difficulties of integrating intersections into large-n style studies of political behaviour using “situated comparisons” (Dhamoon, 2010). It then provides an analysis of gender gaps in turnout and civic engagement across ethnoracial groups in Canada using the Ethnic Diversity Survey (2002).It concludes by arguing that the study of gender and political behaviour must find a place for intersectional feminist approaches.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reveal how Charter of Values justifications asserted the Quebec nation's distinctiveness and alleged egalitarian pre-eminence over others, not only homogenizing and instrumentalizing multiple cultures, but also various feminisms.
Abstract: Quebec's Bill 60 (or Charter of Values), legislation prohibiting public officials from wearing religious symbols and garb, provides a complicated case of a minority nation grappling with culture and gender, while also illustrating the more contingent condition of Canadian multiculturalism, equality and feminisms. Quebec has adopted interculturalism versus multiculturalism; moreover, its multilayered women's movement remains a legitimate force, unlike in the rest of Canada. Despite the intricacies of these distinctive developments, this article reveals how Charter of Values justifications asserted the Quebec nation's distinctiveness and alleged egalitarian pre-eminence over others, not only homogenizing and instrumentalizing multiple cultures, but also various feminisms. Yet, when culture, gender equality and feminisms become reified and essentialized through a strategic depiction of certain minority women's rights, Canada's already well-worn claims to diversity and equality are further frayed both subnationally and nationally.
TL;DR: Les élections générales de 1970 au Québec ont marqué tant les esprits que la discipline de la science politique au Québeck, en particulier les analyses s'intéressant au comportement électoral and à l'étude des partis as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Les élections générales de 1970 au Québec ont marqué tant les esprits que la discipline de la science politique au Québec, en particulier les analyses s'intéressant au comportement électoral et à l’étude des partis. En effet, pour la première fois de l'histoire de la province, un parti indépendantiste, le Parti québécois (PQ), faisait son entrée à l'Assemblée nationale, « un réalignement important des divisions partisanes » (Lemieux, 1976a : 60) remettant en question le bipartisme tenace de l’échiquier politique québécois. Cette élection, ainsi que celle de 1973, ont aussi illuminé les défauts du mode de scrutin majoritaire uninominal à un tour (MU1), le PQ récoltant respectivement 7 sièges pour 23% du vote et 6 sièges pour 30% du vote–frustrant une grande partie de l’électorat.
TL;DR: The authors examined how Canadian constituency campaigns perceive and use data in elections and found significant variation in the extent and nature of the use of data at the constituency level, and that the increasing use of big data in electioneering may have a centralizing effect on traditionally stratarchical political party organization.
Abstract: This paper examines how Canadian constituency campaigns perceive and use data in elections. We apply a conceptual framework for data-driven campaigning, developed from existing literature, to participant observations and interview responses from the Conservative, Liberal and NDP campaigns in a single riding during the general election of 2015. The rhetoric of “big data” notwithstanding, we find significant variation in the extent and nature of the use of data at the constituency level, and that the increasing use of data in electioneering may have a centralizing effect on traditionally stratarchical political party organization.
TL;DR: The authors track the work of emotions in parent advocacy, showing how the enactment of filial (family) ties sheds new light on the gendered relationship between intimacy and political practice, and argue that an affective shift in parenting has opened up space for some cisgender parents to emerge as political actors in trans advocacy work.
Abstract: Over the past five years transgender children and their parents have emerged as visible actors in public discussions about the rights of transgender people in Canada. In this article, I track the work of emotions in parent advocacy, showing how the enactment of filial (family) ties sheds new light on the gendered relationship between intimacy and political practice. I argue that an affective shift in parenting has opened up space for some cisgender parents to emerge as political actors in trans advocacy work. The affective politics of parent advocacy nonetheless operates through dominant frames of gendered, classed and racialized normativity, limiting both who can become a parent advocate and potentially narrowing the focus of the struggle.
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TL;DR: The foundation story of Canada was first discovered by European settlers, that it was built from the top by the British Empire and that its stability and success depends on its institutions being maintained.
