Abstract

GARCIA VALVERDE, Facundo. Responsibility and Legitimacy in Conditional Cash Transfers. Diánoia [online]. 2017, vol.62, n.79, pp.193-216. ISSN 0185-2450.

This paper analyzes the normative foundations of conditional cash transfers, a kind of poverty relief policy which has been massively implemented during recent years in Latin America. I intend to show that the conditional cash transfer’s typical justification is illegitimate for a democratic political community. After reviewing the reasons why the burden of proof falls on unconditional transfers, I argue that the typical justification appeals to a controversial conception of individual responsibility that crystallizes unequal interpersonal relations and is based on a shaky empirical diagnosis.

Keywords : egalitarianism; social protection; democratic legitimacy; poverty.