ABSTRACT
It is commonly thought that a central function of just political institutions in a liberal democracy is the protection of the autonomy of its members. Less considered is the necessity of autonomous members to develop, sustain, and improve just, liberal, and democratic institutions. Such a category of autonomy we label democratizing autonomy (DA). The aim of this chapter is to develop a conception of democratizing autonomy that is maturely reason-responsive, corrigible, and oriented toward justice. DA is not only what just democratic institutions seek to protect; it also sustains them. In the absence of just democratic institutions, we should expect those whose character manifests DA to engage in action, contributing to both a newly formed democracy, re-democratization, and resistance to institutions of illiberal democracy and forms of autocratic rule. The first section of this chapter briefly summarizes the concept of virtuous autonomy. The second section examines three different conceptions of political autonomy: the protective account, the expressive account, and the sustaining account. The third section addresses DA in the context of institutions that are predominantly just and democratic. The fourth section then considers the expression of DA in contexts which are unjust or undemocratic or both.