Abstract: What a lovely challenge: describe the books that best contribute to our knowledge and understanding of Canadian society. My first reaction was to think of those books that I particularly enjoyed reading and piece them together in a sort of long and personal review of key books. Then I came to the idea of knowledge and understanding of Canadian society and decided that the fundamental theme of this review should be the path, albeit a very slow path, we are on to reinvent the foundation story of Canada. The basic foundation story of Canada—that the country was first discovered by European settlers, that it was built from the top by the British Empire and that its stability and success depends on its institutions being maintained—is being undone. We are slowly recognizing whose histories have been ignored in this foundation story. I decided my review should follow the path of this rewriting of the foundation story of Canada. I will organize the review by the waves of books that analyse, advocate and interpret these different calls—by places, groups, bodies, projects—for voice, recognition and inclusion.
TL;DR: The authors examines the marketing and publicity actions available to the Canadian Journal of Political Science/Revue canadienne de science politique and similar flagship journals in an environment characterized by open access (OA) and impact factor (IF) metrics.
Abstract: Worldwide, the publishing industry has been compelled to change with digital media technology, and some traditional academic journals are struggling to adapt. This article examines the marketing and publicity actions available to the Canadian Journal of Political Science/Revue canadienne de science politique and similar flagship journals in an environment characterized by open access (OA) and impact factor (IF) metrics. It reviews the opportunities and threats presented by a movement towards publishing in ungated forums and pressure in the academic community to prioritize bibliometrics. It then looks at the experience, characteristics and comparative position of the Journal/Revue before reporting on perceptions and recommendations drawn from depth interviews with journal editors, presidents of the Canadian Political Science Association, and a university librarian, which are supplemented by suggestions from editorial board members. It concludes with proposals to address these circumstances head on, many of which are generalizable to other journals wrestling with marketing and publishing in the digital age.
TL;DR: The authors presented an original dataset of tenure and tenure-track faculty at Canadian political science (CPS) departments and analyzed where they received their doctorates, by sub-field and rank, paying particular attention to the country of doctoral training.
Abstract: Fifty years ago, Canadian political science (CPS) debated whether there was an “Americanization problem” in the discipline. Today, the idea does not have the same force. This article revisits the debate by focusing on one of the main points of concerns: the doctoral training of CPS faculty. The article presents an original dataset of tenure and tenure-track faculty at CPS departments. It then provides analysis of where these tenure and tenure-track faculty received their doctorates, by sub-field and rank, paying particular attention to the country of doctoral training. Unlike fifty years ago, Canadian-trained scholars form a much larger share of the professoriate. There is no evidence of a trend towards more American-trained scholars among recent hires of assistant professors. However, the results also suggest a continuing status hierarchy between the two countries. It concludes by arguing that CPS needs to be more reflective about its position within this status hierarchy.
TL;DR: A broad range of diverse publications on Canada and/in the world have been published in the twenty-first century as mentioned in this paper, ranging from problem-solving to critical and from heavily empirical and policy relevant to theoretically informed.
Abstract: Canada and/in the World is a broad topic that has produced a wide range of diverse publications in the twenty-first century, not only in political science but also in history and other neighbouring disciplines. What they all share is an interest in investigating how Canada, either as a state, a polity, a society, a culture or an idea, intersects with and is part of the international. Yet, along this spectrum we find literature spanning from problem-solving to critical—to use Robert Cox's distinction (1986)—as well as from heavily empirical and policy relevant to theoretically informed. Some works aim to explain, some to facilitate understanding and others to challenge and deconstruct. Thus, while there might be a traditional core of positivist writing centring on liberal internationalism and to a lesser extent (neo)realism, which some claim can be condensed into a list of “the ten most important books on Canadian foreign policy” (Kirton, 2009), there are also strong critical voices that challenge core assumptions about how we conceptualize and examine Canada and/in the world.
TL;DR: This paper conducted a survey of Canada's francophone political scientists on the language of knowledge dissemination in political science and found that French remains a significant part of the dissemination of knowledge in the field.
Abstract: This study presents the results of a survey of Canada's francophone political scientists on the language of knowledge dissemination in political science. Although almost all francophone political scientists agreed with the statement that English has become the lingua franca of political science, French continues to be a significant part of the dissemination of knowledge. However, there are important variations in language usage depending on the language in which the dissertation was written, the disciplinary sub-field within the discipline, and academic rank. Language choices are largely motivated by the desire to reach the widest possible audience while garnering recognition from peers.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue for a more collaborative political science, arguing for a partnership approach that engages those actors in the research process, including problem definition, research design, analysis and knowledge dissemination.
