Presumed Equality as a Precondition for Public Recognition

According to an influential version of the theory of toleration, the full inclusion of members belonging to oppressed minorities would require the official gesture of public recognition or acceptance. However, there is a lack of empirical evidence on the actual effects of public recognition as a political strategy. The Sámi people have been an object in Swedish politics for centuries and have been subjected to assimilation policies as well as policies of segregation. In this study, the establishment of the Swedish Sámi Parliament is conceived as an act of recognition in order to clarify whether this political act was accompanied by a growing tolerance in the public sphere. As concluded from the analysis of the media coverage of the Sámi Parliament, public recognition cannot be imposed from above. Rather, it has to be understood as a possibility emerging from the capacity of marginalized groups to assert themselves as equals.