Abstract: The research model that has dominated the discipline of political science in Canada is based on a top-down approach that defines and finds solutions to problems as researchers see them, and diminishes the real world concerns of social and political actors. Advocating a more collaborative political science, we argue for a partnership approach that engages those actors in the research process, including problem definition, research design, analysis and knowledge dissemination. This inclusion sharpens the focus of the research and produces more contextually valid and socially valuable knowledge. We draw upon our research experience working with Indigenous communities in Canada to illustrate the value of this approach, and carry out a review of partnership-based research published in The Canadian Journal of Political Science. We find little evidence of partnership-based research in our flagship journal and discuss the implications for the future of our field.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors use the concept of path dependence to explain the challenges and complexities of institutional adaptation at the subnational level, focusing on the Niagara region in Canada to illustrate the institutional infrastructure of governance underpinning the economic landscape of city-regions and the challenges of reform that local regions face in an age of unprecedented global socioeconomic change.
Abstract: Abstract The paper uses the concept of path dependence to explain the challenges and complexities of institutional adaptation at the subnational level. The notion of path dependence is rooted in the well-established research tradition of historical institutionalism, one of the variants of neoinstitutionalism. The academic literature on the new institutionalism, however, has tended to focus on the national level of analysis. But there is a growing recognition of cities and regions as the main engines of socioeconomic change in the current age of seismic global economic perturbation. Their historic and current significance has thus made them arguably more organic units of governance than modern states or supranational regimes. The discussion focuses on the Niagara region in Canada to illustrate the institutional infrastructure of governance underpinning the economic landscape of city-regions and the challenges of reform that such local regions face in an age of unprecedented global socioeconomic change. Résumé L'article fait référence au concept de « dépendance au sentier » pour expliquer les défis et les complexités de l'adaptation institutionnelle à l’échelon infranational. La notion de dépendance au sentier est ancrée dans la tradition de recherche bien établie de l'institutionnalisme historique, une des variantes du néo-institutionnalisme. Le néo-institutionnalisme a eu tendance, cependant, à mettre l'accent sur le niveau d'analyse national. Mais on s'accorde à reconnaître de plus en plus le rôle des villes et des régions en tant que principaux moteurs du changement socio-économique dans le contexte actuel des perturbations économiques sismiques qui touchent la planète. Leur importance historique et actuelle a fait d'elles des entités de gouvernance plus dynamiques que les États modernes ou les régimes supranationaux. La discussion porte sur la région du Niagara au Canada afin d'illustrer l'infrastructure institutionnelle de gouvernance sur laquelle repose le paysage économique des villes-régions et les défis auxquels font face ces régions locales pour engager des réformes à l’ère d'une mutation socio-économique mondiale sans précédent.
TL;DR: The authors show that voters only live up to a federal theory of voting when governments make policy changes independent of the other level and those changes and their consequences are prominent in political discourse, and that political variation also affects electoral accountability.
Abstract: A theory of voting under federalism requires that attributions of responsibility moderate the strength of retrospective voting. Scholars have spotty evidence that voters do this but put this down to the effects of institutions and citizens’ capabilities. I show that political variation also affects electoral accountability. Using panel surveys across provincial and federal elections and qualitative media content analysis, I show that voters only live up to a federal theory of voting when governments make policy changes independent of the other level and those changes and their consequences are prominent in political discourse. Federal institutions affect electoral accountability through the politics that they generate.
TL;DR: The authors scrutinizes Waldron's conception of the harm in hate speech, arguing that it lacks the specificity and gravity Mill's principle requires in order to justify censorship, and also questions the categorical distinction between hate speech and speech that is "merely offensive".
Abstract: The liberal justification for censorship equates the harm in hate speech with the sort of tangible injury that would justify state intervention under J.S. Mill's harm principle. Recently, Jeremy Waldron has suggested that the real harm perpetuated by hate speech is less tangible, taking it to be a variety of moral pollution which undermines both the public good of inclusiveness and the minority's assurance of personal dignity. This paper scrutinizes Waldron's conception of the harm in hate speech, arguing that it lacks the specificity and gravity Mill's principle requires in order to justify censorship. The paper also questions the categorical distinction between hate speech and speech that is “merely offensive,” arguing that Waldron's reasons for censoring the one also apply to the other. The result is a censorship regime that liberals ought not to accept.